Zurich To Fete Tom Hiddleston With Golden Eye Award At ‘Tenzing’ Opening Night Gala Screening

The Zurich Film Festival (ZFF) will honor Tom Hiddleston with its Golden Eye Award as his latest feature Tenzing opens its 22nd edition on Thursday.

Hiddleston, who will attend the European premiere with co-star Willem Dafoe and BAFTA-nominated director filmmaker Jennifer Peedom, will be presented with the award ahead of the screening.

The actor plays legendary New Zealand climber Edmund Hillary in the drama about the 1953 Mount Everest expedition in which he became the first man to scale its peak, and taking its title from the mountain guide accompanying him, Tenzing Norgay.

ZFF CEO Christian Jungen described Hiddleston as one of the most versatile actors of his generation as he explained the motivation for the award.

“He brings depth and charisma to his characters,” he added. “In Tenzing, he shows that you can make your big dreams come true if you believe in yourself and respect others. For his outstanding performance in the film, we will honor him with our Golden Eye Award at the opening of the 22nd Zurich Film Festival, and we look forward to his visit.”

The festival cited Hiddleston’s varied credits ranging from Loki in the Marvel Cinematic Universe to performances in The Night Manager, War Horse and Midnight in Paris, as well as his work on the London and New York stages in productions such as Shakespeare’s Othello, Hamlet, Much Ado About Nothing and Harold Pinter’s Betrayal.

The Zurich Film Festival runs from September 24 to October 4.