
Colman Domingo will be honored with the Variety Creative Conscience Award at the 50th San Francisco International LGBTQ+ Film Festival (Frameline50).
Domingo will participate in a Q&A with Variety senior artisans editor Jazz Tangcay on Friday, June 19.
The award, which recognizes an individual in the entertainment world who personifies the industry’s dedication to humanitarian, cultural, and charitable causes, honors Domingo’s career as an actor and filmmaker, along with his work to champion underrepresented communities.
“I lived in San Francisco from 1991-2001 and went to Frameline every year to see films that told our stories,” said Domingo. “The shorts program was my favorite. Ambitious, thought-provoking, thrilling, and passionate. I think I found a part of myself as I was becoming a man in the Bay Area. I am extremely honored to receive this award on its 50th anniversary. And Frameline….you look so good at 50.”
Domingo is an Emmy-winning and two-time Academy Award-nominated actor, writer, playwright, director, and producer. Under his Edith Productions banner, he’s executive-produced films including Sing Sing, It’s What’s Inside, Dead Man’s Wire, and the Academy Award shortlisted animated short New Moon.
He currently stars in Lionsgate’s Michael, which scored the biggest opening weekend ever for a biopic, and the third season of HBO Max’s hit series Euphoria. He’s also set to star in the second season of Netflix’s The Four Seasons, Universal Pictures’ highly anticipated Disclosure Day, and will make his directorial debut and star in Lionsgate’s Nat King Cole biopic Unforgettable. Other film and TV credits include voicing the Lion in Wicked: Part Two, The Running Man, The Color Purple, Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom, Zola, If Beale Street Could Talk, Selma, Candyman, Your Friendly Neighborhood Spiderman, The Madness, and Fear the Walking Dead.
Last spring, New York Theatre Workshop premiered Lights Out: Nat “King” Cole, co-written by Domingo and NYTW artistic director Patricia McGregor. He has also co-produced the Pulitzer Prize-winning and Tony-nominated play Fat Ham and was a producer on the West End transfer of Retrograde.
“Colman Domingo’s extraordinary talent and creativity have established him as one of the most compelling voices in entertainment today,” said Dea Lawrence, co-president and publisher of Variety. “His dynamic performances, combined with his bold endeavors as a writer, director, and producer, showcase the impact of art infused with purpose. He exemplifies what a true ‘Creative Conscience’ looks like.”
“It’s an incredible honor to celebrate Colman Domingo at Frameline50. Not only is Colman a profound talent whose impact on queer art and community transcends film, but he also has deep ties to the Bay Area and Frameline, as both a member of our audience and someone our audience is thrilled to see on screen,” said Allegra Madsen, Frameline’s Executive Director. “We’re grateful for Variety’s partnership, which has enabled us to recognize the extraordinary Colman Domingo during a very significant time in both his career and our Festival’s history.”
Hosted by Frameline, the 50th San Francisco International LGBTQ+ Film Festival (Frameline50) takes place in theaters across the San Francisco Bay Area from June 17–27, 2026.

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