Rose Byrne will receive the Breakthrough Performance Award for her role in If I Had Legs I’d Kick You at the Palm Springs International Film Festival.
The Film Awards will take place on Jan. 3 at the Palm Springs Convention Center, with the festival itself running from Jan. 2 to Jan. 12.
“Rose Byrne delivers a fearless and electrifying performance in If I Had Legs I’d Kick You,” says festival chairman Nachhattar Singh Chandi. “Her portrayal of Linda — a mother unraveling under pressure — grounds this bold, unsettling film with raw emotion which lingers long after the credits. We are honored to present her with the Breakthrough Performance Award, recognizing a performance of remarkable depth and distinction.”
The A24 film follows Linda, who attempts to navigate her life after her child’s mysterious illness, an absent husband, a missing person and a hostile relationship with her therapist. Conan O’Brien, Danielle Macdonald, Christian Slater and A$AP Rocky also star. The film was written and directed by Mary Bronstein.
Byrne has already received accolades for her performance: she won the Silver Bear for Best Lead Performance at the 2025 Berlin International Film Festival, as well as best actress from the New York Film Critics Circle Awards, best lead performance from the Los Angeles Film Critics Association, with nominations from the Critics’ Choice Awards, Film Independent Spirit Awards, Golden Globes and Gotham Awards.
The actress, who hails from Australia, has starred in Damages, opposite Glenn Close, for which she scored two Golden Globe nominations and one Emmy nomination. Other TV credits include Physical, Platonic and Mrs. America. Previous film credits include Juliet, Naked, Peter Rabbit, Instant Family, Spy, The Place Beyond the Pines, Bridesmaids, Insidious, Get Him to the Greek, 28 Weeks Later and many more. She will next star in Stephanie Laing’s Tow and the Peacock series The Good Daughter.
Previous winners of the Breakthrough Performance Award include Mikey Madison (Anora), Da’Vine Joy Randolph (The Holdovers), Danielle Deadwyler (Till), Mary J. Blige (Mudbound), Marion Cotillard (La Vie en Rose), Andra Day (The United States v Billie Holiday), Cynthia Erivo (Harriet), Jennifer Hudson (Dreamgirls), Brie Larson (Room), Lupita Nyong’o (12 Years a Slave) and Rosamund Pike (Gone Girl). Cotillard, Hudson, Larson, Madison, Nyong’o and Randolph all went on to win Academy Awards in the years they were nominated, while Day, Blige, Erivo and Pike received Oscar nominations.
Previously announced honorees at the Palm Springs International Film Festival include Michael B. Jordan (Icon Award), Leonardo DiCaprio (Desert Palm Achievement Award, Actor), Ethan Hawke (Career Achievement Award), Kate Hudson (Icon Award), Adam Sandler (Chairman’s Award), Amanda Seyfried (Desert Palm Achievement Award, Actress), Frankenstein director Guillermo del Toro and actors Oscar Isaac, Jacob Elordi and Mia Goth (Visionary Award), Hamnet director Chloé Zhao and actors Jessie Buckley and Paul Mescal (Vanguard Award) and Sentimental Value cast members Renate Reinsve, Stellan Skarsgård, Inga Ibsdotter Lilleaas and Elle Fanning (International Star Award).
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