Jeremy Allen White took the stage at the 2025 Gotham Independent Film Awards to honor the project that defined his year, Springsteen: Deliver me from nowhere.
Actor and director Scott Cooper received the Cultural Icon Tribute Award at the December 1 ceremony in New York for his work on the Bruce Springsteen biopic.
White, 34, made the moment personal by thanking Springsteen for opening the door to tell a story that had never been told before.
“We are very grateful that Bruce allowed us in [his] space. And tell a story that he had never told himself and that he had never mythologized,” he said.
After coming across the word “mythologized”, he apologized and joked: “Sorry guys, I’m very tired”, which immediately made the room laugh.
As he continued, White reflected on what it meant to represent an icon by focusing on the person behind the legend.
“He allowed us to meet him in his most human, his most vulnerable, his most sought-after form and that kind of trust is rare. It’s a gift and it’s the reason this film exists,” he said.
He shared how important this recognition was, adding that receiving this award “for embodying a cultural icon while refusing to treat him as one, is something we will carry with us for the rest of our lives.”
The Gotham Film & Media Institute earlier announced that White and Cooper would be among the 2025 honorees.
In a statement, executive director Jeffrey Sharp praised Springsteen’s impact on audiences for decades and explained why the film made such an impression.
He said the film captures “the intimacy and humanity at the heart of Nebraska,” while also highlighting White’s performance as “a raw, in-depth portrait of Springsteen at a crossroads.”
Sharp added that the collaboration between White and Cooper reflects the type of cinema the Gotham community hopes to elevate, personal, bold and rooted in true storytelling.
