SAG Award TV Nominations Make Up for Golden Globes’ Mistakes
By Michael Schneider
LOS ANGELES (Variety.com) – Leave it to the Screen Actors Guild Awards to clean up the Golden Globes’ mess earlier this week. TV performers and shows that were inexplicably missing when the Hollywood Foreign Press announced their nominees on Monday were given their due when SAG announced its picks on Wednesday morning .
Most notably, “When They See Us” star Jharrel Jerome, who won an Emmy in September for his portrayal of Korey Wise — one of the wrongfully accused teenagers in the Central Park Five case — received a nomination in the limited series male actor category.
Also nominated by the SAG Awards is “Schitt’s Creek” for comedy series ensemble, and its star Catherine O’Hara for female actor in a comedy. And it might not be much, but at least the broadcast networks weren’t completely shut out here like they were at the Globes, receiving a single nomination — for NBC’s “This Is Us” star Sterling K. Brown, who was nominated for male actor in a drama.
Of course, the giveth, and they taketh. Despite giving due to some names and shows snubbed earlier in the week at the Globes, it left pundits scratching their heads at other shows that were completely ignored by the SAG nominating committee — specifically, “Pose” and “Succession.”
Meanwhile, Brown was the only “This Is Us” nomination this year, despite the fact that the drama won the outstanding ensemble in a drama series SAG Award last year. Also not back: Last year’s female drama actor winner, “Killing Eve” star Sandra Oh.
On the other hand, last year’s comedy ensemble winner, “The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel,” was once again well-represented. Not only is it again nominated for comedy ensemble, but the show’s incumbent SAG Award male actor and female actor winners Tony Shalhoub and Rachel Brosnahan are once again contenders, as is Alex Borstein.
“The Handmaid’s Tale” is the only drama ensemble honoree returning from last year; it faces off with “Big Little Lies,” which won both limited series/TV movie acting awards two years ago (for Nicole Kidman and Alexander Skarsgard) but now competes as a drama; as well as “The Crown,” last nominated in 2017 (for the 2018 awards telecast) with a different cast; “Game of Thrones” and “Stranger Things,” also both previously nominated that year.
Interestingly, Apple TV Plus’ “The Morning Show” didn’t receive an ensemble nod, yet the SAG selection committee still loved many of the show’s performers: Jennifer Aniston, Steve Carell and Billy Crudup all received nominations. On the flip side, the “Big Little Lies” ensemble nomination without any of its individual stars earning acting nods.
In comedy, “Maisel,” “Barry” and “The Kominsky Method” are all repeat nominees from last year, with Emmy winner “Fleabag” and pop culture phenomenon “Schitt’s Creek” also added to the mix.
Unlike other awards, SAG doesn’t separate lead actor from supporting actor, which is why in categories like male comedy actor, “Kominsky Method” stars Alan Arkin and Michael Douglas are up against each other, while “Fleabag’s” Andrew Scott and “Maisel’s” Shalhoub are there, instead of the supporting category they submit in at the Emmys and Globes.
As for the limited series categories, there’s a bit of a repeat of the Emmy races, with a few new names thrown in: In female limited series actor, Emmy winners Michelle Williams (“Fosse/Verdon”) and Patricia Arquette (“The Act”) face off with Emmy nominees Joey King (“The Act”) and Emily Watson (“Chernobyl”) , in addition to Toni Collette (“Unbelievable”).
In limited series actor, Emmy winner Jerome faces Emmy nominees Sam Rockwell (“Fosse/Verdon”), Jared Harris (“Chernobyl”) and Mahershala Ali (“True Detective”), with Russell Crowe (“The Loudest Voice”) added in.
“Fleabag” creator and star Phoebe Waller-Bridge received her first-ever nomination, for female comedy actor, where she’ll face off with Brosnahan, as well as Christina Applegate (“Dead to Me”), Borstein and O’Hara. Her “Fleabag: co-star Andrew Scott is also a first-time SAG nominee, along with Jodie Comer and Joey King.
Overall, “Maisel” led all nominations, with four nods, followed by “The Crown,” “Fleabag,” “Game of Thrones,” “The Kominsky Method,” “” and “Stranger Things,” with three each.
Repeating its slight edge at the Globes, Netflix topped the network nomination tally, with 13, followed by HBO, with 10, and then Amazon Prime Video (7), Hulu (4) and Apple TV Plus (3). Streaming received 27 nominations, then premium cable (11), basic cable (6) and broadcast (1).
