Jennifer Lawrence to Lead Presentation of More Than $1M in Scholarships at The Hollywood Reporter’s Women in Entertainment Gala

The Hollywood Reporter said Tuesday that Jennifer Lawrence will lead the scholarship presentation at THR’s annual Women in Entertainment breakfast gala presented by Lifetime on Dec. 4 in Los Angeles. 

Lawrence, who previously accepted the Sherry Lansing Leadership Award at this event in 2017, will present alongside Amanda Zurawski, the lead plaintiff in Zurawski v. State of Texas, a Texas reproductive rights lawsuit spotlighted in the 2024 documentary feature film Zurawski v Texas. Lawrence serves as one of the executive producers on the film, which follows a group of women, led by Zurawski, who were denied access to healthcare and decided to band together with a fearless attorney from the Center for Reproductive Rights to sue the state of Texas. Zurawski v Texas, which had its world premiere at the Telluride Film Festival, has won numerous accolades and festival honors at the Hamptons International Film Festival, Mill Valley Film Festival, Hot Springs Documentary Film Festival, Heartland International Film Festival and Santa Fe International Film Festival. 

Lawrence, with partner Justine Ciarrocchi and their production company Excellent Cadaver, also produced Bread & Roses alongside Malala Yousafzai. The film, which premiered at the 2023 Cannes Film Festival, is a powerful look into the seismic impact on women’s lives after the fall of Kabul to the Taliban in 2022. Directed by Sahra Mani, Bread & Rose will be released worldwide on Apple TV+ on Nov. 22. Bread & Roses was the first documentary under the Excellent Cadaver banner, with Zurawski v. Texas having followed shortly after.

At the gala, four full-ride university scholarships, amounting to a value of more than $1 million, will be handed out. The Chuck Lorre Family Foundation is providing two scholarships, one to Chapman University and one to Loyola Marymount University. This is the ninth year TCLFF has underwritten scholarships for the program, providing more than $2 million in scholarships for the program to date. The National Association of Theater Owners California Nevada will underwrite its third scholarship to Chapman University. Writer-EP Melissa Blake, known for her work on Based on a True Story (Peacock) and The Wilds (Amazon), will gift a scholarship to Loyola Marymount University.

Lifetime has been a partner of the Women in Entertainment Mentorship Program since its inception and is a major contributor to its general scholarship fund, ensuring that each mentee receives a $10,000 scholarship to their college of choice. A+E Networks, Lifetime’s parent company, is also producing a short film highlighting the mentorship program to premiere at the event. Lifetime has contributed more than $1.5 million in support of the program over the past seven years. 

The scholarships are awarded to high school seniors currently participating in THR’s pioneering Women in Entertainment Mentorship Program which pairs some of the brightest high school girls from underserved communities in Los Angeles with some of the most powerful female executives in film and TV. The gala will be attended by approximately 30 high school juniors and seniors participating in the program. The mentorship program, which was launched with Big Brothers Big Sisters of Greater Los Angeles and is a fiscally sponsored fund of the Entertainment Industry Foundation, will celebrate its 15th anniversary at the gala. 

“Presenting these scholarships to the students who have participated in THR’s mentorship program is one of the most special moments of our program each year,” said THR co-editors-in-chief Nekesa Mumbi Moody and Maer Roshan. “These incredible students will undoubtedly help shape the future of our industry and our world overall. We are so honored to have role models like Jennifer Lawrence and Amanda Zurawski present these scholarships and we wish all of the students in our Women in Entertainment Mentorship Program every success as they take this next step in their education and in their lives.”

The Hollywood Reporter is also honored to announce that WME is generously contributing $75,000 to support the essential operational expenses of the mentorship program including program management by BBBSLA and EIF, transportation for the mentees, college test prep, college admissions and financial aid counseling, and more. 

Golden Globe Foundation continues its generous support with its multiyear grant of $50,000 annually through 2025 to Big Brothers Big Sisters of Greater Los Angeles to support the mentorship program’s general scholarship fund. “The Hollywood Reporter‘s Women In Entertainment Mentorship Program is a magnificent initiative that empowers the next generation of women in our industry,” said Henry Arnaud, president of the Golden Globe Foundation. “Golden Globe Foundation congratulates WIE on 15 incredible years and is delighted to continue its support of Big Brothers Big Sisters of Greater Los Angeles by funding college scholarships.”

As previously announced, Best Buy has renewed its partnership, which began in 2022, with the Women in Entertainment Mentorship Program. Best Buy Teen Tech Centers, a program of the Best Buy Foundation, are a network of creative, youth-centered community hubs where teens can engage with the latest technology, learn real-world career skills and interact with supportive mentors. Through the partnership, teens have access to the Los Angeles Community Impact Hub, a network of up to 12 centers in L.A. that aim to create a direct talent pipeline that gives young people the opportunity to discover and pursue careers in the local creative economy. The Community Impact Hub also provides a pipeline of youth for the Women in Entertainment Mentorship Program, with Best Buy Teen Tech Center members being selected annually for the program.

The gala will see Nicole Kidman honored with the prestigious Sherry Lansing Leadership Award and Selena Gomez honored with the Equity in Entertainment Award. The gala, attended by 600 industry leaders and VIPs, coincides with the release of The Hollywood Reporter’s highly anticipated Women in Entertainment issue, which highlights the Power 100, a list of the most powerful female executives and talent in entertainment. 

The Hollywood Reporter’s Women in Entertainment event is presented by Lifetime, which has been one of the WIE Mentorship Program’s biggest supporters, having contributed more than $1.7 million in scholarships over the past eight years. The event is also sponsored by Best Buy, Delta Air Lines, Rare Beauty, Regent Seven Seas Cruises, Sephora and WME and presented in partnership with Big Brothers Big Sisters of Greater Los Angeles, the Entertainment Industry Foundation, Chapman University and Loyola Marymount University.