Complementing the Oscar buzz surrounding Matthew McConaughey’s role in “Dallas Buyers Club,” the thesp will be feted with the Desert Palm Acting Achievement Award at the 25th annual Palm Springs International Film Festival Gala on Jan. 4 at the Palm Springs Convention Center.

“In the acclaimed new movie ‘Dallas Buyers Club,’ McConaughey plays real-life cowboy Ron Woodroof, who was diagnosed with HIV in 1985 and given a month to live – but fought for dignity, acceptance, and living life to the fullest,” said PSIFF chairman Harold Matzner in a statement.

For his role as an ailing Texas electrician, McConaughey lost about 50 pounds. The film was directed by Jean-Marc Vallee and also stars Jennifer Garner and Jared Leto. Focus Features is releasing the movie in select cities this month and continuing to expand the film.

Past recipients of the award include Jeff Bridges, Bradley Cooper, Daniel Day-Lewis, Colin Firth, Jake Gyllenhaal, Sean Penn and Brad Pitt. Bridges and Day-Lewis won Academy Awards the year they were honored.

McConaughey will also appear opposite Leonardo Di Caprio in Martin Scorsese’s “The Wolf of Wall Street,” opening Dec. 25, as well as star in HBO series “True Detective,” debuting Jan. 12. He’s also working on filming Christopher Nolan’s “Interstellar,” slated for a Nov. 2014 release.

The Palm Springs International Film Festival runs Jan. 3-14. The Jan. 4 awards gala will be hosted by Mary Hart.