"I am an actor"

The best tradition of the Screen Actor Guild Awards each year, beyond their decision to keep the lifetime achievement award on air (are you listening Oscar?), is their opening bit wherein a random collection of thespians give little weird speeches that end with "I am an actor." Sometimes they're funny. Sometimes they're serious. Sometimes they're headscratching. Regardless, it's always something to look forward to each year. Here are the five actors they chose this year in ascending order of how well they pulled it off.

05 Ashton Kutcher
Kutcher read from a teleprompter. Noooooo.

Click to read more ...

SAG Winners List

Movies
Lead Actress Emma Stone, La La Land
Lead Actor Denzel Washington, Fences
Supporting Actress Viola Davis, Fences
Supporting Actor Mahershala Ali, Moonlight
Ensemble Hidden Figures

Lifetime Achievement
Lily Tomlin 

TV
Leading Actress, Comedy Julia-Louis Dreyfus, Veep
Leading Actor, Comedy William H Macy,  Shameless
Ensemble, Comedy Orange is the New Black 
Actress, Limited Series/Movie Sarah Paulson, People vs OJ Simpson 
Actor, Limited Series/Movie  Bryan Cranston, All the Way 
Leading Actor, Drama John Lithgow, The Crown 
Leading Actress, Drama Claire Foy, The Crown 
Ensemble, Drama Stranger Things 

For commentary on the awards, check out "10 takeaways from SAG night" and "I am an actor" 

Who will win or could win the SAG Awards?

Last year, the Screen Actors Guild Awards had a ready-made anti-Oscar narrative with a slate of winners that features colorful casts (Orange is the New Black) and Idris Elba as the supporting actor winner during the #OscarsSoWhite backlash. This year, there's no clear media narrative and SAG even has to make do without a Best Picture frontrunner since La La Land is understandably not up for their top prize (Outstanding Performance by a Cast... also referred to as "Best Ensemble" by many). So what will they choose this year? Who knows!

Viola has won four SAG awards, two for How to Get Away With Murder, two for The Help

We'll find out tomorrow night but what we're most looking forward to the lifetime achievement tribute to Lily Tomlin which will happily be presented by her 9 to 5 co-stars Jane Fonda and Dolly Parton. But back to predictions. Will Viola Davis win her fifth SAG in five years?  Let's make the tough calls after the jump...

Click to read more ...

In Praise of SAG's "Fences" Ensemble Nomination...

by Brian Zitzelman

photo src

As Viola Davis marches towards Oscar #1 and Denzel Washington to nomination #7 for Fences, let us not forget the other wonderful players in the film. Garnering a SAG nomination for Outstanding Ensemble, Fences is a small, but rich cast... 

Click to read more ...

SAG Ensemble - Everyone Was Nominated.... Except *You*

by Nathaniel R

Alex R Hibbert's omission from the nominated cast of Moonlight is one of the worst yet from SAG

For several years now we've highlighted a major problem with the Screen Actors Guild Awards that we hope their union will eventually address. The rule is that to be included in the Ensemble nomination you have to have your own title card (or share the first title card if the whole principle cast is listed on the same card as in Woody Allen movies). But the prize is meant to honor the whole cast and sometimes a less famous person can deliver in a big way in which the movie wouldn't be the same without. My fascination/aggravation with this rule and its collateral damage goes all the way back to The Avatior (2004) when I realized that Matt Ross (an actor who is now a director - see Captain Fantastic) was not included though he is terrifc in the movie and in a ton of scenes with Leonardo DiCaprio while Gwen Stefani, a very famous woman with only a cameo, was included. 

So let's look at each ensemble nomination this year and figure out who has fallen victim to this aggravating rule after the jump...

Click to read more ...