Parasite scores historic upset at SAG awards
South Korean thriller Parasite was the upset winner at the Screen Actors Guild (SAG) awards on Sunday, while Joaquin Phoenix and Renee Zellweger were named best actors, cementing their roles as frontrunners at the Oscars next month. Parasite, the Korean language social satire about the wealth gap in South Korea, was the first film in a foreign language to win the top prize of best cast ensemble in the 26 year-history of the SAG awards.
Great going
Phoenix’s terrifying performance as a loner who finds fame through violence in Joker has swept the awards season. “I am standing on the shoulders of my favorite actor — Heath Ledger,” Phoenix said on Sunday, referring to the actor who won a posthumous Oscar in 2009 for his turn playing the comic book villain. Zellweger, likewise, has picked up most of the prizes so far for her performance as a desperate, ageing Judy Garland in biopic Judy.
Brad Pitt picked up another trophy for his supporting role as a stunt man in “Once Upon A Time in Hollywood,” while Laura Dern was named best supporting actress for playing a ruthless divorce lawyer in Netflix domestic drama Marriage Story.
Disappointing note
Martin Scorsese’s $170 million Netflix gangster movie The Irishman had another disappointing night, despite a cast that includes Robert De Niro, Al Pacino, and Joe Pesci.
Several of the contenders for best picture at the Oscars were not nominated for best movie cast ensemble at SAG. Those left out include immersive World War One film 1917, the big winner at the Producers Guild Awards on Saturday, as well as Joker, Marriage Story, and novel adaptation Little Women.
De Niro, whose lead performance in The Irishman has been snubbed by the Oscars, Golden Globes and SAG, was given a lifetime achievement award at the SAG dinner.
Small screen
In television, Jennifer Aniston was an upset winner for her role as a TV anchor in The Morning Show, bringing the second award this year for the new Apple TV+ streaming service. Her co-star Billy Crudup won a Critics Choice award last week.
Comedy The Marvelous Mrs Maisel and British royal drama The Crown took the prizes for their TV ensemble casts. —Reuters
Those who won…
BEST ENSEMBLE CAST IN A MOTION PICTURE
Parasite
BEST FILM ACTOR
Joaquin Phoenix Joker
BEST FILM ACTRESS
Renee Zellweger Judy
BEST FILM SUPPORTING ACTOR
Brad Pitt Once Upon a Time in Hollywood
BEST FILM SUPPORTING ACTRESS
Laura Dern Marriage Story
BEST ENSEMBLE CAST IN A TV DRAMA SERIES
The Crown
BEST TV DRAMA ACTOR
Peter Dinklage Game of Thrones
BEST TV DRAMA ACTRESS
Jennifer Aniston The Morning Show
BEST ENSEMBLE TV COMEDY SERIES
The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel
BEST TV COMEDY ACTOR
Tony Shalhoub The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel
BEST TV COMEDY ACTRESS
Phoebe Waller-Bridge Fleabag
BEST ACTRESS IN A TV MOVIE OR LIMITED SERIES
Michelle Williams Fosse/Verdon
BEST ACTOR IN A TV MOVIE OR LIMITED SERIES
Sam Rockwell Fosse/Verdon”
—Reuters
