The Academy Award-winning director, the creative spark behind “Do The Right Thing,” “Malcolm X” and “BlacKkKlansman,” will receive the DGA’s Lifetime Achievement Award for Distinguished Achievement in Motion Picture Direction, according to The Hollywood Reporter. The award “recognizes extraordinary efforts in the art of cinema.”
Lee, 64, will receive the award on March 12 during the 74th DGA Awards ceremony, the guild announced Wednesday.
“Icon. Trailblazer. Visionary. Spike Lee has changed the face of cinema, and there is no single word that encapsulates his significance to the craft of directing,” Lesli Linka Glatter, president of the DGA, said in a statement. “From his groundbreaking ‘Do the Right Thing,’ ‘BlacKkKlansman’ and everything in between -- to his signature ‘double dolly’ shot, Spike is an innovator on so many levels. His bold and passionate storytelling over the past three decades has masterfully entertained, as it held a stark mirror to our society and culture.”
Only 35 directors have received the DGA’s lifetime achievement award, Variety reported. Past winners have included Frank Capra (1959), Alfred Hitchcock (1968), Orson Welles (1984), Billy Wilder (1985), Steven Spielberg (2000), Martin Scorsese (2003), Milos Forman (2013) and Ridley Scott (2017).
The award winners are selected by past and present presidents of the guild, according to The Hollywood Reporter.
Photos: Spike Lee through the years Here are some memorable photos of film director Spike Lee through the years. (Frazer Harrison/Getty Images)
Photos: Spike Lee through the years 1988: Jesse Jackson Jr., left, son of presidential candidate Jesse Jackson, shown with film director Spike Lee at a luncheon with the candidate at Sylvia's restaurant in the Harlem section of New York on April 10, 1988. (AP Photo/Ron Edmonds)
Photos: Spike Lee through the years 1991: Film director Spike Lee is seen in California on June 3, 1991. (AP Photo/Craig Fujii)
Photos: Spike Lee through the years 1994: Former Chicago Bulls star Michael Jordan, left, receives a small statue from filmmaker Spike Lee during ceremonies honoring Jordan at the United Center in Chicago, Nov. 1, 1994. Jordan's No. 23 jersey was retired by the Bulls and a 12-foot bronze statue of Jordan was unveiled outside the center. (AP Photo/Fred Jewell/Pool)
Photos: Spike Lee through the years 1997: Film director Spike Lee looks on during a game between the Chicago Bulls and the New York Knicks at the United Center in Chicago, Illinois, on Jan. 21, 1997. The Bulls won the game, 88-87. (Jonathan Daniel/Allsport)
Photos: Spike Lee through the years 1999: Film cirector Spike Lee cheers on the St. John's Red Storm during the game against the Duke Blue Devils at the Madison Square Garden in New York, New York, on Jan. 24, 1999. The Blue Devils defeated the Red Storm 92-88. (David Leeds/Allsport via Getty Images)
Photos: Spike Lee through the years 2000: President Clinton and director Spike Lee chat May 22, 2000, in Washington, D.C. (Pool Photo via Getty Images)
Photos: Spike Lee through the years 2001: Director Spike Lee and Gordon Parks at the reception prior to the Gordon Parks Independent Film Awards for African American Filmmakers at the Directors Guild of America Theater in New York City on October 3, 2001. (Gabe Palacio/ImageDirect via Getty Images)
Photos: Spike Lee through the years 2002: Directors Guild of America President Martha Coolidge, honoree Spike Lee and presenter Halle Barry pose for photographers after the third annual Directors Guild of America Awards on June 9, 2002, in New York City. (Mark Mainz/Getty Images)
Photos: Spike Lee through the years 2003: Director Spike Lee receives the Hall of Fame Award at the 34th NAACP Image Awards at the Universal Amphitheater on March 8, 2003, in Los Angeles. (Kevin Winter/Getty Images)
Photos: Spike Lee through the years 2004: Actor and member of the jury Spike Lee attends "The Terminal" Opening Night Premiere with his wife Tanya Lynette Lewis and children at the 61st Venice Film Festival on September 1, 2004, in Venice, Italy. (Pascal Le Segretain/Getty Images)
Photos: Spike Lee through the years 2005: Director Spike Lee answers questions during a book signing for "That's My Story and I'm Sticking to It" at Harlem's Hue-Man book store October 13, 2005, in New York City. (Paul Hawthorne/Getty Images)
Photos: Spike Lee through the years 2006: Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban and director Spike Lee arrive at the GQ magazine 2006 Men of the Year dinner celebrating the 11th annual Men of the Year issue at the Sunset Tower Hotel on November 29, 2006, in West Hollywood, California. (Kevin Winter/Getty Images for GQ)
Photos: Spike Lee through the years 2007: Tennis player Serena Williams, director Spike Lee and musician Alicia Keys pose for a photo during a party hosted by Keep a child Alive for the premiere of "We Are Together" at the Tribeca Grand Hotel during the 2007 Tribeca Film Festival on April 26, 2007, in New York City. (Scott Gries/Getty Images for Keep a Child Alive)
Photos: Spike Lee through the years 2008: Director Spike Lee waves to the crowd during the game between the Los Angeles Lakers and the New York Knicks at Staples Center on December 16, 2008, in Los Angeles. The Lakers won 116-114. (Stephen Dunn/Getty Images)
Photos: Spike Lee through the years 2009: Comedian Chris Rock talks with director Spike Lee during the game between the New York Knicks and the Portland Trail Blazers at Madison Square Garden on December 7, 2009, in New York. (Nick Laham/Getty Images)
Photos: Spike Lee through the years 2010: Former Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and director Spike Lee watch warms-ups on the field prior to the start of Super Bowl XLIV between the Indianapolis Colts and the New Orleans Saints on February 7, 2010, at Sun Life Stadium in Miami Gardens, Florida. (Ronald Martinez/Getty Images)
Photos: Spike Lee through the years 2011: Actor Will Ferrell and director Spike Lee attend the Moet Suite at the U.S. Open on September 10, 2011, in New York. (Brian Ach/Getty Images for Moet & Chandon)
Photos: Spike Lee through the years 2012: Director Spike Lee (second from left) with his son Jackson Lee, wife Tonya Lewis Lee and daughter Satchel Lee as they attend the "Bad25" Premiere and Jaeger Le Coultre Glory to the Filmmaker Award Ceremony during the 69th Venice Film Festival at the Palazzo del Cinema on August 31, 2012, in Venice, Italy. (Pascal Le Segretain/Getty Images)
Photos: Spike Lee through the years 2013: Director Spike Lee and singer Alicia Keys talk during the Taco Bell Skills Challenge part of 2013 NBA All-Star Weekend at the Toyota Center on February 16, 2013, in Houston. (Scott Halleran/Getty Images)
Photos: Spike Lee through the years 2014: Filmmaker Spike Lee (right) and Tonya Lewis Lee attend the 2014 Vanity Fair Oscar Party hosted by Graydon Carter on March 2, 2014, in West Hollywood, California. (Pascal Le Segretain/Getty Images)
Photos: Spike Lee through the years 2015: Filmmaker Spike Lee accepts an award onstage during the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences' seventh annual Governors Awards at the Ray Dolby Ballroom at Hollywood & Highland Center on November 14, 2015, in Hollywood, California. (Kevin Winter/Getty Images)
Photos: Spike Lee through the years 2016: Tonya Lewis Lee, Tennis Player Serena Williams, guest and director Spike Lee attend the EPIX New York Premiere of 'Serena' on June 13, 2016, in New York City. (Monica Schipper/Getty Images for EPIX)
Photos: Spike Lee through the years 2017: Allan Houston, Jason Negron, Bernard King, John Starks and Spike Lee at the launch of Jose Cuervo Reserva De La Familia Hardwood Edition. A limited-edition bottle encased in the original Knicks court to celebrate some of the most iconic moments ever played. on November 16, 2017, at the Pool in New York City. (Eugene Gologursky/Getty Images for Jose Cuervo Reserva De La Familia)
Photos: Spike Lee through the years 2018: Spike Lee (left) and Tonya Lewis Lee attend the 2018 Vanity Fair Oscar Party hosted by Radhika Jones at Wallis Annenberg Center for the Performing Arts on March 4, 2018, in Beverly Hills, California. (Dia Dipasupil/Getty Images)
Photos: Spike Lee through the years 2019: Spike Lee (right), director and producer, celebrates a point during the Women's Singles final match between Serena Williams of the United States and Bianca Andreescu of Canada on day thirteen of the 2019 U.S. Open at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center on September 7, 2019, in the Queens borough of New York City. (Elsa/Getty Images)
Photos: Spike Lee through the years 2020: Tonya Lewis Lee and filmmaker Spike Lee attends the 92nd annual Academy Awards at Hollywood and Highland on February 9, 2020, in Hollywood, California. (Amy Sussman/Getty Images)
Photos: Spike Lee through the years 2021: Jury president Spike Lee, Jury members Tahar Rahim, Maggie Gyllenhaal, Jessica Hausner and Mélanie Laurent on stage during the closing ceremony of the 74th annual Cannes Film Festival on July 17, 2021, in Cannes, France. (Andreas Rentz/Getty Images)