President Donald Trump will award actor Jon Voight the National Medal of Arts on Thursday.

Trump will award Voight the medal for his exceptional capacity as an actor to portray deeply complex characters. Captivating audiences, he has given us insights into the richness of the human mind and heart, the White House said in a statement Sunday.

Rumors that Trump had selected his outspoken supporter for the honor circulated in the lead-up to the announcement after members of the National Council of Arts reportedly leaked the news to The Atlantic journalist Peter Nicholas.

According to the report, Trump bypassed the recommendations put forward by the council, which were typically given more credence by past presidents and some council members reportedly objected to Trumps selected list of winners, which they saw as lacking in diversity and favoring partisan political considerations.

The National Medal of Arts winners announced Sunday were in line with the leaked list, save for one additional winner, the Musicians of the United States Military. The award will also go to bluegrass singer Allison Krauss and Sharon Percy Rockefeller, who is CEO of Washington, D.C., public broadcaster WETA.

Voight, an acclaimed actor and Academy Award winner, has long championed the president and previously praised Trump as the greatest president since Abraham Lincoln, saying that the nation was stronger and wiser due to his presidency.