Being out of town for a little bit means that I missed a chunk of awards season! No fear, because where there’s a will, there’s a way! And in the case of the SAG Awards, Netflix! This year marked the SAG Awards’ first year on the streaming giant (sorry, TBS), and I am quite alright with the move.
The first big benefit is that there were no commercials! What we got instead though were some extended interviews with some of the winners behind the scenes with Queer Eye‘s Tan France. Not that I minded – he was a terrific interviewer! I know they have to give the attendees the chance to use the bathroom and just generally mingle, so I’ll take these interviews instead of the same commercial at least a dozen times. Though there weren’t as many breaks, somehow this show, with less awards than others, still managed to run at two and a half hours! That doesn’t mean I wasn’t giddy watching this from start to finish. Similar to the Emmys, the SAG Awards also saw the reunion of casts of both shows and films and it made for a delightful time.
What I also like most about this particular awards show is how genuinely happy the winners are because a win means that their peers really liked them! Now, I’m hoping they all watched the nominees’ performances in order to cast their votes, but I know it can’t all be that way. Another theme of the night though was the gratitude to the guild for staying strong during the strikes. According to host Idris Elba, because of what they achieved with the strikes, they were all winners that night. I’d like to agree!
In the television categories, a lot of the wins came as no surprise really. Yes, Beef‘s main actors took home the wins for the miniseries category, though I still think it’s really strange that the shows themselves don’t get nominated in their own category like standard comedies or dramas. In any case, The Bear swept the comedy wins out from under Ted Lasso and Barry‘s feat, as expected. But while Succession took home the drama series prize, all four of its nominated actors lost to a very shocked Pedro Pascal and Elizabeth Debicki. Those two were actually quite sweet and silly with their wins, so I was pleased.
On the film side, I think at this point all but lead actress are locked for wins at the Oscars, but I suppose anything could happen. Again, we got to see Cillian Murphy, Robert Downy Jr, Da’Vine Joy Randolph, and the ensemble of Oppenheimer take home trophies, but the fun surprise of the night was Lily Gladstone’s win. All the other’s in her category seemed so cheesed that she won, which was so, so sweet to see. Gotta love women supporting women! All gave excellent and actually eloquent speeches and I look forward to seeing how it all ends up in a couple of weeks!
While awards shows always have a few cringe moments, this one mainly just made me laugh like they intended, so I think that’s a win! Especially for a show that normally has no host or presenters. Highlight funny moments for me go to the men’s reactions in the supporting actor category once Ryan Gosling’s reel was finished, along with a hilarious exchange between Alexander Skarsgard and Omar Sy. Phil Dunster and Storm Reid had a fun and funny chemistry, while the Breaking Bad and Modern Family casts had some solid gold interactions. These kinds of things always leave a smile plastered on my face, and watching this year’s ceremony was no different.
Stay tuned for a recap and review of the Independent Spirit Awards, and of course the Oscars in a couple of weeks! A list of winners can be found here.