John Lithgow wins best actor at the UK stage Olivier Awards for exploring Roald Dahl's dark side

LONDON (AP) — American actor John Lithgow won the best actor trophy at the London stage Olivier Awards on Sunday for exploring the dark side of children's writer Roald Dahl in “Giant.”

Backwards-biographical story “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button” was named best new musical at the awards, Britain’s equivalent of Broadway’s Tony Awards.

“Conclave” star Lithgow added the Olivier to an awards shelf that already includes multiple Tony, Emmy and Golden Globe trophies, for depicting the author of “Charlie and the Chocolate Factory" in Mark Rosenblatt’s play, which confronts Dahl’s antisemitic views.

“I think I'm going to faint,” said an emotional Lithgow, 79. He said he wanted to assure Britons that the transatlantic "special relationship is still firmly intact.”

“It’s not always easy to welcome an American into your midst, and at this particular moment, it’s probably a little more complicated than usual,” he said.

Lesley Manville, whose resume includes a stint as Princess Margaret in “The Crown,” took the best actress prize for her performance as shocked royal spouse Jocasta in “Oedipus.” Director Robert Icke’s modern-day reimagining of the ancient Greek tragedy — which opens on Broadway later this year — was named best revival of a play.

Imelda Staunton – Queen Elizabeth II in two final seasons of “The Crown” – won the fifth Olivier of her career, best actress in a musical, for “Hello, Dolly!” Best actor in a musical went to John Dagleish as the titular man who ages in reverse in “Benjamin Button.” The musical is based on a story by F. Scott Fitzgerald that also inspired a 2008 movie starring Brad Pitt.

The Oliviers were handed out in a ceremony at London’s Royal Albert Hall hosted by Broadway, TV and runway star Billy Porter and British soul singer Beverley Knight.

Stars in the audience included recent Academy Award winner Adrien Brody – a best-actor Olivier nominee for death-row stage drama “The Fear of 13” – and Cate Blanchett, recently seen on the London stage in “The Seagull.”

“Giant” won three prizes including best new play. “Benjamin Button” also won three, as did a boisterous outdoor production of “Fiddler on the Roof” at Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre, which was named best musical revival.

Maimuna Memon was named best supporting actress in a musical for Tolstoy-inspired “Natasha, Pierre & the Great Comet of 1812.” Layton Williams took the equivalent supporting actor prize for campy Celine Dion celebration “Titanique.”

For plays, supporting performer prizes went to Elliot Levey for “Giant” and Romola Garai for “The Years.” Norwegian director Eline Arbo was named best director for “The Years,” an adaptation of Nobel Literature laureate Annie Ernaux’s autobiographical book.

The prizes, which recognize achievements in theater, opera and dance, were founded in 1976 and named for the late actor-director Laurence Olivier. Winners are chosen by voting groups of stage professionals and theatergoers.

John Lithgow poses for photographers upon arrival at the Olivier Awards on Sunday, April 6, 2025, in London. (Photo by Alberto Pezzali/Invision/AP)

John Lithgow poses for photographers upon arrival at the Olivier Awards on Sunday, April 6, 2025, in London. (Photo by Alberto Pezzali/Invision/AP)

Georgie Buckland poses for photographers upon arrival at the Olivier Awards on Sunday, April 6, 2025, in London. (Photo by Alberto Pezzali/Invision/AP)

Idris Elba poses for photographers upon arrival at the Olivier Awards on Sunday, April 6, 2025, in London. (Photo by Alberto Pezzali/Invision/AP)

Tom Hiddleston poses for photographers upon arrival at the Olivier Awards on Sunday, April 6, 2025, in London. (Photo by Alberto Pezzali/Invision/AP)

Martin Freeman and Rachel Mariam pose for photographers upon arrival at the Olivier Awards on Sunday, April 6, 2025, in London. (Photo by Alberto Pezzali/Invision/AP)

Elizabeth Debick poses for photographers upon arrival at the Olivier Awards on Sunday, April 6, 2025, in London. (Photo by Alberto Pezzali/Invision/AP)

Cate Blanchett poses for photographers upon arrival at the Olivier Awards on Sunday, April 6, 2025, in London. (Photo by Alberto Pezzali/Invision/AP)

Adrien Brody and Georgina Chapman pose for photographers upon arrival at the Olivier Awards on Sunday, April 6, 2025, in London. (Photo by Alberto Pezzali/Invision/AP)

Beverley Knight, left and Billy Porter pose for photographers upon arrival at the Olivier Awards on Sunday, April 6, 2025, in London. (Photo by Alberto Pezzali/Invision/AP)

WASHINGTON (AP) — U.S. forces in the Caribbean Sea have seized another sanctioned oil tanker the Trump administration says has ties to Venezuela, part of a broader U.S. effort to take control of the South American country’s oil.

Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem wrote Thursday on social media, “Motor Tanker Veronica had previously passed through Venezuelan waters, and was operating in defiance of President Trump’s established quarantine of sanctioned vessels in the Caribbean.”

A social media post from U.S. Southern Command on the capture said that Marines and sailors launched from the aircraft carrier USS Gerald R. Ford to make the capture while Noem’s post noted that, like in previous raids, a U.S. Coast Guard tactical team conducted the boarding and seizure.

Noem posted a brief video that appeared to show part of the ship’s capture. The black-and-white footage showed helicopters hovering over the deck of a merchant vessel while armed troops dropped down on the deck by rope.

The Veronica is the sixth tanker that has been seized by U.S. forces as part of the effort by President Donald Trump’s administration to control the production, refining and global distribution of Venezuela’s oil products, and the fourth since the U.S. ouster of Venezuela President Nicolás Maduro in a surprise nighttime raid almost two weeks ago.

Noem, in her social media post, said that the raid was carried out with “close coordination with our colleagues” in the military as well as the State and Justice departments.

“Our heroic Coast Guard men and women once again ensured a flawlessly executed operation, in accordance with international law,” Noem added.

As with prior posts, Noem and the military framed the seizure as part of an effort to enforce the law. Noem argued that the multiple captures show that “there is no outrunning or escaping American justice.”

However, other officials in Trump's Republican administration have made clear they see it as a way to generate cash as they seek to rebuild Venezuela’s battered oil industry and restore its economy.

Last week, Trump met with executives from oil companies to discuss his goal of investing $100 billion in Venezuela to repair and upgrade its oil production and distribution. His administration has said it expects to sell at least 30 million to 50 million barrels of sanctioned Venezuelan oil.

This story has been corrected to show the Veronica is the fourth, not the third, tanker seized by U.S. forces since Maduro's capture.

U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem speaks during a press conference, Thursday, Jan. 8, 2026, in New York. (AP Photo/Yuki Iwamura)

U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem speaks at a news conference at Harry Reid International Airport, Nov. 22, 2025, in Las Vegas. (AP Photo/Ronda Churchill, File)