It’s the actors.
The 2026 SAG Actor Awards air on Sunday, March 1. Streaming live on Netflix (8pm), the event was held at LA’s Shrine Auditorium and Expo Hall and hosted by Kristen Bell.
It was a star-studded night, including Ethan Hawke, Michael B. Jordan, Patricia Arquette, Kate Hudson, Jacob Elordi, Chase Infiniti, Patrick Schwarzenegger, and more. Harrison Ford, 83, also received a Life Achievement Award.
There were a few surprises – Michael B. Jordan won “best actor,” beating the expected winner Timothee Chalamet.
In film, “One Battle After Another” (7 nominations) is up against “Sinners” (5), while in TV, “The Studio,” “Adolescence,” and “The White Lotus” were all nominated.
Here are all the best and worst moments of the night.
Best – Michael J. Fox in opening
The event began with a camera of various actors in the audience, talking about their careers, such as Kate Hudson and Teyana Taylor.
A real crowd-pleasing moment happened when the camera stopped on Michael J. Fox, and the room erupted into loud applause. The “Back to the Future” star, 64, hasn’t attended many awards shows since his Parkinson’s diagnosis (which he first announced in 1998), and has been open about his battle with health. Fox talked about his career beginnings, recalling how he met his wife, actress Tracy Pollan, on “Family Ties,” where he gave her the “gift” of their four children, Schuyler, 31, Aquinnah, 31, Esmé, 24, and Sam, 36.
“Sometimes I like to remind them, if it wasn’t for acting, they wouldn’t be here,” he said. He proudly concluded, “I’m Michael J. Fox. I’m a father and I’m an actor.”
Worst – Sterling K. Brown’s gaffe
The “Paradise” star came out with Janelle James to present the award together. The “Abbott Elementary” actor did a bit of impersonation, to prove that he can act in drama as well as comedy.
“I gave you 11 years of my life, and you left me for a white man?” he exclaims, in his faux-drama. Brown stumbled in his written response to their fake drama, saying, “Would it be better if he was white…I mean, if he was black?”
After the mistake, he pretended to leave the stage. “The fun fact is, even though I dismissed that joke, I can actually be funny!” he said.
The best – Catherine O’Hara gets a standing ovation, and it’s a tearjerker
When O’Hara, who died at the age of 71 in January, won the award for “actress in a comedy series” for her role in “The Studio,” Apple show creator and partner Seth Rogen accepted her in her place. The room echoed.
“I was asked to take on the sad honor of accepting the award in his place,” Rogen said, adding that as he reflects on the time he was “lucky” to have spent with him, he has been “amazed” by his ability to be “generous and gracious and kind.”
The camera cut to several celebrities in the crowd, including Kathryn Hahn, Jenna Ortega, Sam Rockwell, Rose Byrne, and Keri Russell.
Worst – Kristen Bell’s “table tennis”.
As one of his chants during the event, Bell said, “I step up the competition, starting with a table tennis match!” The camera cut to Ted Danson playing ping pong with Jackie Tohn. Bell announced triumphantly, “The winner will get…
It was a little funny, but since Bell kept going back to the coffee table all night, it was a waste of time.
Best of all – Amy Madigan continues her awards season momentum
The “best supporting” Oscar race is at an all-time high this year, but Amy Madigan won the Actress award for her supporting role in “Arms,” continuing her momentum leading up to the Academy Awards (after winning the Critics’ Choice Award, too).
“I’ve been doing this for a long time, and I’ve never been nominated!” he exclaimed in his speech.
It’s great to see an actress finally getting an award at the age of 75, and it’s great to see a role in such a horror movie being praised, as that genre doesn’t usually get awards love. In her bittersweet speech, an excited Madigan pointed out how the statue of the Actor’s award looks like when children play with Barbie and Ken, “and knock down his drawers, and Ken has nothing!” The surprised crowd laughed.
Worst – Woody Harrelson’s tough crowd
Harrelson presented Ford with a Life Achievement Award. At the raucous conference, the “Truth Detective” actor revealed that the majority of the crowd will be missing out on prizes – “80 percent of you will learn a lesson in humility tonight!” The audience didn’t seem impressed.
Harrelson then jokingly called out “The Fugitive” star Leonardo DiCaprio.
“Sorry, Harrison Ford,” he corrected himself. “Harrison, where are you, Harrison?” he said, seemingly unable to locate the “Indiana Jones” star in the audience. As Harrelson hustled, the crowd laughed at some of his jokes, but when they weren’t laughing at everything, he was yelling at them. “You guys are tough, I’m writing these jokes for you!”
Harrelson concluded by seeming to admit that his speech was a deliberate disaster. He also wanted to honor Ford, but “stop any other friend of mine asking me to do this again!”
Best – Harrison Ford speech
In his hit speech, the “Star Wars” actor said he was “humbled” and joked that he was in the cast room because, “they were nominated for an award for their amazing work, I’m here to accept the award of a lifetime.”
The popular Droll actor got emotional and convinced about his passion for acting. “It’s strange to receive a lifetime achievement award in the first half of my career,” he said. “We share the privilege of working in a world of ideas, of empathy, of imagination. Sometimes we do entertainment. Sometimes we do art. Sometimes we’re lucky enough to do both at the same time.”
He continued: “I’m really a lucky boy, I’m lucky to find my people, I’m lucky to find a challenging job, I’m lucky I’m still doing it, I don’t take that for granted.”
The best – Michael B. Jordan wins with an upset
Timothee Chalamet and Leonardo DiCaprio are both expected to be in the “best actor” race. Jordan played the twins well in “Sinners,” but no one thought he would win. He didn’t either – in his speech, Jordan said, “I didn’t expect this at all!”
His victory was well-deserved, and it’s the kind of moment that can make awards shows exciting, at their best.
In an emotional speech, the “Sinners” star thanked her mother for taking her to auditions when she was young and referenced her long career. “Man, just being in this room with all these people watching me grow in front of the camera….I feel the love and the support. Yeah man, this is great.”
