Two-time Golden Globe nominee and BAFTA winner Caitriona Balfe is set to receive an Oscar Wilde Award, a press release has announced. The Irish actress and “Outlander” star will receive the honor at the annual US-Ireland Alliance event, which recognizes the Irish in entertainment, on February 23 in Santa Monica.
“It’s been a great year for Irish actresses and we’re delighted to honor one who is receiving well-deserved recognition for her success in ‘Outlander,’” said Trina Vargo, founder of the US-Ireland Alliance. “Given Caitriona’s intense schedule of time travel, and the cold and rainy Scottish weather, our event should be relaxing for her. The one thing that ‘Outlander’ and the Oscar Wilde Awards have in common is whiskey,” she joked.
“Outlander” is based based on the best-selling book series by Diana Gabaldon. The show’s sophomore season concluded in July of 2016. Unfortunately, a premiere date for Season 3 of the Starz time traveling drama hasn’t been announced just yet, but the show is expected to resume sometime this year. Balfe plays the series’ lead, Claire Fraser.
“While ‘Outlander’ is a brilliant period show, Claire represents so many qualities of a 20th-century modern-day woman, someone who is forging her own path, fighting for what she believes, and doing so with integrity,” Balfe has said. She elaborated, “Right now it’s a very important time to stand up and voice our beliefs and reiterate that we are 50 percent of the population . . . that we have a voice and we need to use it. Even though Claire is a woman from the 40s, I think that she does have a resonance today. We need to stand up for our beliefs and our rights, and I think she embodies that kind of spirit.”
Balfe’s other credits include “Money Monster,” “The Price of Desire,” and “Now You See Me”