Michael B Jordan upends Oscars race as Sag Awards 2026 deliver shocks
At the sag awards 2026, Michael B Jordan scored a surprise best actor victory for his role in the vampire horror Sinners, which also took the night’s top prize of best ensemble cast. The momentum-shifting wins leave the best actor race too close to call ahead of the Oscars on 15 March.
Sinners wins best actor and ensemble
US actor Michael B Jordan was named best actor for Sinners, and the film also won best ensemble cast. In his acceptance speech Jordan said, "I don't even know where to begin, I wasn't expecting this at all, " and added that he felt "so honoured and privileged" to have been nominated. He paid tribute to his mother Donna, who he has been bringing to events as his guest throughout awards season, saying: "Mom, thank you for driving me back and forth to New York when we didn't have enough money to go through the Harlem tunnel, when we were looking for gas money, parking spaces. " Jordan also thanked Sinners director Ryan Coogler and his co-stars, saying: "Everybody that had something to do with this movie, you gave us your time and your talents and vulnerability and allowed me to do my best work. "
Reactions from Delroy Lindo and others
Accepting the best ensemble prize, Delroy Lindo called making Sinners an "incredible journey, " adding: "Every single day we brought ourselves, our hearts, our souls, to this endeavour. " Lindo also said: "To be recognised by you all, 'thank you' does not come anywhere near to encompassing what we feel, the gratitude. " The Sinners awards followed a week after the Bafta Film Awards, where Jordan and Lindo were praised for their composure after Tourette's campaigner John Davidson involuntarily shouted a racial slur while the pair were on stage.
Sag Awards 2026: wins and surprises
Other winners at the Actor Awards included Sean Penn for One Battle After Another and Jessie Buckley for Hamnet. Amy Madigan scored a surprise supporting actress victory for Weapons, and Catherine O'Hara won a posthumous award for The Studio. Seth Rogen accepted an award on behalf of Catherine O'Hara, who died in January.
Snubs, clean sweeps and theatre of the red carpet
The ceremony also produced notable snubs. Despite going into the Actor Awards with seven nominations, One Battle After Another emerged triumphant only once, with its sole win for best supporting actor Sean Penn, who was not present to accept the trophy. Frankenstein, a three-time nominee, left the ceremony empty-handed; that Guillermo Del Toro film was released by Netflix. The White Lotus, a four-time TV nominee, was also shut out.
Toward the other end of the results spectrum, Marty Supreme was shut out at the Actor Awards. Its star Timothée Chalamet, despite critical acclaim for his starring role in Marty Supreme, suffered his second best actor loss in a week when he lost the Actor Award to Sinners' Michael B. Jordan after having recently lost the BAFTA best actor prize to Robert Aramayo of I Swear. Marty Supreme had three nominations overall, including an Odessa A'zion nomination for best supporting actress and a best cast nomination. The ceremony’s host Kristen Bell staged a star-studded table tennis tournament as a marketing moment, and the tournament winner received a trophy that resembled Chalamet.
Television winners and awards context
On the television side, Keri Russell earned a surprising best drama actress win for the third season of The Diplomat, beating Britt Lower from Severance and Rhea Seehorn of Pluribus, the latter a Golden Globe winner. Michelle Williams was a surprise Actor Award winner for best actress in a limited series for Dying for Sex; she had lost the Emmy, Critics Choice Award and Film Independent Spirit Award for the role, had won the Golden Globe but was not in attendance at that ceremony, and unlike at the Globes she was present at the Actor Awards to accept the prize. Amy Madigan's win for Weapons followed her Critics Choice supporting actress victory, and she triumphed over nominees including Wunmi Mosaku, who had won the best supporting actress BAFTA Award, and Teyana Taylor, who had won a Golden Globe.
Red carpet, venue and voting timeline
The 2026 SAG Awards took place in Los Angeles on Sunday night at the Shrine Auditorium and Expo Hall and carried a rebrand to the Actor Awards. The event was hosted by Kristen Bell. For the first time the event came with a dress code described as "Reimagining Hollywood Glamour from the ’20s and ’30s. " Red carpet names mentioned included Chase Infiniti, Teyana Taylor and Emma Stone among nominees, and actors Timothée Chalamet, Michael B Jordan, Adam Brody and Paul Mescal. Michael B Jordan appeared in Tom Ford by Haider Ackermann on the carpet. Voting for this year's Actor Awards ceremony closed on Friday, five days after the Baftas ceremony.
