The 2026 Kennedy Center Honors have been announced: This year’s celebrities who are willing to appear at a Trump-hosted event in 2026 honorees include playwright and director David Mamet and Ocean’s Eleven star Andy Garcia, along with country singer Barbara Mandrell, music producer David Foster, and singer Paul Anka.
According to the official website for the Kennedy Center Honors, since 1978 the ceremony has “celebrated the lifetime contributions of some of the world’s most influential artists in music, dance, theater, opera, motion pictures and television.” The mention of “the world” is important there, because Anka and Foster were born in Canada.
Since Trump’s takeover of the lauded cultural institution during his second administration, the Kennedy Center has become a political lightning rod, due to numerous artists cancelling performances there as well as Trump’s attempts to illegally emblazon his name on the building. The Trump-controlled board now claims that the building must be shut down entirely for a two-year renovation; this year’s annual ceremony celebrating the 2026 honorees will be held at the Capital One Arena in downtown Washington.