Octavia Spencer is Hasty Pudding's 2017 'Woman of the Year'

CAMBRIDGE, MA — Octavia Spencer, currently shining in the explosively popular "Hidden Figures," is Hasty Pudding Theatrical's 2017 Woman of the Year, joining actor Ryan Reynolds as hits year's honorees from the 240-year-old Cambridge group.

The group hails Spencer as a "veteran character actress and one of Hollywood’s most sought-after talents."

"We could not be more excited to offer Ms Spencer our Woman of the Year award. We are humbled by her talent and are so honored that our little Pudding pot will be sitting alongside Ms Spencer's Oscar and Golden Globe on her mantle,” Hasty Pudding Theatricals co-producer Adam Chiavacci said in a press statement.

The Hasty Pudding Theatricals' Man and Woman of the Year Awards are presented annually to performers who have made lasting and impressive contributions to the world of entertainment. The Woman of the Year award was established in 1951.

Past recipients include Meryl Streep, Debbie Reynolds, Katharine Hepburn, Julia Roberts, Jodie Foster, Dame Helen Mirren and, most recently, Kerry Washington.

The Woman of the Year festivities are scheduled for Jan. 26, and include a parade through the streets of Cambridge, followed by a celebratory roast of Spencer and presentation of her "Pudding Pot" at Farkas Hall, in Harvard Square.

Spencer's current star turn is in "Hidden Figures," and she has numerous additional film and television credits on top of her Golden Globe and Academy Award-winning role in "The Help,"

Image via Hasty Pudding Institute