The near-clean sweep of awards for Everything Everywhere sets the stage for a potential Oscars success on March 12. The movie has cemented its status as the frontrunner for the prestigious best picture prize, with its wins for best actress (Michelle Yeoh), best supporting actor (Ke Huy Quan), and best supporting actress (Jamie Lee Curtis).
The Screen Actors Guild Awards have provided a strong indication of the likely winner at next month’s Oscars. Everything Everywhere has taken the top honours, and is now a firm favourite for the prestigious best picture prize. The movie has also won best film from directors’ and producers’ groups, and is a commercial success, with ticket sales exceeding $107m.
The near-sweep of awards for Everything Everywhere at the Screen Actors Guild Awards has set the stage for a potential Oscars success on March 12. The absurdist dimension-hopping film has cemented its status as the frontrunner for the prestigious best picture prize, with its wins for best actress (Michelle Yeoh), best supporting actor (Ke Huy Quan), and best supporting actress (Jamie Lee Curtis).
The SAG prizes from the actors’ union are closely watched, as actors make up the largest group of Oscar voters. The movie has also taken a slew of top honours from the Directors Guild and Producers Guild, and is a commercial success, with ticket sales exceeding $107m worth.
The SAG award for best male movie actor went to Brendan Fraser, the only performer from a film other than Everything Everywhere to win a film prize on Sunday. Fraser, one of Hollywood’s biggest stars in the late 1990s and early 2000s with hits like The Mummy, endured a long fallow period before taking on the role of a reclusive, severely obese man trying to reconnect with his daughter in The Whale.
When Michelle Yeoh accepted her trophy for best actress, she spoke through tears – and a few expletives – expressing her gratitude for being given “a seat at the table”. She said: “This is not just for me. This is for every little girl that looks like me.”
Ke Huy Quan – who as a child star had a featured role in a 1984 Indiana Jones film, but had given up on acting for years – noted he was the first Asian to win in the category. He 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.”
When the cast took the stage for the ensemble award, Yeoh handed the microphone to 94-year-old James Hong, who played her father in the film. Hong recounted that producers said Asians were “not good enough” and had white actors tape their eyes to play “Asian” roles. He said: “But look at us now.”
The near-clean sweep of awards for Everything Everywhere at the Screen Actors Guild Awards has provided a strong indication of the likely winner at next month’s Oscars. With its wins from directors’ and producers’ groups, and its commercial success, it is now a firm favourite for the best picture prize.