The SAG Awards unveiled their nominations this morning, honoring actors across film and television. While the lists were fairly predictable (and heavy on the awards-bait style biopics), there were still some pretty horrendous snubs and some (mostly pleasant) surprises. Voted on by the Screen Actors Guild to honor their colleagues, the SAG Awards are often considered somewhat of a bellwether for who we could see receive an Oscar nomination on January 23.
Perhaps the biggest snub from the entire spate of the SAG nominees was the exclusion of May December as a whole. Sure, the Netflix-distributed film has had its share of controversies—just last week, Vili Fualaau, whose life partially inspired the project, denounced it—but there has never been a doubt over the quality of the three major performances from Julianne Moore, Natalie Portman, and particularly Charles Melton, who broke straight out of Riverdale High to deliver a layered, haunting performance as Joe Yoo. Though the film hasn’t exactly been an awards darling this season—both the screenplay and the direction were previously snubbed at the Golden Globes—the lack of recognition for any of the actors here feels egregious. [Drew Gillis]
Ferrari has been largely ignored in this season’s awards conversation, apparently falling behind other flashier trophy contenders. But Penelope Cruz does deliver a standout performance as Enzo Ferrari’s long-suffering wife Laura, whose occasional violent outbursts reveal a wound unsuccessfully buried. Cruz seems like a longshot to win here, and an Oscar nomination still seems fairly unlikely, but it’s a pleasant surprise to see her standout work receive this acknowledgment from her peers. [Drew Gillis]
Life really does imitate art, huh? While it’s great to see the other Roy siblings (and one of their estranged husbands) finally get the recognition they deserve with nominations for Kieran Culkin, Sarah Snook, and Matthew McFadyen, Kendall has once again been left out in the cold. Jeremy Strong delivered as stunning a performance as he ever has this season, and it’s a pretty shocking decision to cut him out entirely. If nothing else, this is a testament to just how good everyone is in this dear, departed series. [Emma Keates]
This year, the SAG Awards asked, “remember fun?” Amid major heavy hitters like Succession, The Last Of Us, and even The Crown, it’s nice to see a silly show like The Gilded Age getting its fair due. It won’t win, but sometimes it’s just nice to be included. [Emma Keates]
Poor Leonardo DiCaprio finally got his long-awaited Oscar in 2016 for The Revenant and slipped right back into the purgatory of being constantly passed over for awards. While DiCaprio’s performance as Ernest Burkhart hasn’t generated quite as much buzz as Cillian Murphy’s turn as J. Robert Oppenheimer or even his Killers Of The Flower Moon co-star Lily Gladstone, it’s still a commendable and nuanced performance that saw the star stepping away from his usual comfort zone. [Emma Keates]
Colman Domingo has not received a ton of recognition for his portrayal of Martin Luther King, Jr. advisor Bayard Rustin from the awards circuit, so it’s nice to see him get a nod here. In The A.V. Club’s review of the George C. Wolfe directed biopic, Leigh Monson writes that Domingo portrays the civil rights leader with “a tender longing that is extremely entertaining.” Domingo is actually nominated for two awards this year: he also got a nod for his work in the ensemble of The Color Purple. [Emma Keates]
Emma Stone and Willem Dafoe both got some very appropriate attention for their work in Yorgos Lanthimos’ twisted, fantastic Poor Things. But they are just two trays in a buffet of talented actors in this cast, and the lack of recognition for the rest of the film’s ensemble is bizarre. Mark Ruffalo particularly gives a standout performance, rendering him almost unrecognizable; Ramy Youssef’s theatrical posturing uncovers new depths to his skill; Margaret Qualley shines in a small but strange role. It’s a shame that none of these performances have the chance to be acknowledged on the SAG stage. [Drew Gillis]
Tony Shaloub made his return to Monk this year with the made-for-Peacock movie Mr. Monk’s Last Case. The project is a cute, if fairly unserious, 90-minute episode of a quirky procedural. If Shaloub won’t get recognized for his work in The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel this season, at least he’ll get a shout from SAG for Monk. [Drew Gillis]
The sixth and final split season of The Crown was hardly adored the way its preceding seasons were. Even so, the cast generally does well, and playing Elizabeth II in this series is generally a lock for awards recognition. While that was true at last weekend’s Golden Globes, it was not the case for the Screen Actors Guild. Elizabeth Debicki’s standout effort as Princess Diana in her tragic final weeks was highlighted, but everyone else in the ensemble will remain empty-handed. [Drew Gillis]
National Geographic’s A Small Light, the true story of Miep Gies, a Dutch woman who risked her life to shelter Anne Frank and her family during World War II, has gone pretty unrecognized in general—much less by the major award shows. In a year where historical dramas like Oppenheimer and Killers Of The Flower Moon have seen massive success, it’s nice to see a smaller production brought to the table as well. [Emma Keates]
The fact that Sarah Goldberg will likely never win an award for her stunning portrayal of Sally Reed in Barry is a crime on par with, well, everything Barry does in this show. She’s so good, especially in the show’s final season as she contends with the misery of the life she has somehow found herself trapped in. Anthony Carrigan also fired on absolutely every cylinder this past season, from that great scene in the Dave & Buster’s to that moment halfway through the series (you know the one). It’s great that their work is being acknowledged with an Outstanding Ensemble nomination, but these two deserve some recognition on their own. [Emma Keates]