SAG Awards - a brisk bellwether for Oscar night
Sunday, February 25, 2024 at 6:00PM by Nathaniel R
Did you watch the SAG Awards last night? Apart from one surprising win on the television side (an inebriated, honest Pedro Pascal for The Last of Us) it was a night of frontrunners, continuing to run so far front that their competitors are all well out of focus. Honestly at this point, all the suspense of Oscar season has entirely dissipated (but we'll get to that soon). Given the lack of interesting narrative curlicues and detours and the same faces delivering the same kinds of speeches, the highlight for yours truly was in the presenters.
The grandest entertainment came in the form of a fashionable reunion for the stars of The Devil Wears Prada...
The fun was in the spinning of it, not any coasting on nostalgia. Meryl Streep was emphatically Meryl Streep not Miranda Priestley, flanked by her once onscreen assistants Emily Blunt and Anne Hathaway, who shared the Miranda Priestely attitude and duties, memorably delivering Priestley's quips right back at Meryl. Nice touch that the always over-achieving Anne Hathaway wore cerulean, too, don'cha think?
Runner up in presenter heaven was Melissa McCarthy fangirling out over good sport Billie Eilish, who channeling the audience at home, finally succumbed to McCarthy's still impeccable comic timing and began to break character and laugh with us.
The Barbra Streisand tribute was also a special bit. Who can forget Anne Hathaway tearing up watching Barbra or Barbra herself strolling through a speech that was much improved but still related-in-personality to the unforgettably eccentric staring-at-her-reflection-in-a-hubcab insanity of her Golden Globe Lifetime Achievement Award many years ago.
Here were the winners. Who were you cheering for and which had you yawning?
Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture
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“American Fiction” (3 nominations, 0 wins)
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“Barbie” (4 nominations, 0 wins)
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“The Color Purple” (2 nominations, 0 wins)
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“Killers of the Flower Moon” (3 nominations, 1 win)
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★ “Oppenheimer” (4 nominations, 3 wins)
A rare treat for us 80s kids to see ex-lovers Jeff Goldblum and Geena Davis reunited to present a big award! Anyway, there's just no hope of anyone competing with Oppenheimer this year for the top prizes with its combo of general biopic prestige, thematic importance, box office success, and critical acclaim.
Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Leading Role
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Bradley Cooper – “Maestro”
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Colman Domingo – “Rustin”
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Paul Giamatti – “The Holdovers”
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★ Cillian Murphy – “Oppenheimer”
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Jeffrey Wright – “American Fiction”
For a brief while it felt like Paul Giamatti might overtake Cillian Murphy for Best Actor in the Oscar race. But while we were envisioning that happening, we had forgotten that Cillian Murphy has the biopic advantage even if his (great) performance isn't extroverted-showy in the ways that so many Oscar-winning lead roles are. The true drama at the moment is wondering if he'll have a consecutive Best Actor nomination for Small Things Like These for which he won raves at Berlinale.
Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Leading Role
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Annette Bening – “Nyad”
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★ Lily Gladstone – “Killers of the Flower Moon”
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Carey Mulligan – “Maestro”
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Margot Robbie – “Barbie”
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Emma Stone – “Poor Things”
Lily & Emma feel like they've been running 50/50 or maybe 60/40 for the Oscar -- it's the only truly suspenseful above-the-line race this season. There's lot of ways to interpret this contest and how it might play out on Oscar night. Last night Emma Stone was truly delighted by Lily's win so she's a good sport and Lily gave great speech which helps. While second acting Oscars are generally won in proximity to first acting Oscars, it does feel like Emma's previous win puts her at a slight disadvantage this year since all else feels equal (performance critiques aside): industry voters clearly like both of these films a lot (given their huge nomination tallies everywhere) and neither of them have a prayer in hell of winning other acting Oscars or the Best Picture prize.
Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Supporting Role
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Sterling K. Brown – “American Fiction”
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Willem Dafoe – “Poor Things”
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Robert De Niro – “Killers of the Flower Moon”
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★ Robert Downey Jr. – “Oppenheimer”
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Ryan Gosling – “Barbie”
Downey Jr continues to steamroll and he delivered quite a speech too, listing incredible actors he learned from in tandem with a funny touching tribute to his wife.
Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Supporting Role
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Emily Blunt – “Oppenheimer”
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Danielle Brooks – “The Color Purple”
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Penelope Cruz – “Ferrari”
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Jodie Foster – “Nyad”
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★ Da’Vine Joy Randolph – “The Holdovers”
Da'Vine's speeches are getting better (which... well, she's had a lot of practice now!). We only wish she would go "off-book" since reading speeches is such a bummer, especially when the speech itself is a beauty!
Outstanding Action Performance by a Stunt Ensemble in a Motion Picture
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“Barbie”
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“Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3”
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“Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny”
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“John Wick: Chapter 4”
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★ “Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One”
It continues to be weird and interesting that this Mission Impossible installment (number 7!) is the one that finally got some awards attention, given that it was the one that underwhelmed at the box office. For the record I think it's a marvelous action picture but the awards trajectory is still odd as hell, given the franchise history.
Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series
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“The Crown”
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“The Gilded Age”
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“The Last of Us”
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“The Morning Show”
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★ “Succession”
One last hurrah for Succession, but in a surprising change of pace the SAG voting body decided it didn't need the same individual awards it had won everywhere else.
Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Comedy Series
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“Abbot Elementary”
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“Barry”
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★ “The Bear”
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“Only Murders in the Building”
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“Ted Lasso”
The Bear feels like a repeat winner for its second season but that's only because there are so many different awards shows. It's actually its first ensemble win at SAG. Last time the prize went to the first season of Abbott Elementary.
Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Drama Series
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Brian Cox – “Succession”
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Billy Crudup – “The Morning Show”
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Kieran Culkin – “Succession”
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Matthew Macfadyen – “Succession”
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★ Pedro Pascal – “The Last of Us”
Splitting the vote hasn't previously been a problem for Succession but regardless of how it happened we were thrilled for Pedro Pascal.
Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Drama Series
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Jennifer Aniston – “The Morning Show”
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★ Elizabeth Debicki – “The Crown”
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Bella Ramsey – “The Last of Us”
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Keri Russell – “The Diplomat”
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Sarah Snook – “Succession”
This award seemed to surprise everyone in the room but should they have been surprised? She won the Globe and the Critics Choice Award for this performance very recently. The surprise was surely due to the fact that SAG stupidly doesn't have supporting categories for television so she was competing against Lead actress Sarah Snook this time ...and everyone assumed Lead frontrunner would trump Supporting frontrunner. But that was not the case.
Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Comedy Series
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Alex Borstein – “The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel”
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Rachel Brosnahan – “The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel”
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Quinta Brunson – “Abbott Elementary”
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★ Ayo Edebiri – “The Bear”
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Hannah Waddingham – “Ted Lasso”
A first win for Ayo Edebiri who wasn't SAG nominated in this category for the first season.
Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Comedy Series
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Brett Goldstein – “Ted Lasso”
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Bill Hader – “Barry”
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Ebon Moss-Bachrach – “The Bear”
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Jason Sudeikis – “Ted Lasso”
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★ Jeremy Allen White – “The Bear”
A second consecutive win for Jeremy Allen White for this show. Second consecutive wins are very common with SAG and TV shows but they generally mix it up after the second win (in recent history) so White is not necessarily a slam dunk winner again for season 3. That said it wasn't always thus. Alec Baldwin won this prize for an interminable seven years for his work on 30 Rock. He was hilarious on that show but nobody in the history of anything needs to win the same annual prize for that many years.
Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Television Movie or Limited Series
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Uzo Aduba – “Painkiller”
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Kathryn Hahn – Tiny Beautiful Things”
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Brie Larson – “Lessons in Chemistry”
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Bel Powley – “A Small Light”
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★ Ali Wong – “Beef”
Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Television Movie or Limited Series
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Matt Bomer – “Fellow Travelers”
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Jon Hamm – “Fargo”
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David Oyelowo – “Lawmen: Bass Reeves”
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Tony Shalhoub – “Mr. Monk’s Last Case: A Monk Movie”
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★ Steven Yeun – “Beef”
Outstanding Action Performance by a Stunt Ensemble in a Television Series
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“Ahsoka”
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“Barry”
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“Beef”
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★ “The Last of Us”
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“The Mandalorian”
DID YOU WATCH THE SAG AWARDS? They're streamable on Netflix.
Reader Comments (21)
I was so glad to be able to watch this on Netflix. Please let it continue to stream, and bring all awards shows with it! Letting adults talk like adults, not having any pressure at all about speech times (hope everyone was taking notes that everyone just instinctively kept them relatively short and sweet without having to be played off).
But please…fire everyone involved with producing and designing it. The sound…awful. The look…tacky and horribly cramped. The decision to cut to that guy doing the chit chat with winners…that was embarrassingly bad; I deliberately don’t watch red carpet coverage because the idiotic chit chat is so cringey it makes my brain hurt, and to put all of us through that in between awards…I mean, I NEVER thought I’d rather watch a commercial. I had to mute him because of how bad he was.
The winners were very disappointing. Cillian is good but I mean…come on, Bradley is incredible and Paul is doing his best work ever and Jeffrey is so wonderful. Cillian is easily #4 for me.
Lily likewise is fine but win-worthy…how does anyone vote for that when Emma is right there? RDJ is great in the film but that is not a sweep-worthy performance. And the less said about Da’Vine’s undeserving awards streak is better. Looking at those clips I was like “There’s no way she can win if people are actually watching all performances”.
So all in all, it was by far the worst SAG show I’ve ever seen. But I also think this has turned into the worst overall awards season ever the way that mediocrity has been embraced across the board, with all other shows rubber stamping mediocrity and the Oscars will of course be forced to be that final, gold rubber stamp of mediocrity or else face criticism for voting with their brains.
Last thought: I was kind of baffled by the Jeff Goldblum / Geena Davis pairing. I mean, they are so quirky individually that seeing them together as this single quirky blob kind of blew my mind. They are that celebrity couple for me that I always just want them to get back together because they just seem so undeniably perfect for each other. Or at least I’d settle for them reuniting in a David Cronenberg film.
The Pascal win is embarrassing. As bad as the Bateman over Odenkirk last year.
Now that the season is almost over (thank God), is this a safe place to say that I like Maestro quite a lot and that Gael García Bernal was robbed?
Once again Da'Vine read her acceptance speech at the Spirits this afternoon. Another well-written speech, but unless there's a compelling reason why she can't memorize them this is gone way beyond ridiculous. WE WANT TO SEE YOUR EYES! If she loses Oscar night (and she won't), I will not be disappointed at all—although it would mean we'd get someone totally unprepared in her place. But I'm sure all four of the other ladies would be up to the challenge.
I still don't think these are the Oscar winners,hasn't Emma's heat been rising recently,was that after SAG voting closed when Lily had the heat.
I am now quite pleased RDJ is winning my 2 faves Melton and Sessa aren't here so I feel no passion toward anyone else other than him,sure he goes a little bug eyes Steigerish in his big scene but he is great elesewhere,my favourite bit of his performance is his corecting Oppenheimer on his names pronunciation.
Murphy's looking a bit more solid,biopic roles always lead the way but Giamatti is well liked and he's in a duet with Randolph's sure thing turn and i'm ok with it,she is very moving and funny but Foster or Pike should have had this.
After years not watching awards ceremonies, I got SAG last night and… oh boy, it was terrible. None of the scripted jokes worked for me, not even the Prada reunion. The random guy interviewing random winners was awful. The winners were all the boring usual suspects. The only thing I loved was Elizabeth Debicki removing her shoes before getting on stage.
The worst moment? WHY, WHYYY Aniston and Cooper introducing the lifetime achievement for Barbra Streisand? Why not Nick Nolte and Amy Irving?
On the evening of April 14, 1969, I was wearing my jammies and sitting on the floor in front of our television watching my first Oscar telecast. I saw Barbra Streisand win an Oscar. I was shocked and slightly thrilled to see her ascend the stage in her sheer Scaasi bedazzled pajamas. When the light caught her from behind, I saw her fanny. It was the first time I saw the nude buttocks of an adult woman.
I began a love affair that night that has lasted all of my life. Barbra Streisand is a great movie star. She is responsible for several of my favorite films of all time. To see her peers honor her at the SAG Awards last night was deeply moving. She remains captivating and articulate. I cannot wait to get my eyes on the French film, Driving Madeleine, that Streisand recommended in her speech, Jennifer Aniston was correct in her introductory remarks. How lucky we are that this singular talent was present in our lifetime!
HIGHLIGHTS
* Streisand in all aspects.
* Netflix streaming. We want all awards shows that way. We want watch all of them. Even BAFTA.
* Drescher's speech.
* Da'Vine is doing better.
* Oppenheimer, Succession and The Bear cast winning.
* Muse Debicki winning, although Snook deserved it so much.
* Respectful In Memoriam segment.
* Josh Hartnett still hot.
* Gosling's kennergy. All I can say is "Yes, Ken! Where?"
LOWS
* Culkin being robbed by a drunk (SAG, seriously, I'll never forgive you.)
* Snook loosing, although Debicki deserved it so much. (And a crime: they didn't show the nominees at the moment of the announcement).
* Murphy as a clear frontrunner. I wasn't expecting this at the beginning of the season. I really throught Giamatti or Cooper would take The Actor.
* The production design was awful. The Shrine Auditorium never looked so ugly, terrible light, almost depressing.
* Some presenters acting like weirdos. McCarthy and Eilish were embarrassing. What happened to My Dear Diva Geena Davis? She seemed scared. Stage fright? And what happened to Anna Gunn's face? She looked like a completely different person.
* Ali Wong recycled the reamains of Bjork's swan dress? Man, she was terrible.
ABOUT THE SEASON
Humm, Gladstone won. Probably, now she and Stone are 50/50. Maybe they can split and Bening could be our Best Actress Winner. (Yes, I won't give up!)
Finbar McBride,
Completely agree with each word about Streisand.
She's absolutely unique.
Actress.
Singer.
Dancer.
Director.
Screenwriter.
Producer.
Composer.
Musician.
She's the greatest show woman of all times.
And considering the greatest american female singers - Fitzgerald, Holiday, Streisand - the other two genius have perfect voices, pure talent.
But Streisand have something more. Her voice is also perfect, a mix of talent, technique and emotion, that's beyond human: its like an angel singing.
She's really The One!
We saw the BAFTA/SAG split in Best Actress last year, a previous winner versus a newcomer whose win would make history, it’s said. Blanchett even won the BFCA as Stone has done. Some key differences though.
Blanchett had already won two Oscars, not just one.
Yeoh broke out as a movie star in a way Gladstone’s more understated profile doesn’t allow.
Blanchett signaled that she didn’t really want to win in a way Stone hasn’t.
EEAAO was a Best Picture juggernaut with extreme coattails effect all around.
Both Stone and Gladstone’s films are “difficult” in different ways so the “Tar is difficult, EEAAO is fun” divide doesn’t map.
Gladstone is also the only one of these four whose movie isn’t exclusively focused on her character, FWIW.
It’s too close to call, whoever gets it right will just be lucky. But I think Stone might have a slight advantage.
Since many are talking about Streisand here, my favorite fun fact that has anything to do with her is when she came out to present Kathryn Bigelow her Best Director Oscar, the announcer, clear as day, says “Barber Streisand”. Go listen to it now if you don’t believe me. It’s so funny to me every single time.
Also...I recently listened to an old Awards Chatter episode where Cate Blanchett (playfully) drags Scorsese for not featuring female leads, implying that she wants her own Alice Doesn’t Live Here Anymore.
It’s hilarious to me that he might finally direct another Best Actress winner—and all the A-list actresses who assumed they’d be top of his list couldn’t play this role.
It vindicates him and sends up the (mostly self-serving) entitlement people have felt over his creative choices for decades, lol.
Never bet against the SAG awards to go populist. A truly awful selection of winners.
It's going to be completely egregious if the last year Best Actress fiasco repeats this year. It should be about artistic merit, NOT narratives. It's unbelievable they chose Gladstone over Emma Stone's tour-de-force performance.
And Murphy as a clear frontrunner for this typical protagonist-in-an-epic work? How uninspired.
This show was much much better than the Globes. The handoff from Hannah Waddingham to Idris to Meryl, then adding Anne and Emily was brilliant and it felt like we just got a ton of star power. Idris was also a great host. He popped up a few times, welcomed the audience, but never really overwhelmed.
I do wish, instead of all of the Tan France commentary we'd gotten a bit more what we had last year - clips from previous SAG awards.
The Barbra moment was great, and it was fun to see how moved actors were by her presence, especially Anne Hathaway.
With respect to the winner, I was very happy to see the Succession sweep end. As someone that doesn't love Succession or the Bear, the TV side has been rather lackluster. However, Debicki and Pascal both gave fun speeches that made clear why they're both stars.
One of the things I love most about the SAG awards is that it's actors talking to actors. Da'Vine gave a great speech (as did Debicki).
In terms of Oscars, I think Cillian is in a good position to win. I still think Giamatti has a strong potential to upset, but it would be an upset. I do wonder if his previous wins at SAG hurt him?
I think it's Lily vs Emma and will be a nailbiter until the envelope opens. I do think that actors tend to like Yorgos Lanthimos films far less than the rest of the academy, so that may help Emma out.
LOL at anyone delusional enough to think Lily Gladstone doesn't have the Oscar in the bag. The Academy isn't giving up the chance to make history, folks. If it was actually about the best performance, Sandra Hüller would be winning in a cakewalk.
Stay pressed, Ad_Mil.
Da'Vine reading her prepared speech once again makes me feel that she was probably reading off of cue cards while phoning in her Holdovers role.
Delighted Gladstone won - needed that to keep me interested in Oscar night beyond the gowns.
Where are the rest of the FB awards? That’s all I care about and you promised us a post for each 😂
I think Gladstone is going to win this year. Killers of the Flower Moon got lots of nominations but where is it going to win? Poor Things has a chance in costume, production design, makeup, even a shot at screenplay. But what is Killers of the Flower Moon going to win? Is it the frontrunner in any categories? This is the best chance for it to win any award and if people really love it, they will vote for Gladstone so at least the movie gets something. Similar to Coleman winning for the Favourite a few years ago, that was the best chance for the movie to win an award.
TomG,
"Maestro" has the makeup award in its bag. Fact.
And The Academy criminally snubbed the great "The Irishman" in 10 categories, so why not do the same with the lesser "Killers of the Flower Moon"?
The SAG Awards showcased Hollywood's big names and fun moments. Though some wins were expected, The Devil Wears Prada reunion brought a refreshing vibe. Anne Hathaway's dress nodding to the past was cool. Among the glitz, luxury sets the scene for Hollywood's finest.
Seems I wasn't the delusional, Wae Mest, or the pressed one, Juan Carlos Ojano.
Enjoy your weeks!