Oscar-winning Alexander Payne becomes Greek citizen

Academy Award-winning director and screenwriter Constantine Alexander Payne was sworn in as a Greek citizen at the Consulate General of Greece in Boston on Tuesday.

Foreign Minister Nikos Dendias released a statement on social media celebrating the event.

“Oscar-winning director, screenwriter, and producer Constantine Alexander Payne is now a Greek citizen. He has proven once again that he does not forget his family’s heritage,” stated the minister.

Τhe director has previously been made an honorary citizen of Aigialeia in the Peloponnese. During an event in August 2016, he was also named Aigialeia’s Ambassador of Art and Culture.

Payne had addressed the audience in Greek and told the story of his grandfather who moved to Omaha, Nebraska in 1912 in search of a better future, changing his name from Papadopoulos to Payne.

Payne was born and raised in the United States to parents of Greek heritage. He has twice won the Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay and has been nominated three times for Best Director.

He is best known for the films Sideways, “The Descendants,” and “Nebraska.”