Hey Bobby — fuggedaboudit.
When the motion picture nominees for the 26th Annual Screen Actors Guild Awards were announced, the gasps came more from who didn’t make it in than who did.
Leading the pack of snubs was Robert De Niro. He was denied a nomination in the Male Actor in a Leading Role cateogry for his title turn in The Irishman, even as his supporting co-stars Al Pacino and Joe Pesci were recognized along with the entire ensemble (De Niro included) for the top Cast prize. One plausible explanation for the omission: De Niro will be receiving SAG’s Life Achievement Award.
Equally surprising was the complete shutout of Little Women. No lead nomination for Saoirse Ronan (who plays Jo March). No Supporting nomination for Florence Pugh (who plays Amy). No Cast nomination for the stacked ensemble. If SAG voters aren’t nominating them here (actors also make up the largest branch of the Oscar voting membership, by far), that could prove to be a very foreboding sign for the film’s Academy Award prospects, not only in the acting categories but also for Best Picture.
The beneficiary of those snubs? For the actresses it was Bombshell. The Fox News sex scandal melodrama not only saw Lead and Supporting nominations for Charlize Theron (Lead), Nicole Kidman and Margot Robbie (both Supporting), but also for Cast. Time will tell if this holds true for the Oscars, and the mood could easily shift if Little Women plays big after opening on Christmas Day (and if Bombshell bombs, opening against the Star Wars Skywalker finale), but right now the advantage is decidedly in Bombshell‘s favor.
Also completely overlooked: Knives Out, the star-studded whodunit. Nothing for Daniel Craig. Nothing for breakout Ana de Armas. Nothing for the Cast. I’m stunned.
With De Niro out of the Actor picture, that left room for Oscar long-shot Taron Egerton as he picked up a Lead nomination for playing Elton John in Rocketman. My hunch, though, is that Egerton will be able to hang up his tux after the Globes and SAGs. It’s hard imagining the Academy choosing him over De Niro as well.
Also ignored in that category: Antonio Banderas, for his Cannes Film Festival award-winning performance in the Spanish film Pain and Glory. Eddie Murphy was also denied for his lauded comeback in Dolemite Is My Name.
Meanwhile, Jojo Rabbit may have solidified its Oscar hopes with a Cast nomination and a Supporting nod for Scarlett Johansson. ScarJo was also tagged in Lead for her powerful turn in Marriage Story. Her co-stars in that divorce drama Adam Driver and Laura Dern was also nominated but, again, a big shocker was that the film’s ensemble was denied a Cast nomination. Honestly, that’s a jaw dropper. In its stead: Parasite, the critical favorite out of South Korea; that was the thriller’s sole nomination.
A representation breakthrough worth highlighting: two African-American actress were nominated in the Female Actor in a Leading Role category — Cynthia Erivo for her biopic portrayal in Harriet and Lupita Nyong’o‘s riveting dual-performance in Jordan Peele‘s horror film Us.
It should be noted that while it’s a long-shot for films to win an Oscar for Best Picture without having their ensembles nominated for Cast by SAG, it has actually happened the last two years: Best Pic Academy Award winners Green Book and The Shape of Water were both snubbed a nomination in SAG’s Cast category.
The 26th Screen Actors Guild Awards will be handed out live on Sunday January 26, 2020 at 8pm EST/7pm CST/5pm PST, simulcast on TBS and TNT.
26th Annual
SCREEN ACTORS GUILD AWARD NOMINATIONS
Films of 2019
Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture
– Bombshell
– The Irishman
– Jojo Rabbit
– Once Upon A Time…In Hollywood
– Parasite
Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Leading Role
– Christian Bale, Ford v Ferrari
– Leonardo DiCaprio, Once Upon A Time…In Hollywood
– Adam Driver, Marriage Story
– Taron Egerton, Rocketman
– Joaquin Phoenix, Joker
Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Leading Role
– Cynthia Erivo, Harriet
– Scarlett Johansson, Marriage Story
– Lupita Nyong’o, Us
– Charlize Theron, Bombshell
– Renée Zellweger, Judy
Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Supporting Role
– Jamie Foxx, Just Mercy
– Tom Hanks, A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood
– Al Pacino, The Irishman
– Joe Pesci, The Irishman
– Brad Pitt, Once Upon A Time…In Hollywood
Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Supporting Role
– Laura Dern, Marriage Story
– Scarlett Johansson, Jojo Rabbit
– Nicole Kidman, Bombshell
– Jennifer Lopez, Hustlers
– Margot Robbie, Bombshell
Outstanding Action Performance by a Stunt Ensemble in a Motion Picture
– Avengers: Endgame
– Ford v Ferrari
– The Irishman
– Joker
– Once Upon A Time…In Hollywood
55th Life Achievement Recipient
Robert De Niro
(To see the Televsion nominees, click here.)
Click on links below for other Critics Group Awards and Guild Nominees that have been announced so far for the 2019 / 20 season:
Screen Actors Guild Award Winners
Producers Guild of America Winners
Critics’ Choice Awards Winners
Directors Guild of America Nominations
Writers Guild of America Nominations
Golden Globe Winners
National Society of Film Critics
Dallas-Forth Worth Film Critics Association
Boston Society of Film Critics
Oklahoma Film Critics Circle
Los Angeles Film Critics Association
New York Film Critics Circle
National Board of Review
Atlanta Film Critics Circle