“Sinners” brought down the house at the Actor Awards on Sunday night, winning Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture. Delroy Lindo accepted on behalf of his costars as the audience stood to its feet and gave them a standing ovation.
The triumph of Ryan Coogler’s Southern Gothic vampire drama was preceded by the night’s big upset, when “Sinners” star Michael B. Jordan beat the odds-on favorite, Timothée Chalamet in “Marty Supreme,” for lead actor. He too brought the crowd to its feet.
Jordan’s surprise win was not only the most popular outcome in the room, it potentially signaled strength for a movie that has seemingly been left in the dust by “One Battle After Another” at show after show.
Heading into the 32nd Actor Awards, which were hosted for the third time by Kristen Bell, “One Battle After Another” led all nominees with a record-setting seven nods. But the dual “Sinners” victories left open the possibility that Paul Thomas Anderson’s film might not be as unstoppable as it seemed just a few hours ago. And Jordan’s win meant that Chalamet’s frontrunner status took another hit a week after he lost the BAFTA to Robert Aramayo for “I Swear,” and actor and film not eligible for the Actors or the Oscars.
As for lead actress, the result does seem to reinforce the way this season has been going for the past two months. Jessie Buckley won for “Hamnet” and seems to be on a smooth path to Oscar gold after triumphing at the one awards show where she might have been vulnerable.
It’s tempting to read a lot into these results, and it’s tempting to dismiss them, because the Actor Awards and the Oscars don’t have a straightforward relationship. The ensemble award predicts the Best Picture Oscar only about half the time, but the individual film awards are accurate about 75% of the time.
Given the differences between this year’s Oscar and Actor Awards nominations, though, the supporting actor and actress results have to be taken with a substantial grain of salt. Sean Penn may have gotten a significant boost by winning the supporting actor award (for “One Battle”) to go with last week’s BAFTA victory — but two of the Oscar nominees with significant chances of winning, Stellan Skarsgård for “Sentimental Value” and Delroy Lindo for “Sinners,” weren’t nominated by SAG-AFTRA voters. Skarsgård in particular is likely to benefit from the more international Academy membership.
Likewise, Amy Madigan won the supporting actress award for “Weapons,” but did so in a category that didn’t include Oscar nominees Elle Fanning and Inga Ibsdotter Lilleaas for “Sentimental Value.” Beating fellow Oscar nominees Wunmi Mosaku (“Sinners”) and Teyana Taylor (“One Battle”) was significant, though, and her moving and amusing acceptance speech couldn’t have hurt her with Oscar voters who have yet to cast their ballots.
The big question raised by the film winners on Sunday: Will this be another example of a film winning the Actor/SAG Award and then losing Best Picture (e.g., “Conclave,” “The Trial of the Chicago 7,” “Black Panther,” “Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri” and “Hidden Figures,” to name just the examples from the last 10 years), or will it be the first major sign of an Oscar surge, as it was for “Parasite” in 2020 and “CODA” in 2022?
On the TV side, the first award of the night was a surprise, when lead actress in a drama series went not to Rhea Seehorn for “Pluribus,” as expected, but to Keri Russell for the third season of “The Diplomat.”
Still, there was a fair amount of déjà vu. Seth Rogen repeated his Emmy win for “The Studio,” and the show also won for comedy series ensemble. Likewise, “The Pitt” won drama ensemble, which star/EP Noah Wyle — who had already won lead actor — accepted, noting that he had been hoping to win this particular award to share it with the cast he adores.
Owen Cooper notched yet another win for “Adolescence,” but his costar, Emmy winner Erin Doherty, lost lead actress in a limited series to Michelle Williams for “Dying for Sex.”
In one of the more emotional moments of the evening, Catherine O’Hara posthumously won lead actress in a comedy series for “The Studio.” Rogen accepted on her behalf, sharing a heartfelt tribute to the beloved comedian who died in January.
Harrison Ford was the recipient of this year’s Lifetime Achievement Award. After a somewhat bumpy introduction by Woody Harrelson, Ford stood at the mic a bit sheepishly, joking that he was on stage not because he was nominated for his work, like most of the crowd, but because, as he put it, “I’m here to receive a prize for bein’ alive.”
Below, the full list of Actor Awards winners.
Film Performance Categories
- Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Leading Role
- Timothée Chalamet, “Marty Supreme” (A24)
- Leonardo DiCaprio, “One Battle After Another” (Warner Bros.)
- Ethan Hawke, “Blue Moon” (Sony Pictures Classics)
- Michael B. Jordan, “Sinners” (Warner Bros.) **WINNER
- Jesse Plemons, “Bugonia” (Focus Features)
- Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Leading Role
- Jessie Buckley, “Hamnet” (Focus Features) **WINNER
- Rose Byrne, “If I Had Legs I’d Kick You” (A24)
- Kate Hudson, “Song Sung Blue” (Focus)
- Chase Infiniti, “One Battle After Another” (Warner Bros.)
- Emma Stone, “Bugonia” (Focus Features)
- Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Supporting Role
- Miles Caton, “Sinners” (Warner Bros.)
- Benicio Del Toro, “One Battle After Another” (Warner Bros.)
- Jacob Elordi, “Frankenstein” (Netflix)
- Paul Mescal, “Hamnet” (Focus Features)
- Sean Penn, “One Battle After Another” (Warner Bros.) **WINNER
- Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Supporting Role
- Odessa A’Zion, “Marty Supreme” (A24)
- Ariana Grande, “Wicked: For Good” (Universal Pictures)
- Amy Madigan, “Weapons” (Warner Bros.) **WINNER
- Wunmi Mosaku, “Sinners” (Warner Bros.)
- Teyana Taylor, “One Battle After Another” (Warner Bros.)
- Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture
- “Frankenstein” (Netflix)
- “Hamnet” (Focus Features)
- “Marty Supreme” (A24)
- “One Battle After Another” (Warner Bros.)
- “Sinners” (Warner Bros.) **WINNER
Television Performance Categories
- Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Television Movie or Limited Series
- Jason Bateman, “Black Rabbit” (Netflix)
- Owen Cooper, “Adolescence” (Netflix) **WINNER
- Stephen Graham, “Adolescence” (Netflix)
- Charlie Hunnam, “Monster: The Ed Gein Story” (Netflix)
- Matthew Rhys, “The Beast in Me” (Netflix)
- Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Television Movie or Limited Series
- Claire Danes, “The Beast in Me” (Netflix)
- Erin Doherty, “Adolescence” (Netflix)
- Sarah Snook, “All Her Fault” (Peacock)
- Christine Tremarco, “Adolescence” (Netflix)
- Michelle Williams, “Dying for Sex” (FX) **WINNER
- Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Drama Series
- Sterling K. Brown, “Paradise” (Hulu)
- Billy Crudup, “The Morning Show” (Apple TV)
- Walton Goggins, “The White Lotus” (HBO)
- Gary Oldman, “Slow Horses” (Apple TV)
- Noah Wyle, “The Pitt” (HBO Max) **WINNER
- Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Drama Series
- Britt Lower, “Severance” (Apple TV)
- Parker Posey, “The White Lotus” (HBO)
- Keri Russell, “The Diplomat” (Netflix) **WINNER
- Rhea Seehorn, “Pluribus” (Apple TV)
- Aimee Lou Wood, “The White Lotus” (HBO)
- Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Comedy Series
- Ike Barinholtz, “The Studio” (Apple TV)
- Adam Brody, “Nobody Wants This” (Netflix)
- Ted Danson, “A Man on the Inside” (Netflix)
- Seth Rogen, “The Studio” (Apple TV) **WINNER
- Martin Short, “Only Murders in the Building” (Hulu)
- Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Comedy Series
- Kathryn Hahn, “The Studio” (Apple TV)
- Catherine O’Hara, “The Studio” (Apple TV) **WINNER
- Jenna Ortega, “Wednesday” (Netflix)
- Jean Smart, “Hacks” (HBO Max)
- Kristen Wiig, Palm Royal (Apple TV)
- Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series
- “The Diplomat” (Netflix)
- “Landman” (Paramount+)
- “The Pitt” (HBO Max) **WINNER
- “Severance” (Apple TV)
- “The White Lotus” (HBO Max)
- Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Comedy Series
- “Abbott Elementary” (ABC)
- “The Bear” (FX)
- “Hacks” (HBO Max)
- “Only Murders in the Building” (Hulu)
- “The Studio” (Apple TV) **WINNER
Stunt Performance Categories
- Outstanding Performance by a Stunt Ensemble in a Motion Picture
- “F1” (Apple Original Films/Warner Bros.)
- “Frankenstein” (Netflix)
- “Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning” (Paramount Pictures) **WINNER
- “One Battle After Another” (Warner Bros.)
- “Sinners” (Warner Bros.)
- Outstanding Performance by a Stunt Ensemble in a Television Series
- “Andor” (Disney+)
- “Landman” (Paramount)
- “The Last of Us” (HBO Max) **WINNER
- “Squid Games” (Netflix)
- “Stranger Things” (Netflix)
