The Actor Awards Provided Some Surprises to an Unpredictable Oscar Race

By Kayleigh Donaldson | Film | March 2, 2026

Header Image Source: Matt Winkelmeyer via Getty Images

My friends, we have a real competition on our hands. Last night, the Actor Awards, formerly known as the SAG Awards (no, I don’t know why they changed it either), took place and offered us a few welcome curveballs.

Sinners beat One Battle After Another in the Best Ensemble category. Jessie Buckley continued her hot streak in Best Actress for Hamnet while Michael B. Jordan was the surprise victor in Best Actor (much to the delight of Viola Davis, who was presenting the category.) Sean Penn won Best Supporting Actor but was not there to claim it, while Amy Madigan is back in the race for Best Supporting Actress after her win for Weapons.

In the TV category, both The Pitt and The Studio continued their own sweeps, although Best Actress in a Drama threw an unexpected curveball by overlooking Britt Lower, Rhea Seehorn, and two The White Lotus stars in favour of Keri Russell from The Diplomat. Seth Rogen won Best Actor in a Comedy and was on hand to accept the late Catherine O’Hara’s trophy for Best Actress in a Comedy.

Frankly, it’s been a season of surprises, and as an awards watcher, I couldn’t be happier. We’re so used to Oscar races were the major categories are sewn up months in advance, There have been years where it feels like the statuettes could have had the winners’ names engraved on them from the moment the season started. This is not that kind of year. Aside from Best Actress, which is Buckley’s to lose, we have some tough calls to make. Can Penn hold on to beat Skarsgard (who wasn’t nominated here, weirdly)? Will it be a three-way race between Wunmi, Amy, and Teyana? Timmy’s losing steam but will he pip MBJ to the post? And what of Best Picture? It still feels like One Battle After Another is the one to beat, but there’s obviously a lot of passion for Sinners, and people like seeing it win big. Wouldn’t it be one hell of an evening if the Oscars ended with a Best Picture shock?

Here are this year’s winners in the 2026 Actor Awards.

FILM

BEST ENSEMBLE CAST
Sinners

BEST ACTOR
Michael B. Jordan — Sinners

BEST ACTRESS
Jessie Buckley — Hamnet

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR
Sean Penn — One Battle After Another

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS
Amy Madigan — Weapons

BEST STUNT ENSEMBLE
Mission: Impossible — The Final Reckoning

BEST ENSEMBLE — DRAMA
The Pitt

BEST ENSEMBLE — COMEDY
The Studio

BEST ACTOR — DRAMA
Noah Wyle — The Pitt

BEST ACTRESS — DRAMA
Keri Russell — The Diplomat