The SAG Awards Were a Welcome Highlight of a Tough Awards Season

Last night saw the Screen Actors Guild hand out their awards, and the ceremony was one of the more fun highlights of Oscar season. After an awful BAFTA ceremony, it was nice to see the team at SAG play this one cool. The guests were having a good time, the hosts struck the right tone, and the speeches were great. Not a poorly timed orchestra interruption in sight. It helped that the show wasn’t on a traditional network this year. After being a TNT exclusive since 1998, SAG-AFTRA decided to move to Netflix, which streamed the event live on their YouTube channel. Remember when I said that the Oscars should move to Netflix?

The big winner of the night was Everything Everywhere All at Once, which took home five awards, including history-making titles for Michelle Yeoh and Ke Huy Quan. They became the first Asian actors to win in their respective categories, showing you just how little progress Hollywood has made over the decades. The film also won the top prize of the night, Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture, which gave us a truly beautiful moment when the legendary James Hong accepted the award. He’s been in the business since the ’50s and acted in over 600 projects. Seeing him get his due was just perfect.

Brendan Fraser took home the Best Actor award, which means we have a real race on our hands for the Oscars. Indeed, aside from Quan, who is the safest lock of the season, the other acting categories feel far more up in the air than in previous years. We’ve got a proper fight between Fraser and Austin Butler, as well as Yeoh and Cate Blanchett. With Jamie Lee Curtis’s surprise Supporting Actress win, it feels like a three-way race between her, Angela Bassett, and Kerry Condon. It’s rare to see an Oscar season feel so unpredictable in this manner, which I’m rather excited about.

The TV awards saw The White Lotus win for drama ensemble, and Jennifer Coolidge continued her winning streak. Abbott Elementary won the comedy ensemble award, and the industry’s continued love for Ozark paid off with a win for Jason Bateman. Sure, why not?

The SAG Awards tend to be a strong precursor for those acting wins. They’re not 100% guaranteed to pay off on Oscar night but they’re a safer indicator than, say, the BAFTAs or Critics’ Choice Awards. Again, we have some tough battles, but if those wins for Fraser and Yeoh certainly help to position them in a good place for the Academy, given that actors make up the brunt of voters.

Here are the winners!

Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Leading Role
Brendan Fraser — The Whale

Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Leading Role
Michelle Yeoh — Everything Everywhere All at Once

Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Supporting Role
Ke Huy Quan — Everything Everywhere All at Once

Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Supporting Role
Jamie Lee Curtis — Everything Everywhere All at Once

Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture
Everything Everywhere All at Once

Outstanding Performance by a Stunt Ensemble in a Motion Picture
Top Gun: Maverick

Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Television Movie or Limited Series
Sam Elliott — 1883

Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Television Movie or Limited Series
Jessica Chastain — George and Tammy

Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Drama Series
Jason Bateman — Ozark

Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Drama Series
Jennifer Coolidge — The White Lotus

Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Comedy Series
Jeremy Allen White — The Bear


Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Comedy Series
Jean Smart — Hacks

Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series
The White Lotus

Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Comedy Series
Abbott Elementary

Outstanding Performance by a Stunt Ensemble in a Comedy or Drama Series
Stranger Things

Screen Actors Guild Life Achievement Award
Sally Field