By Erica
Hello my fellow award watching lovelies!!! It is time for the SAG Awards! It should be good, as it is all actors, all the time, and the incredible Megan Mullally is host. Alan Alda is getting one of those Lifetime achievement things. I STILL watch MASH when I find it on. Timeless talent.
Programming note: As far as I can tell, red carpet coverage starts 2 or 3 hours before but it is all streaming. Shockingly, nothing on E! The SAG Award website, the People magazine website, and the EW (Entertainment Weekly) website have all been mentioned. I’ll probably be checking out EW if any, because I like their shows on Sirius Radio. They are apt to talk about the actual acting work. ALSO, my TV guide may be messed up, but it looks like it might not be aired live on TBS? Again, I could be wrong, but the show ALWAYS airs on TNT and TBS, so if you tune in at start time (5 PM Pacific, 8 PM Eastern) on TBS, switch to TNT quickly if it isn’t on.
Have you been tracking the award season? It is ALL OVER THE PLACE. Controversies, clichees,’firsts’, and triumphs abound! The Oscars are the Super Bowl, and the nominees have finally been announced, with some hits and misses. I mention them because the SAG Awards are the first ones since the nominations, and they might be a clue to what will win on that golden night.
First though, television. Honestly, if you are into diversity and the richness in storytelling that it brings us, television is where it is at. But CLEARLY not main network TV. The only network actor nominated tonight is Sterling K. Brown, from NBC’s This Is Us. ABC, NBC, CBS, CW, and FOX should be fucking scared and step up their game. Honestly, it also makes it difficult for those of us on a budget, who can’t necessarily afford to subscribe to these premium channels or all of the streaming content providers. (I only do Netflix and Amazon, so some of these shows I’ve never heard of) I haven’t even seen any of the dramas. So meh.
Having said that, it shouldn’t be a surprise that I’ll be watching the Female Actor in a Comedy category quite closely. I’ve never seen Glow (if you have, do you recommend it). But I’ve ALWAYS loved Grace and Frankie, and over the holidays I discovered The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel and fell in love. Rachel Brosnahan usually gets all the attention, but I’m really rooting for Alex Borstein. She won the Emmy for best supporting, and get this – she got a divorce two years ago, and she WORE HER WEDDING DRESS to the ceremony. She wanted to put a positive memory on it! She’s fantastic as Susie, Mrs. Maisel’s budding agent.
Also one I’ll focus on is the Best Actor in a Comedy. Kominsky Method is also a recent marathon of mine, and I can’t wait for season 2. But Tony Shaloub is freaking awesome in Mrs. Maisel, and he hasn’t gotten enough love for that. But if Henry Winkler beats them all, as a kid who grew up on Happy Days, I’ll be cheering (and probably crying… Henry is such a mensch and I love him to pieces).
On to the movies! Now if you, like me, caught the Critic’s Choice Award you know that there were two ties in the female actor categories. Patricia Arquette and Amy Adam tied in their TV category. Fine. But the most delightful moment for me was the tie in Best Actress in a movie. The Incredible Glenn Close won first. I stan for Glenn now, even though I haven’t seen The Wife yet. She got up there and talked about how she was so glad there was a tie, because “they” tend to pit women against each other. (and seriously, when have you ever read an article where the tone was pitting the best actors against each other? It is always the women they are looking to have a cat fight). She was so excited, she asked to stay on stage when they announced the second person. It was Lady Gaga and Glenn lost her shit in happiness. Lady Gaga nearly started crying talking about winning with Glenn. So much for the head to head competition. Turns out that Glenn is buddies with Gaga’s mom! The others in their SAG category are equally deserving and should give us great speeches and moments.
As for best ensemble, I’m SO grateful that Green Book isn’t nominated. Read up on some of the controversy. I’m not boycotting; I will see it in the theaters in my quest to see all the Oscar nominees. However, I am a little tired of this trope of white guy discovers racism and befriends black guy. The Don Shirley family (the real life person that Mahershala Ali plays is Don Shirley) was so upset they came out publicly against the film. Viggo Mortensen’s character’s son wrote the book in real life, but it was all from the stories his father told him growing up. He never met Mr. Shirley himself. So they went with his account, and considered it accurate, I guess. I know it was bad enough that Mahershala Ali personally called the family and apologized. Green Book did win the recent PGA award for best picture, which historically has been a strong indicator of who would win the BP Oscar. BUT they were wrong with Moonlight and Spotlight, much to my delight. (They gave the nod to La La Land and The Big Short, respectively, those years.) Many critics and analysts are looking to see who wins to see if a different trend will develop.
Of course, Crazy Rich Asians was NOT nominated for Oscar’s Best Picture but was nominated here for best ensemble (their version of Best Pic). In my personal opinion, it is a strong contender. So many were excited by an all Asian cast (as they were excited for an almost all black cast for Black Panther), and Crazy Rich Asians was one of my favorite movies of the year. So adorable, and I can’t wait for the sequel. (Side note: I loved the book too!) It really wasn’t just about the one couple, it was definitely an ensemble piece that flowed well.
I’ve seen all the nominees in this category except for Bohemian Rhapsody. Honestly, from everything I’ve heard it may be by the band and named after it, but the movie, as in life, is all about Freddie. This is how it should be. This means it isn’t really an ensemble flick. Black Panther was – frankly, I was more intrigued by the supporting actors than the Black Panther himself! A Star is Born will always be a tearjerker favorite, and Bradley Cooper really brought an incredible cast together to do some amazing work. But BlackkKlansman isn’t out of the running either. Certainly the focus is on John David Washington as lead, and Adam Driver who was in it nearly as much, but Spike Lee ALWAYS has side characters and actors that are fantastic. There isn’t EVER anything flat in a Spike Lee Joint.
What are you rooting for? Have you seen anything yet? I’ll see you in the comment section!
For your reference, the nominees are:
TELEVISION
Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Television Movie or Limited Series
Amy Adams, Sharp Objects
Patricia Arquette, Escape at Dannemora
Patricia Clarkson, Sharp Objects
Penelope Cruz, The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story
Emma Stone, Maniac
Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Television Movie or Limited Series
Antonio Banderas, Genius: Picasso
Darren Criss, The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story
Hugh Grant, A Very English Scandal
Anthony Hopkins, King Lear
Bill Pullman, The Sinner
Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Comedy Series
Alex Borstein, The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel
Alison Brie, GLOW
Rachel Brosnahan, The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel
Jane Fonda, Grace and Frankie
Lily Tomlin, Grace and Frankie
Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Comedy Series
Alan Arkin, The Kominsky Method
Michael Douglas, The Kominsky Method
Bill Hader, Barry
Tony Shalhoub, The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel
Henry Winkler, Barry
Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Comedy Series
Atlanta
Barry
GLOW
The Kominksy Method
The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel
Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Drama Series
Jason Bateman, Ozark
Sterling K. Brown, This Is Us
Joseph Fiennes, The Handmaid’s Tale
John Krasinski, Jack Reacher
Bob Odenkirk, Better Call Saul
Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Drama Series
Julia Garner, Ozark
Laura Linney, Ozark
Elisabeth Moss, The Handmaid’s Tale
Sandra Oh, Killing Eve
Robin Wright, House of Cards
Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series
The Americans
Better Call Saul
The Handmaid’s Tale
Ozark
This Is Us
MOVIES
Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Supporting Role
Mahershala Ali, Green Book
Timothée Chalamet, Beautiful Boy
Adam Driver, BlacKKKlansman
Sam Elliott, A Star Is Born
Richard E. Grant, Can You Ever Forgive Me?
Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Supporting Role
Amy Adams, Vice
Emily Blunt, A Quiet Place
Margot Robbie, Mary Queen of Scots
Emma Stone, The Favourite
Rachel Weisz, The Favourite
Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Leading Role
Christian Bale, Vice
Bradley Cooper, A Star Is Born
Rami Malek, Bohemian Rhapsody
Viggo Mortensen, Green Book
John David Washington, BlacKKKlansman
Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Leading Role
Emily Blunt, Mary Poppins Returns
Glenn Close, The Wife
Olivia Colman, The Favourite
Lady Gaga, A Star Is Born
Melissa McCarthy, Can You Ever Forgive Me?
Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture
Black Panther
BlacKkKlansman
Bohemian Rhapsody
Crazy Rich Asians
A Star is Born
You always find the best pictures, T. The Poltergeist one cracked me up!
I may be the only one watching, bt still going to comment.
I LOVE that they had Geoffrey Owens in the intro. He made social media rounds b/c someone tried to shame him for taking a job at Trader Joe’s while still trying to be a working actor. (He was Sondra’s husband, Elvin, on the Cosby Show).
It backfired on the person who snapped the pic… they got shamed, and he got some calls for jobs!
We are watchng “the most lame moment” for us: alec baldwin and megan mullally weird sex talk . Alec would have been better starting off with “hand raised in the air saying “I’m guilty”
They are forgetting that Will and Grace isn’t pulling the numbers it did in its first go round – NO ONE is, now with all these television alternatives.
Baldwin has played Karen’s lover on the show the past couple of seasons – they basically were acting like they were on the show.
It just didn’t translate at all, even though they are fantastic on W & G together.
I agree erika, thing is – most awards show address what the public witnessed “lately” in that persons life. We all watched the video of alec baldwin screeching at that poor driver – he later claims he is innocent but at court time – he pleads guilty.
Might as well admit – I have zero respect for Alec baldwin – since his taping of him degrading his daughter.
Oh, I totally missed that tape, actually!
She did another W&G bit… and it isn’t translating well yet again.
Best acceptance speech – Alan Alda! I did not realize he was in so many films
I heart him… did you see Mike Farrell there? I love that he was there!! (aka B.J. Honeycutt)
yes! that was so cool! tbh – I never liked Alan Alda taking over MASH – per actor’s that left the show.
I did like him in Four seasons!
Not sure if what I am remembering is true – I did watch the Barbra striesand – a star is born and did not watch other versions – I never knew that each version used different songs. Makes sense and keeps the movie – in the present – I just never knew this til Lady Gaga and the news stories about her writing
Cooper’s version is worth checking out. He made some subtle changes… or not so subtle to those maybe paying attention. Eliminated any hint of his troubles being because of “jealousy” over the female lead doing better career wise.
Also, the first one apparently didn’t have music (Gaynor, I think… from the 30s). They brought music in for Judy Garland. (I don’t recall that music though)
With Barbra on board, they wrote new stuff of course. She wrote Evergreen.
Doesn’t just keep the movie in the present either – makes sure that the songs are well suited for the voices singing them.
We probably will check out Coopers version, I like to see what peoples interpretation of the same idea – looks like.
Have lots of kleenex!
rami malek – souns like jack nicholson!
I always think he sounds slightly like Mr. Howell.
that is cool! ????
Glenn Close looks awesome!
That was the quickest awards show! thanks Erica!
I thought it was going to 8 PM myself! Thanks for joining me, Samael!
Now to read the analysis (es?) on whether or not this gives Black Panther a push towards winning the BP Oscar.
this was fun Erica
I wish that “younger” guy (gee did he say that about 9 times?) actor had mentioned the rest of the actors more. Angela Bassett would have been a better way to go for acceptance speeches
Yeah….. I’m not sure what youth had to do with it. There have been plenty of older, black actors that still struggle. Fuck, wasn’t he paying attention to Geoffrey Owens?
I think he should be careful… Michael B. Jordan was the hottie in BP, added depth that he did not. My focus, honestly, was the character of Oyoye (the leader of the women warriors). I thought she deserved an Oscar nom, frankly!
I agree with you, remember I never watched any of these movies – yet – but when
you start focusing on one – criteria – others loom to the forefront.
I remember acceptance speeches of the past – where actors mentioned what jobs they
had before all that $$ rolled in.
It was so cool of Geoffrey Owens to be part of the opening. I didn’t realize that megan’s other “act” was in reference to W&G.
Yeah, that old guy is a recurring character and her thinking her situation is bad and his is actually worse. It is hard to explain. It is very Karen and funny within the context.
Thank you Erica! Sadly can’t watch tonight, here’s to hoping I can watch later this week on demand.
I read your invite and just a few comments, don’t want to spoil everything but I do want to add “Ozark” is really good, it’s gritty for sure but so well done.
Enjoy the show everyone! I admit I love the fashion at these award shows, good and bad I’m all in Thank you Erica!
Ozark was robbed, particularly Julia Garner. She’s one of the best young actresses in the business, in my opinion. Laura Linney has really grown into her role, even when I just don’t understand her character’s motivations or actions, I keep watching to learn more about her state of mind. Jason Bateman was fantastic in season 2 as well. I’ll be honest, at first I couldn’t get past the actual lack of light and sunshine in the show; I know, I was being petty but after I started watching I was hooked. Season 3 won’t be out for awhile and I’m reminding my partner that we should’ve seriously slowed the binging. He’s new to all that and honestly thought the next season would be up in a month or two. Men!! Haha. I totally wasn’t going to let him know the goings on of the Byrd’s and Langmore’s alone either so I accept partial responsibility.
I’ve never watched GLOW but I may start. It seems to be very well received by all audiences.
Obviously I don’t see many movies and I’m shocked that there’s a show I love in the nominations, so I’m not great at giving recommendations but I’d love to get some new shows to watch.
Jason Bateman won, so Ozark wasn’t totally robbed. 🙂
Thank you, guys!
I’ve not watched Ozark or Glow. Not even sure where they air! Wish they weren’t gritty… I am seeking shows like Grace and Frankie, The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, and Kominsky Method. I adore all three, AND they are shows I can recommend and/or watch with my parents (in their 70s… needless to say, Orange is the New Black is not their jam).
Actually, I’d recommend all three of those shows, plus The Crown. I AM OBSESSED WITH THE CROWN.
I wasn’t even going to go see The Favourite until I read that Olivia Coleman is the next Queen Elizabeth II, taking over from Claire Foy.
I really like the Kominsky Method too. It’s just great all the way around. Ozark is on Netflix. My mom is starting to watch it slowly but she’s a Walking Dead super fan; she’s the reason I started watching that show. Haha. I’ll never underestimate a 68 year old woman’s tolerance for violence. She’s not offended as long as it’s for the sake of the story or in self defense. I need to watch The Crown. I tell myself I’m going to start but I haven’t. The Favourite seems like it’ll be great!
I love Glenn Close but after watching The Wife and then A Star is Born again (for the 3rd time), I’m sorry but Lady Gaga deserves that award. Glenn is great in the film, don’t get me wrong, but the depth and adding the singing on to that Lady Gaga did, she really surpassed her. I’m disappointed for her. I would say if anyone came close to her performance it would be Olivia Coleman.
I haven’t seen The Favorite yet, but the clips I’ve seen make me even more anxious for them to get The Crown Season 3 up!!!!
OK, I found out (and felt like I should have known this) that the young, black, and gifted is a quote!!!
Google it with the name Nina Simone, and you’ll get the lyrics. They are beautiful and is totally meaningful to what he was talking trying to convey. I guess the song itself was inspired by Lorraine Hansberry. My fellow lit and play nerds would know her by her work A Raisin in the Sun. (Do they teach that everywhere? Or was I the only one?)