‘Everything Everywhere All At Once’ dominates SAG Awards

The cast of ‘Everything Everywhere All At Once’ celebrate their big wins at the SAG Awards - Copyright AP Photo

Published on 27/02/2023 - 13:20•Updated 16:33

The multiverse adventure scooped the Best Motion Picture Cast award, putting it as the front runner for Oscars success in two weeks time.

Multiverse adventure Everything Everywhere All at Once took home the top movie honour at the Screen Actors Guild (SAG) awards on Sunday. The win for Best Motion Picture Cast cements its status as the front-runner for the best picture prize at next month's Academy Awards.

The film about a Chinese-American laundromat owner going through family turmoil has claimed a number of trophies at recent award ceremonies leading up to the most famous, the Oscars, which will be held on 12 March.

The SAG awards, held in Los Angeles, are often thought to be the most indicative of who will do well at the Oscars as the winners are voted for by the SAG-AFTRA acting union, which comprises the largest group of Oscar voters.

Actors in the science-fiction movie also earned awards, with lead female actor Michelle Yeoh scooping a gong alongside supporting actors Ke Huy Quan and Jamie Lee Curtis.

In her acceptance speech, Yeoh said, “This is not just for me. This is for every little girl that looks like me… Thank you for giving me a seat at the table."

It was a particularly special night for Ke Huy Quan too. He’d appeared in 1984’s Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom as a child star but had given up acting for years. His win for Male Actor in a Supporting Role marked the first time an Asian had won in the category.

In his speech, the Vietnamese-American said, "When I stepped away from acting it was because there were so few opportunities… The landscape looks so different now than before. Thank you to everyone in this room who contributed to these changes."

94-year-old Veteran actor James Hong, who plays Yeoh's father in the movie, spoke about his happiness that Asians were being recognised in Hollywood. "I got my first SAG card 70 years ago. Back in those days... producers said that Asians were not good enough and they are not box office - but look at us now," he said.

Everything Everywhere All at Once has already scored top prizes at both the Directors Guild and Producers Guild awards. The movie has also been a commercial success, selling over $107 million worth of tickets and it’s the highest-grossing movie ever for indie distributor A24.

The SAG award for best male movie actor went to Brendan Fraser for playing a struggling, severely obese man trying to reconnect with his daughter in The Whale. In an emotional acceptance speech, Fraser said his younger self "never would have believed that I would have been offered the role of my life."

Fraser was a box office star at the turn of the millennium, known for action films like The Mummy and George of the Jungle, but spent several years out of the spotlight. His win for the Darren Aronofsky-directed picture continues a hugely successful comeback for Fraser. "I just want you to know, all the actors out there who have gone through that or are going through that, I know how you feel, but believe me, if you just stay in there and put one foot in front of the other, you'll get to where you need to go," Fraser said during his acceptance speech.

The SAG awards also honour top television programmes and it was a great night for hit show ‘The White Lotus’. Its cast took home the drama series ensemble prize and the inimitable Jennifer Coolidge scooped the award for best female actor in a drama series. Mockumentary ‘Abbott Elementary’ won best TV comedy ensemble and Jessica Chastain (for George & Tammy), Jason Bateman (Ozark), Sam Elliott (1883) and Jean Smart (Hacks) all won prizes for their TV roles.

76-year-old Sally Field was presented with a lifetime achievement award for her nearly 60-year- long career which has seen her star in hits including Steel Magnolias, Forrest Gump and Lincoln. Accepting the award, she said, “There is not a day that I don’t feel quietly thrilled to call myself an actor.”

Tributes were paid to late famous faces including Ray Liotta, James Caan, Dame Olivia Newton John, Irene Cara and Dame Angela Lansbury also featured in the show's In Memoriam segment.

Both the SAG Awards and the BAFTAS are both seen as Oscar indicators - but this year, none of the major winners were the same.

Last week's BAFTAs were dominated by All Quiet on the Western Front, while Everything Everywhere All at Once only managed to win one of the 10 awards it was nominated for.

With two weeks left until the Oscars, it’s all to play for for all the movies nominated. The race for best actor is particularly exciting - no one has won their category across the Golden Globes, Critics Choice, BAFTAs or SAG Awards.

WINNERS

Motion picture cast

Babylon

The Banshees of Inisherin

WINNER: Everything Everywhere All at Once

The Fabelmans

Women Talking

Male actor in a leading role

Austin Butler, Elvis

Colin Farrell, The Banshees of Inisherin

WINNER: Brendan Fraser, The Whale

Bill Nighy, Living

Adam Sandler, Hustle

Female actor in a leading role

Cate Blanchett, Tár

Viola Davis, The Woman King

Ana de Armas, Blonde

Danielle Deadwyler, Till

WINNER: Michelle Yeoh, Everything Everywhere All at Once

Male actor in a supporting role

Paul Dano, The Fabelmans

Brendan Gleeson, The Banshees of Inisherin

Barry Keoghan, The Banshees of Inisherin

WINNER: Ke Huy Quan, Everything Everywhere All at Once

Eddie Redmayne, The Good Nurse

Female actor in a supporting role

Angela Bassett, Black Panther: Wakanda Forever

Hong Chau, The Whale

Kerry Condon, The Banshees of Inisherin

WINNER: Jamie Lee Curtis, Everything Everywhere All at Once

Stephanie Hsu, Everything Everywhere All at Once

Stunt ensemble in a motion picture

Avatar: The Way of Water

The Batman

Black Panther: Wakanda Forever

WINNER: Top Gun: Maverick

The Woman King

Drama series ensemble

Better Call Saul

The Crown

Ozark

Severance

WINNER: The White Lotus

Comedy series ensemble

WINNER: Abbott Elementary

Barry

The Bear

Hacks

Only Murders in the Building

Male actor in a TV movie or miniseries

Steve Carell, The Patient

Taron Egerton, Blackbird

WINNER: Sam Elliott, 1883

Paul Walter Hauser, Blackbird

Evan Peters, Dahmer

Female actor in a TV movie or miniseries

Emily Blunt, The English

WINNER: Jessica Chastain, George & Tammy

Julia Garner, Inventing Anna

Niecy Nash, Dahmer

Amanda Seyfried, The Dropout

Male actor in a drama series

Jonathan Banks, Better Call Saul

WINNER: Jason Bateman, Ozark

Jeff Bridges, The Old Man

Bob Odenkirk, Better Call Saul

Adam Scott, Severance

Female actor in a drama series

WINNER: Jennifer Coolidge, The White Lotus

Elizabeth Debicki, The Crown

Julia Garner, Ozark

Laura Linney, Ozark

Zendaya, Euphoria

Male actor in a comedy series

Anthony Carrigan, Barry

Bill Hader, Barry

Steve Martin, Only Murders in the Building

Martin Short, Only Murders in the Building

WINNER: Jeremy Allen White, The Bear

Female actor in a comedy series

Christina Applegate, Dead to Me

Rachel Brosnahan, The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel

Quinta Brunson, Abbott Elementary

Jenna Ortega, Wednesday

WINNER: Jean Smart, Hacks

Stunt ensemble in a TV series

Andor

The Boys

House of the Dragon

Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power

WINNER: Stranger Things

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From left: Jenny Slate, Stephanie Hsu, James Hong, Michelle Yeoh, and Ke Huy Quan accept the SAG award for outstanding performance by a cast in a motion picture.

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