Iñárritu’s “Birdman” Named Best Feature at the Gotham Independent Film Awards

Alejandro Gonzalez Iñárritu is flying high…

The 51-year-old Mexican director’s latest film, Birdman, was named Best Feature at the 24th annual Gotham Independent Film Awards, which were handed out at Cipriani Wall Street in New York City.

Birdman

Iñárritu accepted the award from presenter Jon Hamm, who cracked self-deprecatingly wise before announcing the nominees.

Birdman’s Michael Keaton took home the Best Actor award, and Julianne Moore won Best Actress for Still Alice. The Edward Snowden pic Citizenfour was named Best Documentary.

Uma Thurman hosted the event, which featured presenters including Meryl Streep, Scarlett Johansson, Will Arnett, Amy Schumer, Ethan Hawke and more.

The Independent Filmmaker Project, which hands out the Gothams to “worthy independent films,” calls this the “kickoff to the film awards season,”

Trophies were handed out in six categories, plus the Audience Award, culled from the 15 nominees for Best Feature, Best Documentary and Breakthrough Director.

Here is the complete list of Gotham Award winners:

Best Feature
 Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance)
Alejandro G. Iñárritu, director; Alejandro G. Iñárritu, John Lesher, Arnon Milchan, James W. Skotchdopole, producers

Best Actress
 Julianne Moore in Still Alice

Best Actor
 Michael Keaton in Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue Of Ignorance)

Best Documentary
 CITIZENFOUR
Laura Poitras, director; Laura Poitras, Mathilde Bonnefoy, Dirk Wilutzky, producers

Gotham Independent Film Audience Award 
Boyhood Richard Linklater, director; Richard Linklater, Cathleen Sutherland, Jonathan Sehring, John Sloss, producers

Bingham Ray Breakthrough Director Award
 Ana Lily Amirpour for A Girl Walks Home Alone At Night

Breakthrough Actor
 Tessa Thompson in Dear White People

Cruz Named Esquire’s Sexiest Woman Alive

Penelope Cruz has beat out a world of competition to earn a special honor.

The 40-year-old Spanish actress and Oscar winner has been given the title of Esquire‘s Sexiest Woman Alive.

Penelope Cruz - Esquire

Cruz, who stars in the upcoming Spanish-language film Ma Ma and Grimsby with Sacha Baron Cohen is the 10th honoree and the first Latina ever to earn the annual title.

“I’ve played a lot of tricks on myself,” she says in the magazine’s cover story. “I’ve made it hard for me sometimes, especially in my teens and 20s. I had an attraction to drama. Most of us have that, especially if you are an artist — you feel like you are tempted to explore the darkness. I could not be less interested now. For me, the most attractive, charming, cool, fun, interesting thing — how could I call it? A plan.”

Penelope Cruz - Esquire

Previous recipients of the magazine’s Sexiest Woman Alive title include Scarlett Johansson, Mila Kunis, Rihanna, Minka Kelly, Kate Beckinsale, Halle Berry, Charlize Theron, Jessica Biel and Angelina Jolie.

Trailer Released for Jon Favreau’s “Chef,” Co-Starring Vergara

Sofia Vergara’s is cookin’ up something special in her next film project…

The 41-year-old Colombian actress is starring in Jon Favreau’s soon-to-be released comedy Chef, which just saw its theatrical trailer released.

Sofia Vergara in Chef

The film centers on Favreau’s character, Miami-born chef Carl Casper, who tries and fails to open a restaurant in Los Angeles. He returns to Miami to fix up a food truck he names El Jefe Cubanos and reacquaints with his ex-wife (portrayed by Vergara). He plans to drive across the country to reclaim his success in L.A.

In addition to Favreau and Vergara, the film also stars John Leguizamo, Robert Downey Jr., Dustin Hoffman, Oliver Platt, Scarlett Johansson, Bobby Cannavale and Amy Sedaris.

Open Road, which acquired the distribution rights to Chef in June, and will release the film stateside on May 9.

Cannavale to Star Opposite Cameron Diaz in “Annie”

It’s the hard-knock life for Bobby Cannavale

The 43-year-old half-Cuban American has signed on to star in Sony Pictures and Overbrook Entertainment’s in the film adaptation of the Broadway musical Annie.

Bobby Cannavale

Cannavale, currently nominated for two Emmy Awards, joins Quvenzhane Wallis, Jamie Foxx, Cameron Diaz and Rose Byrne in the Will Gluck-directed film.

Cannavale, who most recently appeared in Woody Allen’s Blue Jasmine, will play a bulldog political adviser to Foxx’s character as he makes a mayoral run in New York.

The film is set for release on Christmas Day 2014.

Gluck is currently revising the film’s screenplay, which was written by Emma Thompson and rewritten by Aline Brosh McKenna. It’s based on the comic strip and the musical stage play Annie, with book by Thomas Meehan, music by Charles Strouse and lyrics by Martin Charnin.

Cannavale will next appear in the Jon Favreau-directed Chef opposite Favreau and Scarlett Johansson, and the Dan Fogelman-directed Imagine with Al Pacino, Jennifer Garner and Annette Bening.