STARZ #TakeTheLead Award
As announced in Variety, the STARZ #TakeTheLead Award will be awarded at the 2026 Humanitas Prizes Award Show and Toast on September 9 at Avalon Hollywood to Rae Benjamin and presented by Russell T Davies.
The STARZ #TakeTheLead Award was created by the streaming platform to celebrate those who exemplify the company’s #TakeTheLead commitment to amplify “narratives by, about and for women and underrepresented audiences.” The award recognizes a mid-career writer from the Humanitas writing community. Rae Benjamin, co-producer for season five of The Witcher and co-writer of the animated feature The Witcher: Sirens of the Deep, is the winner of the 2026 STARZ #TakeTheLead Award. The award, which will be presented by screenwriter and producer Russell T Davies, includes a $10,000 cash prize and professional development support from STARZ executives for one year.
“Through my writing, volunteer work with emerging artists, and company, In the Cut, it’s been my goal to create expansive and positive representation for marginalized communities. Humanitas and STARZ are both organizations that go beyond the mere checkbox of inclusion for its own sake, but truly champion innovative storytelling. The 2026 #TakeTheLead Award’s prize money will help support my upcoming short film focused on Black maternal health,” said Rae Benjamin.
“Rae Benjamin stood out immediately for her distinctive voice and fearless approach to storytelling,” said Kathryn Busby, President of Original Programming at STARZ. "We were equally impressed by her commitment to supporting emerging voices through her organization, In The Cut, which reflects the spirit of #TakeTheLead and STARZ's commitment to elevating underrepresented storytellers. Rae’s talent, curiosity, and commitment to meaningful storytelling will take her far, and it’s easy to see why she was selected as this year’s STARZ #TakeTheLead Award recipient.”
Finalists for the award included Autumn Jimerson (Forever), William Yu (The ‘Burbs), Melody Cooper (Power Book IV: Force), Jonathon Roessler (My Life with the Walter Boys), and Sylvia Alcalá (A Man on the Inside).
About the Awardee
Rae Benjamin is a proud LA native. Most recently, she was a co-producer for season 5 of The Witcher and also wrote for the previous two seasons. She was the co-writer of the animated feature, The Witcher: Sirens of the Deep. Rae is the founder of In the Cut, a company that provides resources for emerging BIPOC writers. Rae is 2026 Rideback RISE Circle member and received a Solopreneur Award from Zoom. She is represented by UTA.
About the Presenter
Russell T Davies was awarded the 2006 Dennis Potter Award at BAFTA for his writing services to television and an OBE in the Queen’s 2008 Birthday Honours list for services to drama.
Russell was born in Swansea. A graduate of Oxford University, he completed the BBC Director’s course before becoming a TV producer. He started writing whilst working in the Manchester department of Children’s BBC where he worked on several programmes including Dark Season starring a young Kate Winslet, and Century Falls.
Russell wrote for various shows such as Coronation Street, The Grand, and Touching Evil before he created several award-winning series including the ground-breaking Queer As Folk, Bob and Rose (for which he won the British Comedy Award for Writer of the Year and Best Comedy Drama), Mine All Mine, and The Second Coming (for which he won the RTS Award for Best Network Drama and Broadcast Award’s Best Single Drama).
He went on to revive the classic British science fiction series Doctor Who, which received numerous awards and for which Russell won the BAFTA for Best Drama Series. He subsequently created the spinoffs Sarah Jane Adventures and Torchwood, for which he won the BAFTA Cymru for Best Drama Series. He created the trilogy Cucumber, Banana, and Tofu for which he won the BAFTA for Best Drama Writer and BPG Innovation Award in 2016. He also wrote a new version of Shakespeare’s Midsummer Night’s Dream for the BBC.
In 2018, Russell adapted A Very English Scandal on BBC 1, a drama about the Jeremy Thorp scandal, for which he won the Rose d’Or Award for Best Limited Series and TV Movie and Broadcast News Award for Drama of the Year 2018. He wrote the 6-part political drama Years and Years for BBC One/HBO starring Emma Thompson and Anne Reid and the acclaimed 5-part series It’s A Sin for Channel 4/HBO MAX, which depicts the lives of a group of gay men and their friends who lived during the HIV/AIDS crisis in the UK.. Russell’s 3-part biographical drama Nolly, about the life of Noele Gordon, transmitted on ITV and PBS in 2023 starring Helena Bonham Carter.
In 2021, Russell returned to the BBC to oversee Doctor Who. His 5-part spin-off series The War Between the Land and the Sea for BBC One/Disney+ recently premiered on BBC One.
Russell’s latest original 5-part drama Tip Toe premiered in 2026 on Channel 4, starring Alan Cummings and David Morrisey. Amongst other accolades, in 2015 he received the Writers’ Guild of Great Britain Award for his Outstanding Contribution to Writing and in 2017 he was awarded the Outstanding Achievement Award at the Edinburgh TV Festival. In 2019 he received the h100 award in the Television Broadcast Category, a Lifetime Achievement Award from Pink News and also the Judges Award at the 2019 RTS North West Awards. In 2021, Russell accepted a Lifetime Achievement Award from The Royal Television Society at the RTS Programme Awards.
About the STARZ #TakeTheLead Award
The 2026 STARZ #TakeTheLead Award will be awarded to a mid-career writer in the Humanitas writing community who has demonstrated a dedication to improving representation through their storytelling at the Humanitas Prizes Award Show and Toast on September 9 at Avalon Hollywood. Previous STARZ #TakeTheLead Awards recognized alumni of Humanitas’s New Voices Fellowship and College Screenwriting Awards programs.
#TakeTheLead is STARZ's commitment to amplifying narratives by, about and for women and underrepresented audiences. We hope that by taking the lead and remaining fiercely dedicated to inclusion on and off screen, and throughout the company, as well as our commitment to bold, unapologetic stories and characters, it will inspire others across the industry.
The award recipient will receive:
Award recipient will receive a $10,000 (USD) cash prize to support their work.
Award recipient will receive mentorship and professional development for one (1) year from STARZ executives per STARZ parameters and conditions to be determined by STARZ.
Pitch meeting with STARZ executive(s), subject to standard STARZ submission release.