Will Smith’s role in the 2007 box office hit “I Am Legend” earned him the first Cadet Choice Movie Award, as picked by the enthusiastic cadets of the United States Military Academy at West Point, N. Y.

Hollywood actor Will Smith received his own academy award last week, in honor of his performance in the Warner Bros. Pictures post-apocalyptic sci-fi film “I Am Legend.” Smith portrayed Army virologist Robert Neville, a man who may be the only surviving human of a zombie-making virus that is wiping out humanity.

The cadets at West Point designated Smith’s character as the best personification of the military academy’s leadership qualities on the silver screen, the Associated Press reports.

The Francis Lawrence-directed movie opened in U. S. theaters in mid-December and registered the biggest ever first week earnings for a film released in the last month of the year. “I Am Legend” grossed more than $77 million in its opening weekend.

According to the Box Office Mojo, as of Feb. 21 the film had grossed more than $254 million in the U. S. and more than $323 million in theaters around the world.

Smith’s character was nominated for the Cadet Choice Movie Award for his “value-based leadership” according to the AP, and received 27 percent of the cadets’ 2,200 online votes.

Runners-up included King Leonidas of “300,” portrayed by Gerard Butler, and John McClane of “Live Free or Die Hard,” portrayed by Bruce Willis.

While Will Smith was not nominated for an Academy Award this year, he has had the occasion to keep his fingers crossed for that golden statuette twice before. He was first nominated in the best actor category in 2001, for his portrayal of legendary boxer Muhammad Ali, the former three-time World Heavyweight Champion.

Smith received his second Academy Award nod last year, for his leading role in “The Pursuit of Happyness,” a drama he also co-produced and which co-starred real-life son Jaden Smith.