What Sets the SAG Awards Apart From the Rest

Watch Jamie Lee Curtis Call Herself a “Nepo Baby” At 2023 SAG Awards

There’s nothing quite like being honored by your peers.

Winning an Oscar or an Emmy comes with an undeniable amount of prestige. Meanwhile, box office returns and ratings give you a window into how the public feels about your art. But to have the people who know your craft the best—your former co-stars, your audition competition, your time slot rivals—deem your performance the best in your field that year is an unparalleled sense of validation. Enter the Screen Actors Guild Awards. (Catch the full list of 2024 nominations here.)

One of the younger award shows on the block, the SAG Awards were established less than 30 years ago by what was then known as the Screen Actors Guild, the union formed in 1933 to represent film and television principal and background performers worldwide. (In 2012, SAG merged with the American Federation of Television and Radio Artists to become SAG-AFTRA.) And at the onset of the first ceremony in 1995, the legendary Angela Lansbury took the stage to emphasize why the night mattered.

“Tonight is dedicated to the art and craft of acting by the people who should know about it: actors,” she told the crowd of nominees and presenters gathered at Universal Studios’ Stage 12. “And remember, you’re one too!”

In the ensuing 25-plus years since that first ceremony, the location of the event (this year’s festivities will take place at L.A.’s Shrine Auditorium & Expo Hall) and the overall scale may have changed, but that initial edict has always remained the same.

Getty Images; Jessica Ariel Wendroff/ E! Illustration

A simple event (2018’s host, Kristen Bell, marked the ceremony’s first host ever and no one has helmed that role since 2021) that traditionally eschews many of the distracting sideshows that bloat the run times of other award shows, the SAG Awards have never forgotten that this night is about actors celebrating actors. Period.

Between the night’s signature opening montage of “Actors Stories,” the yearly presentation of the Screen Actors Guild Life Achievement Award (this year’s honoree: Barbra Streisand), and awarding of the coveted Actor statuettes in 13 categories recognizing both individual performances as well as the entire ensemble of one drama series, one comedy series, and one motion picture, the focus is squarely on the actor. (We know, we know, like they don’t get enough attention.)

And it’s that for us, by us ethos that makes this the one award show where the sappy old “It’s just an honor to be nominated” saying just might actually be true.

Check out which stars are enjoying that particular honor before the winner are announced.

Atsushi Nishijima. Courtesy of Searchlight Pictures

Emma Stone

“Thank you SAG!!!” the Poor Things actress said in a statement following her Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Leading Role nod. “This nomination is a profound honor. I’m hugely grateful to Yorgos Lanthimos, our producers Ed Guiney and Andrew Lowe and Searchlight Pictures. I still can’t believe I got to work alongside Mark Ruffalo, Willem Dafoe, Ramy Youssef, and the rest of this incredible cast.”

David Lee/NETFLIX

Colman Domingo

“To be in this company, category, moment and to be seen by your peers is everything,” the Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Leading Role nominee said about his recognition for Rustin. “To be honored in the company of such extraordinarily talented actors is something I have always aspired to, since my early days as a theater actor. That was the most important thing. And it still is. This nomination means the very world to me to be amplified by my peers for my work as Bayard Rustin in Rustin directed with such grace and intelligence by the great George C. Wolfe. No one does this alone. I am so grateful to Rustin’s tremendous cast, generous crew and the best producing team a guy could ask for.”

Bradley Cooper

“I’m so proud to be a member of this guild, and to be acknowledged alongside these incredible actors whose work I’ve admired for so long,” the Maestro star said in a statement about his Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Leading Role nomination. “For SAG to recognize Carey Mulligan and I means everything to us. Thank you for allowing me to be a part of this community.”

Colin Hutton/Apple TV+

Brett Goldstein

Someone alert the Diamond Dogs because the Ted Lasso alum has been nominated for Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Comedy Series. And he reacted in true Roy Kent fashion.

“Holy xxxx!” Brett wrote on his Instagram Stories. “Thank you so much @sagawards.”

He also cheered for the rest of the Ted Lasso team by adding, “Let’s go Greyhounds.”

Matt Dinerstein/FX

Ayo Edebiri

Yes, chef! Following her nod for Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Comedy Series, The Bear star wrote on Instagram, “Thank you @sagawards.”

HBO

Pedro Pascal

“To be acknowledged by your peers is an incomparable achievement,” The Last of Us star said in a statement about his Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Drama Series nod. “I have been a member of our union for 25 years, it is the very community that has made it possible for me to do what I set my heart on as a child. I am grateful, honored and humbled to be in the company of such incredible actors. Enormous congratulations to my partner and guardian Bella Ramsey, to our unbelievable ensemble and stunts team, to HBO and Carolyn Strauss, and a special thank you to Neil Druckmann and Craig Mazin for creating the treacherous world that all of us would give anything to get back to.”

Keith Bernstein/Netflix

Elizabeth Debicki

“It has been a true gift to play Princess Diana in this season of The Crown,” she said after being nominated for Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Drama Series. “I am absolutely delighted to be nominated amongst such incredible women for their remarkable performances. I am in awe of their work. I look forward to celebrating the final season of our show and with my fellow actors after such a challenging time for our industry. SAG-AFTRA strong!”

Yorgos Lanthimos. Courtesy of Searchlight Pictures

Willem Dafoe

“To receive this recognition from those who do the same job as you – and know firsthand the joys and challenges of this work – is especially gratifying,” The Poor Things star, who is up for Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Supporting Role, said in a statement. “The role of Dr. Godwin Baxter – his compassion, complexity and grounding heart is one that excited me from the beginning. I am grateful for my Poor Things colleagues, who were incredible partners each day, and I am very touched to be recognized by my peers, all the moreso after the year our community has had.”

Mark Holzberg/SHOWTIME

Matt Bomer

“This means the world to me,” the Fellow Travelers star said in a statement about his Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Television Movie or Limited Series nomination. “I love my fellow actors so much- even the salty ones! I’m very grateful that we get to do what we do. And to be included in this company- wow. Thank you SAG Awards/SAG/AFTRA!”

National Geographic for Disney/Dusan Martincek

Bel Powley

“Thank you to SAG-AFTRA for this nomination,” the A Small Light actress said in a statement following her nod in the Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Television Movie or Limited Series category. “Being recognised by your peers feels particularly special! I’m so proud of A Small Light, and feel very lucky to have shared Miep’s selfless and heroic story with the world.”

Netflix

Carey Mulligan

“Telling the story of Felicia’s life has been an incredible privilege,” the Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Leading Role nominee said in a statement about her role in Maestro. “Not just because the remarkable Bradley Cooper bestowed me with the kind of role an actor can only dream about; but because of who she was as an artist, an actor, a mother, and a wife. We could not have had more support from the Bernstein family and I’m beyond delighted to share this honour with them.”

Paul Giamatti

“It’s a beautiful and humbling thing to be nominated for any award but it’s particularly meaningful when you are nominated by your fellow actors,” the Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Leading Role nominee said in a statement following his nod for his work in The Holdovers. “Actors are tough critics! Paul Hunham was an incredibly personal role for me, and to bring him to life with my dear friend Alexander was a true privilege.”

He added, “In this turbulent year, it feels especially meaningful to see a film that sends a message of faith in human connection to restore us to our better selves acknowledged by my peers. My deepest thanks to SAG-AFTRA for embracing me and my incredible co-star Da’Vine Joy Randolph, and celebrating our heartfelt film.”

Annette Bening

“Being honored with a nomination by my SAG peers is the best,” the Nyad star said in a statement about her Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Leading Role nod. “Jodie [Foster] and I are proud to represent Team NYAD. Thank you, fellow SAG members!”

Amazon Prime Instant Video

Rachel Brosnahan

After the actress and her costar Alex Borstein were both nominated in the Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Comedy Series category, The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel star marked the major moment with a tribute on Instagram.

“Grateful to be closing out this chapter with the ketchup to my mustard, the pie to my cake, my dearest Smidge, @alexborstein,” Rachel wrote. “And look at the company we get to keep! Thank you @sagawards. No greater feeling than being honored by your peers.”

Christopher Polk / Contributor (Getty Images)

Danielle Brooks

After being nominated for Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Supporting Role, The Color Purple star wrote on Instagram Stories, “And then this happened!!”

Da’Vine Joy Randolph

“Mary Lamb is the kind of character you don’t see often – her strength and capacity for compassion inspire me,” the Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Supporting Role nominee said about her role in The Holdovers. “Thank you SAG-AFTRA for embracing our humble yet mighty film, and my trusted and beloved scene partner Paul Giamatti.”

Steve Wilkie/PEACOCK

Tony Shalhoub

“I am incredibly thrilled and grateful to have received this nomination this morning,” the Mr. Monk’s Last Case: A Monk Movie celeb said in a statement about his nod in the Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Television Movie or Limited Series category. “Reuniting with my MONK family after 14 years for this movie has been a dream, and to be recognized once again by my peers is incredibly special. Making this movie was a team effort, and I share this with the entire cast and crew. And thank you to all my fellow actors and SAG-AFTRA for their continuous support.”

Lauren Smith/Paramount+

David Oyelowo

“Only other actors can truly understand what it takes, and what it is, to feel the fear and do it anyway when it comes to giving a performance,” the Lawmen: Bass Reeves star said in a statement after being nominated for Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Television Movie or Limited Series. “That makes this nomination from my peers even more meaningful. Playing Bass Reeves has been, and continues to be, a blessing beyond words. Thank you so much to all the SAG-AFTRA voters.”

Jessica Brooks/Hulu

Kathryn Hahn

“Oh wow,” the Tiny Beautiful Things actress said in a statement about her Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Television Movie or Limited Series nomination. “I love actors and I love my job and this couldn’t mean more coming from my incredible peers. This job is not for the faint of heart and I am so proud to be a part of this community. I will treasure this nomination for the rest of it. Thank you to my incredible union SAG for the opportunity to be in such gorgeous company, to Hello Sunshine and Jaywalker for having me, Liz Tigelaar for writing this part, Cheryl Strayed for giving us herself, and of course, this beautiful cast. I found Clare in all of you.”

Jeff Spicer/Getty Images

Peter Morgan

“We’re pleased as punch that the magnificent cast of the final season of The Crown has been recognised by SAG-AFTRA,” the show’s creator said about the cast’s nominations. “We were lucky to have been gifted with an astonishing depth of world-class actors and the brilliant work of our casting director Robert Stern. What a wonderful way to end this extraordinary journey. We are all grateful, delighted and proud.”

(This story was originally published on Thursday, Jan. 18, 2018, at 3 a.m. PT.)

The 2024 Screen Actors Guild Awards air Saturday, Feb. 24, at 8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. PT on Netflix. And don’t miss E!’s red carpet show starting at 6 p.m. ET/3 p.m. PT.