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The 31st Screen Actors Guild Awards, taking place on Sunday night, are expected to provide a crucial indication of who will win at the Oscars.
Other prominent awards ceremonies, such as the BAFTAs, Producers Guild Awards, Directors Guild Awards, and Golden Globes, have already taken place. However, because actors constitute the largest voting bloc within the Academy, their SAG choices often strongly correlate with the eventual Academy Award winners.
Following wins at the PGA, DGA, and Independent Spirit Awards, Sean Baker’s “Anora” is currently considered the frontrunner for Best Picture at the Oscars. However, Edward Berger’s “Conclave” unexpectedly won at the BAFTAs last weekend, adding further uncertainty to this awards season. This also follows the surprising rise and subsequent fall of another contender, “Emilia Pérez.”
With the SAG Awards approaching, hosted by Kristen Bell at the Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles, several questions remain. Can “Wicked” gain momentum and win the top prize for best ensemble? Will Adrien Brody beat Timothée Chalamet for best actor? And can Mikey Madison continue her winning streak and win best actress over Demi Moore?
How to watch the SAG Awards
Netflix will stream the 31st SAG Awards live, starting at 8 p.m. Eastern. A pre-show will also be available on Netflix an hour earlier. Last year’s ceremony, the first to be streamed on Netflix, attracted 1.8 million viewers, which is similar to previous SAG ceremonies broadcast on TNT and TBS.
Who’s nominated by SAG?
“Wicked” leads the film nominations with five nods, while “Shōgun” is the frontrunner in the TV categories.
Jon M. Chu’s popular musical is yet to win a major award, but the Screen Actors Guild often favors widely appealing contenders. The other nominees for best ensemble are “Anora,” “The Brutalist,” “Conclave,” and “A Complete Unknown.”
The best actor and best actress categories are expected to be closely contested. Although Brody (“The Brutalist”) has secured several awards, Chalamet (“A Complete Unknown”) and Ralph Fiennes (“Conclave”) could potentially upset him. In the best actress category, either Moore (“The Substance”) or Madison (“Anora”) could win.
In the supporting categories, Kieran Culkin (“A Real Pain”) and Zoe Saldana (“Emilia Pérez”) are the favorites.
In addition to the competitive awards, Jane Fonda will receive the SAG Life Achievement Award.
How the ceremony plans to address the Los Angeles wildfires
Due to the devastating wildfires that started in early January, the guild was forced to cancel the in-person nominations announcement and instead released a press statement. The guild has established a disaster relief fund for SAG-AFTRA members affected by the fires. Producers have stated that the show will acknowledge those impacted.
