The 31st annual Screen Actors Guild Awards were handed out Sunday night, with the casts of Conclave, Only Murders in the Building and Shogun taking home the ensemble awards. Throughout the two-hour-plus show, which streamed live on Netflix, there were several memorable moments. (See the star-studded arrivals.) Read on for some of the highlights from the telecast.
Kristen Bell Sings Parody of “Do You Want to Build a Snowman?” to Honor Actors
Kristen Bell returned as host of the SAG Awards on Sunday and opened the show with a song. Bell addressed the audience with a heartfelt tribute to honor actors in the room who shared the same dream — to become an actor. “I just want to say everyone in this room, and I do mean everyone, including the camera operators on the side over here and over here, the writers backstage, the director in the booth and all of the actors in their seats. Everyone started out as a kid in ‘Somewhere, Earth,’ going to bed and waking up every morning thinking, ‘It’s going to be me,'” she said. “So yes, Justin Timberlake owes us all a piece of that song. Look for my email petition.” Bell then explained how the night was “to honor the actor’s journey” before breaking out into singing: “And it leads you to the question, do you want to be an actor?” — performing a tweaked version of the song “Do You Want to Build a Snowman?” from Frozen, in which she starred as Anna. Throwback photos of actors like Timothée Chalamet, Harrison Ford, Selena Gomez, Jodie Foster, Elle Fanning and more in their first projects appeared on the screen. Read more. — Lexi Carson
Harrison Ford Spotted Eating Something Behind Jessica Williams During “I Am an Actor” Segment
Jessica Williams was one of the performers who opened up the 2025 SAG Awards ceremony this Sunday during the night’s traditional “I Am an Actor” segment, where she shared a hilarious moment with her Shrinking co-star Harrison Ford as he got caught eating on-camera for everyone to see. Williams began her remarks by saying that “Los Angeles is known as the city of dreams and sure enough all of my dreams have come true here” before breaking into laughter as it became clear that Ford, seated behind her at their table, could be seen on camera eating a piece of food. “I told him to turn away! Don’t look!” Williams shouted after breaking character mid-sentence due to Ford taking a nibble during her speech. As Ford was spotted turning around, Williams went on to note the realities many actors face when chasing their dreams in Hollywood, jokingly referencing her “dream of preparing in a Starbucks bathroom before an audition to my dream of crying in a Del Taco bathroom afterwards” and continuing with more satirical “dreams.” Read more. — McKinley Franklin
Zoe Saldaña Pushes for “Artistic Freedom” With Win for ‘Emilia Pérez’
Zoe Saldaña shared some words of support for her fellow actors while celebrating her win for Emilia Pérez at the SAG Awards 2025 ceremony. Saldaña won the SAG Award for outstanding performance by a female actor in a supporting role during the event on Sunday. While accepting her prize, Saldaña emphasized how welcomed she has felt as a member of SAG-AFTRA. “I am proud to be a part of a union that allows me to be who I am, and I’ve never been questioned about where I come from and judged by how I speak or what my pronouns are,” the star told the crowd from the stage. “I believe that everybody has the right to be who they are, and Emilia Pérez is about truth, and it is about love. And I think that us as actors, now more than ever before, we really have to tell stories that are beautiful and thought-provoking and live within the spectrum of artistic freedom.” Saldaña did not mention her Emilia Pérez co-stars, including Selena Gomez and Karla Sofía Gascón, or the movie’s director, Jacques Audiard. Gascón, who is nominated for the SAG Award for best actress, has been at the center of controversy in recent weeks over offensive resurfaced tweets. Read more. — Ryan Gajewski
Kieran Culkin Pokes Fun at Adrien Brody During Best Supporting Actor Acceptance Speech
Kieran Culkin won the award for best actor in a supporting role Sunday night at the 2025 SAG Awards. Pamela Anderson presented Culkin with the statue, which he noted was an “incredibly heavy award” before poking fun at the length of Adrien Brody’s acceptance speeches. “I don’t think anyone could hold this for 45 seconds, which would be a lot of time, Adrien Brody,” he quipped. “There was no reason to take that shot. I love you, it’s a joke, you take your time.” Culkin continued his comedic approach throughout his acceptance speech, joking that “Believe it or not, [winning] this actually means a lot to me” before giving thanks to Jesse Eisenberg and most importantly Eisenberg’s sister, Hallie, for entrusting him with the role of Benji Kaplan in A Real Pain. “For those of you who don’t know, [Jesse] cast me in this movie without auditioning me or seeing my work in anything ever,” Culkin explained. “But he cast me because his sister told him to. … So thank you Jesse for putting me in this movie, but I wanna take a moment to thank your sister Hallie. Thank you Hallie for thinking of me and putting my name in your stupid brother’s ear.” Read more. — McKinley Franklin
Jane Fonda Calls for Actors to “Resist” and “Project an Inspiring View of the Future” Amid Current Political Climate
Jane Fonda may be 87, but she’s not about to slow down any time soon. The two-time Oscar winner, who received the Screen Actors Guild Life Achievement Award at the 2025 SAG Awards, said she saw the honor and the enthusiastic reception she received from the Hollywood stars in the audience, who gave her a standing ovation, as more of a “go-girl kick-ass” form of encouragement instead of something being given to someone toward the end of their life. “Which is good because I’m not done,” Fonda said. During her speech, Fonda looked back on her “really weird” acting career — including roles in Klute, Coming Home, Barbarella, 9 to 5, Grace and Frankie, Monster in Law, The Newsroom, 80 for Brady and Book Club and its sequel — and expressed support for the opportunities given to her onscreen. “Acting gave me a chance to play angry women with opinions,” she said of the early days of her career when having such a persona offscreen wasn’t seen as acceptable. “I’m a big believer in unions — they have our backs. They bring us into community and they give us power. Community means power. This is really important right now when workers’ power is being attacked and community is being weakened.” Read more. — Hilary Lewis
Demi Moore Emphasizes Need for “Human Connection” With ‘The Substance’ Win
Demi Moore underscored the importance of connecting with others while accepting her prize for The Substance at the SAG Awards 2025 ceremony. The star won for outstanding performance by a female actor in a leading role during Sunday’s event. While delivering her acceptance speech, Moore recalled the “deeply meaningful” moment when she received her SAG card as a teen in 1978. “You have all been my greatest teachers, and I am so, so grateful that I have continued over these so many years to be able to try — and sometimes succeed and sometimes fail — but to be able to keep going,” Moore told her fellow actors from the stage. She also shared some advice for performers who are still establishing their career paths. “As these actors who are having to do it all, I just encourage you, don’t lose sight of the human connection,” Moore said. “Thats the work that we do. It’s to be connected to one another.” Read more. — Ryan Gajewski
Timothée Chalamet Surprises With Best Actor Win, Says “I Want to Be One of the Greats”
Timothée Chalamet, who played Bob Dylan in the folk singer’s biopic A Complete Unknown, appeared stunned when his name was called for best actor. Accepting the award, Chalamet addressed the crowd by speaking into a microphone — which was way too short for him — saying: “I was not expecting this at all,” before thanking his mom. “I know the classiest thing would be to downplay the effort that went into this role and how much this means to me. But the truth is, this was five and a half years of my life. I poured everything I had into playing this in comparable artist Mr. Bob Dylan, a true American hero,” he said. “It was the honor of a lifetime playing him.” The 29-year-old also thanked his castmembers Elle Fanning, Monica Barbaro, Edward Norton and the film’s team. He continued, “Lastly, I can downplay the significance of this award because it means the most to me. And I know we’re in a subjective business, but the truth is I’m really in pursuit of greatness. I know people don’t usually talk like that, but I want to be one of the greats. I’m inspired by the greats. I’m inspired by the greats here tonight. I’m as inspired by Daniel Day-Lewis, Marlon Brando and Viola Davis as I am by Michael Jordan, Michael Phelps, and I want to be up there.” Chalamet added that the award “doesn’t signify that” but adds “a little more fuel” and “ammo to keep going.” Read more. — Lexi Carson
‘Conclave’ Star Ralph Fiennes Cracks Election Joke After Film’s Big Win
Conclave got the votes it needed to nab the top film prize at the SAG Awards 2025 ceremony. Ralph Fiennes accepted the award for outstanding performance by a cast in a motion picture during Sunday’s event. He was joined onstage by Conclave co-stars John Lithgow, Isabella Rossellini and Sergio Castellitto. Lucian Msamati and Stanley Tucci were among the performers from the film who were not in attendance. “I’ve not been elected to speak — I’ve been designated to speak on before of our conclave, our ensemble,” Fiennes quipped from the stage in a reference to the movie’s focus on a tense papal election. He went on to share praise for the film’s director, Edward Berger: “We had a blessed time with Edward, whose intelligence and perception and insight and care of us has, I think, brought us the gift of our community of ensemble.” Read more. — Ryan Gajewski
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