The Screen Actors Guild’s annual Actor Awards ceremony will take place on Sunday in Los Angeles, marking the final major awards event before the Academy Awards later this month.
Two films are expected to dominate the competition: Paul Thomas Anderson’s political thriller One Battle After Another leads with seven nominations, while Ryan Coogler’s Sinners, a vampire tale exploring America’s racial history, follows with five nominations.
The ceremony’s top prize recognises the best ensemble cast, an award that sometimes indicates potential Oscar success for best picture, though not consistently.
One Battle After Another stars Leonardo DiCaprio as a former revolutionary drawn back into activism when his teenage daughter disappears. Sinners features Michael B. Jordan in a dual role examining racial themes through supernatural storytelling.
Individual category predictions
Awards analyst Scott Feinberg from The Hollywood Reporter believes Sinners has strong chances with the Screen Actors Guild membership of over 160 000 professionals, though this may not translate to Oscar success.
“I think Sinners is almost certainly going to win the Best Ensemble SAG Award,” Feinberg said. “I’m not as confident that it’s going to win the best picture Oscar.”
For individual performances, Timothée Chalamet appears likely to win best actor for his role as an obsessive 1950s table tennis player in Marty Supreme. Chalamet previously won the award last year for Bob Dylan biopic A Complete Unknown.
His competition includes DiCaprio, Michael B. Jordan, Ethan Hawke for Blue Moon, and Jesse Plemons for Bugonia.
In the best actress category, Jessie Buckley leads for her portrayal of Shakespeare’s grieving wife in Hamnet. Other nominees include Rose Byrne, Kate Hudson, Chase Infiniti, and Emma Stone.
Supporting categories remain open
The supporting actor categories show less clear frontrunners, with different winners across recent awards ceremonies. The Golden Globes, Critics Choice Awards, and BAFTAs have recognised different performers in these categories.
For television, Netflix’s Adolescence, medical drama The Pitt, and Apple’s The Studio are expected to perform well, building on their Emmy success.
The ceremony will honour Harrison Ford for his career achievements and will be hosted by Kristen Bell. The event begins at 17:00 Los Angeles time (03:00 South African time on Monday 2 March) and will stream live on Netflix.
The 32nd Screen Actors Guild Awards serve as a key indicator for Oscar predictions, with voting concluding two weeks before the Academy Awards ceremony.
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