The Fast and the Furious star Michelle Rodriguez joins Fargo series creator Noah Hawley, and Alamo Drafthouse founders Tim and Karrie League as the newest inductees into the Texas Film Hall of Fame Credit: Photo by Brian Bowen Smith

An A-list action star, a powerhouse producer, and two people who helped shape the modern moviegoing experience make up the list of this year’s inductees into the Texas Film Hall of Fame.

The list of honorees was announced last night at a special event, hosted by Austin Film Society, ahead of the Texas Film Awards gala and AFS fundraiser, scheduled for March 6 at Distribution Hall in Austin. The inductees are:

• The epitome of the cinematic badass, San Antonio native Michelle Rodriguez has balanced her career between textured performances like her award-winning screen debut in Girlfight and experimental works like She Dies Tomorrow, and blockbusters such as Resident Evil, Avatar, and, of course The Fast and the Furious franchise. She will be inducted by her old friend, Robert Rodriguez, who directed her in Machete, Machete Kills, and Alita: Battle Angel.

• Screenwriter, novelist, and producer extraordinaire Noah Hawley may have been born in New York but has called Austin his home since 2010, around the time he filmed the short-lived ABC series My Generation here. Since then he’s created the multiple-Emmy-winning show Fargo, as well as the critically-lauded head trip Legion, based on the reality-warping Marvel character of the same name, both for FX. Having located his production company 26 Keys here last year, he’s now working on his new show in the Aliens franchise, Alien: Earth, debuting on FX later this year.

Tim and Karrie League Credit: Image Courtesy of Alison Narro
• And last but far from least, Tim and Karrie League. Much like 2023 inductees Janet and John Pierson, the Leagues aren’t entering the fame for a body of work that can be summed up with an IMDB page, but rather for their broader and arguably industry-shifting impact on movie-going and movie-loving. Starting with the founding of the original Alamo Drafthouse on Colorado Street in Austin in 1997, they went on to redefine the idea of dinner-and-a-movie, and helped keep the repertory spirit alive while advocating for oddball and unusual films that they believed in. They’ve done this through the founding of two distribution houses – Drafthouse Films and Neon – as well as founding preservation nonprofit the American Genre Film Archive, redefining collectibles through Mondo, and launching careers and expanding horizons through Fantastic Fest. Moreover, there were a thousand behind-the-scenes acts of film boosterism that most people will never know about (including, as AFS CEO Rebecca Campbell noted, giving the society free screen space in the days before the AFS Cinema). They will be inducted by their old friend and FF regular, Elijah Wood.

This quartet join the distinguished company of previous inductees that includes Oscar winners like Shirley MacLaine, Renée Zellweger, and Matthew McConaughey, directors like Jeff Nichols (The Bikeriders) and Tobe Hooper (The Texas Chain Saw Massacre), comedy legend Carol Burnett, TV icon Larry Hagman, and more.

All four will be inducted at the March 6 award ceremony. Musical director for the night will be JaRon Marshall, who takes over that honor from his Black Pumas bandmate, the Oscar-nominated Adrian Quesada.

Aside from honoring these luminaries of the Texas film scene, the event also serves as AFS’ biggest fundraising event of the year. The money raised through ticket sales and auctions on the night will go to support vital programs such as the AFS Filmmaker Grants, professional development, and education initiatives.

Tickets for the gala dinner and ceremony are available now at austinfilm.org/texas-film-awards-2025.

This article appears in January 24 • 2025.

A note to readers: Bold and uncensored, The Austin Chronicle has been Austin’s independent news source for over 40 years, expressing the community’s political and environmental concerns and supporting its active cultural scene. Now more than ever, we need your support to continue supplying Austin with independent, free press. If real news is important to you, please consider making a donation of $5, $10 or whatever you can afford, to help keep our journalism on stands.

SUPPORT US

The Chronicle's first Culture Desk editor, Richard has reported on Austin's growing film production and appreciation scene for over a decade. A graduate of the universities of York, Stirling, and UT-Austin, a Rotten Tomatoes certified critic, and eight-time Best of Austin winner, he's currently at work on two books and a play.