While 'Bohemian Rhapsody' got some surprise love, the likes of Julia Roberts and 'If Beale Street Could Talk' were left out completely.
The SAG Awards are exciting in and of themselves, but they're also a solid harbinger for what's to come when the Oscars roll around. (The Screen Actors Guild is, of course, full of actors, who also make up the largest voting body within the Academy.) Which is why the surprises in Wednesday's nominations were extra surprising and the snubs hurt that much more. We break them all down -- along with some notable nominees and non-nominees from the TV side -- below.
Snub: Regina King for Best Supporting Actress. King has not only been considered a shoo-in this awards season, but a frontrunner for every trophy leading up to the Oscars. The Golden Globes, Critics' Choice and Indie Spirit Awards all nominated her, while the National Board of Review named her Best Supporting Actress. Yet, she didn't make the shortlist here, nor did If Beale Street Could Talk in any category. The spots we'd predicted for King and Claire Foye (First Man) instead went to great-but-out-of-nowhere nominees Emily Blunt (A Quiet Place) and Margot Robbie (Mary Queen of Scots).
Surprise: Bohemian Rhapsody for Outstanding Cast?! Admittedly, I'm not the biggest fan of the Queen biopic, but I do think Rami Malek is deserving of the accolades he's getting, including the Best Actor nod he got here. (Effectively bumping First Reformed's Ethan Hawke and At Eternity's Gate's Willem Dafoe.) But to recognize it as an ensemble over the likes of The Favourite and Vice is a bit puzzling. I am hesitant to entertain what this means for Bohemian Rhapsody's Best Picture chances...so, I won't!
Snub: No Love for Roma. Netflix is used to fighting an uphill battle during awards season -- the Oscars' gatekeepers haven't exactly rolled out a welcome mat for the streaming giant -- but nobody could resist Alfonso Cuarón's masterpiece. Except SAG kind of just did, giving Roma's biggest competition, A Star Is Born, a serious leg up. However, films have won Best Picture without first being nominated for Best Cast at the SAG Awards -- it's very, very rare, but it happened just this year, for The Shape of Water.
Snub: Michael B. Jordan for Best Supporting Actor. While Black Panther has been collecting all of the necessary nominations to land in the Oscars' Best Picture race -- including its nod for Best Cast here -- the big question has been whether the superhero movie could crack any other acting races, with Jordan's consuming turn as the villainous Killmonger the best bet. Alas, he missed again, perhaps cementing a Top 5 for the Academy Awards.
Surprise: John Krasinski for Best Male Actor in a Drama! Krasinski was never individually recognized by the Screen Actors Guild during his run on The Office (he won twice as part of the comedy ensemble), so for him to receive an acting nomination for Amazon's CIA drama, Tom Clancy's Jack Ryan, is truly a shock. It would have been less surprising had Krasinski gotten in for his breakthrough film, A Quiet Place, but alas, here we are.
Snub: Pose Left out in the Cold. The FX drama about '80s ballroom culture scored two Golden Globes nominations last week, so it was head-scratching for it not to receive similar adulation from the Screen Actors Guild, completely shutting out the groundbreaking series. Considering several of the actors' performances have been critically hailed (see: Billy Porter, MJ Rodriguez and Indya Moore), it's odd for the actors' branch to not give Pose its due.
Snub: Julia Roberts for Best Actress in a Drama. If there was a near-lock, we would have bet on Roberts, so color us shocked when she failed to get in for her stunning turn on Amazon's Homecoming. After receiving a Golden Globe nomination, it seemed like a done deal that the Oscar winner would claim her spot. To us, her snub seems like a glaring oversight.
The 25th Annual SAG Awards will air on both TBS and TNT on Jan. 27 at 8 p.m. ET.
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