Annette Bening named Harvard's Hasty Pudding Woman of the Year

Harvard University’s Hasty Pudding Theatricals has named actor Annette Bening as its 2024 Woman of the Year

CAMBRIDGE, Mass. -- Annette Bening, a two-time Golden Globe winner who recently received her fifth Oscar nomination, was named Thursday as the 2024 Woman of the Year by Harvard University’s Hasty Pudding Theatricals.

The Pudding is the oldest theatrical organization in the nation and one of the oldest in the world. Since 1951, it has bestowed this award annually on women “who have made lasting and impressive contributions to the world of entertainment.” Other winners have included Meryl Streep, Julia Roberts, Scarlett Johansson and Jennifer Coolidge.

The festivities, including a celebratory roast of Bening, will take place Tuesday night. Bening will attend a performance of the Hasty Pudding Theatricals’ 175th production, “Heist Heist Baby.”

“We’re absolutely thrilled to honor Annette Bening in this milestone 175th anniversary year for the Hasty Pudding,” said Josh Hillers, the organization's president. “Hot off her Oscars nomination for Best Actress, we’re excited to present her with the most prestigious award in the entertainment industry.”

Bening, who also has won a Screen Actors Guild Award and starred in “The Grifters” and “American Beauty,” earned her fifth Oscar nomination, this one for best actress, for playing the prickly long-distance swimmer Diana Nyad in the movie “Nyad.”