Oppenheimer continues winning streak as film dominates at SAG Awards ahead of Oscars
Oppenheimer has continued its winning streak – picking up more top gongs at the Screen Actors Guild (SAG) Awards ahead of next month’s Oscars.
Christopher Nolan’s biopic about the ‘father of the atomic bomb’ won best cast in a motion picture, while its star Cillian Murphy scooped the prize for best actor at the Hollywood ceremony.
Co-star Robert Downey Jr picked up the award for best supporting actor.
Cillian Murphy has already enjoyed success at the BAFTAS and Golden Globes. Pic: AP
The red carpet event followed the longest actors’ strike in history and is a key indicator for the Academy Awards, for which voting is currently taking place ahead of the 10 March ceremony.
Murphy, who has already enjoyed success at the BAFTAs and Golden Globes, said: “Twenty-eight years ago when I was trying to become an actor, I was a failed musician and I felt extremely like an interloper, but now looking out at you guys here today, I know I am part of something truly wonderful.”
Accepting his award, Downey Jr said: “Why me, why now, why do things seem to be going my way?”
Picking up the prize on behalf of the cast, Sir Kenneth Branagh, who plays physicist Niels Bohr in the film, described the award as a “full circle moment” following the actors’ strikes.
Paying tribute to the union, he said: “Thank you SAG-AFTRA, thank you for fighting for us.
“Thank you for every SAG-AFTRA member whose support and whose sacrifice allows us to be standing here, better than we were before.”
Sir Kenneth Branagh described the award as a ‘full circle moment’. Pic: AP
He recalled the walkout of the Oppenheimer cast at last July’s London premiere as the strike began.
He said: “We went from the red carpet and we didn’t see the film that night. We happily went in the direction of solidarity with your good selves. So this is a full circle moment for us.”
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Lily Gladstone was named best actress for her role as Mollie Burkhart in Martin Scorsese’s Killers Of The Flower Moon, while Da’Vine Joy Randolph picked up the prize for best supporting actress for her role as Mary Lamb in The Holdovers.
“I am beyond humbled and I am so incredibly grateful to be considered among you,” Randolph said of her fellow nominees Emily Blunt, Penelope Cruz, Jodie Foster and Danielle Brooks.
“How lucky are we that we get to do what we do… For every actor still waiting in the wings, it is not a question of if, but when. Keep going.”
Lily Gladstone won the best actress prize for her role in Killers Of The Flower Moon. Pic: AP
It was a successful night for TV comedy-drama The Bear, the story of a star chef who returns to Chicago to run the family business after the death of his brother.
Stars Jeremy Allen White and Ayo Edebiri were presented with the awards for best actor and actress in a comedy series respectively, while the series won best ensemble in a comedy series.
Steven Yeun and Ali Wong won best actor and actress in a limited series for their roles in Beef, about a pair who start a life-changing feud after a road rage incident.
Da’vine Joy Randolph says she was ‘beyond humbled’. Pic: AP
Actor Pedro Pascal appeared visibly shocked and emotional as he appeared on stage to collect the award for best male actor in a drama series for his role in The Last Of Us.
“This is wrong for a number of reasons, I’m a little drunk, I thought I could get drunk. I’m making a fool of myself, but thank you so much for this,” Pascal told the audience.
He later told British star Tan France he was going to celebrate the win by kissing Succession star Kieran Culkin as “revenge”, as the pair have made jokes at each other’s expense during their awards season speeches.
TV hit Succession, about warring siblings in a media dynasty, was named best ensemble for a drama series.
TV hit Succession was named best ensemble for a drama series. Pic: AP
Star Alan Ruck said the cast had made “friends for life” and described it as “one last hurrah” following the end of the last series.
“Right now, you are looking at some of the luckiest people on the planet. And some of the most grateful,” he said.
“Because not only did we get to work on one of the best television shows maybe ever, we made friends for life.
“I think the magic of Succession was the writing was so fabulous it inspired all of us to bring our A game from the very beginning, we got off watching each other work, we caught lightning in a bottle. Lucky.”
Barbra Streisand received a lifetime achievement award. Pic: AP
Hollywood star and singer Barbra Streisand was honoured with the SAG Life Achievement Award.
Meryl Streep, Anne Hathaway and Emily Blunt who starred in the 2006 hit film The Devil Wears Prada reunited on stage to present the award for best male actor in a comedy series.
Stars of the 2006 hit The Devil Wears Prada reunited on stage. Pic: AP
British star Naomi Watts introduced the in memoriam segment of the show, which honoured actors including Harry Potter star Sir Michael Gambon and Friends actor Matthew Perry.
The ceremony was streamed on Netflix for the first time, and is one of the service’s most significant forays into live streaming so far – with a live tennis event to follow next month.
Despite The Who’s Quadrophenia being set over 60 years ago, Pete Townshend’s themes of identity, mental health, and modern masculinity are just as relevant today.
The album is having a renaissance as Pete Townshend’s Quadrophenia A Mod ballet is being brought to life via dance at Sadler’s Wells East, and Sky News has an exclusive first look.
As Townshend puts it, the album he wrote is “perfect” for the stage.
Pete Townshend
“My wife Rachel did the orchestration for me, and as soon as I heard it I said to her it would make a fabulous ballet and we never really let that go,” he tells Sky News.
“Heavy percussion, concussive sequences. They’re explosive moments. They’re also romantic movement moments.”
If you identify with the demographics of Millennial, Gen Y or Gen Z, you might not be familiar with The Who and Mod culture.
But in post-war Britain the Mods were a cultural phenomenon characterised by fashion, music, and of course, scooters. The young rebels were seen as a counter-culture to the establishment and The Who, with Roger Daltry’s lead vocals and Pete Townshend’s writing, were the soundtrack.
Quadrophenia the album is widely regarded as an essay on the British adolescent experience at the time, focusing on the life of fictional protagonist Jimmy – a young Mod struggling with his sanity, self-doubt, and alienation.
Townshend sets the rock opera in 1965 but thinks its themes of identity, mental health, and modern masculinity are just as relevant today.
He says: “The phobias and the restrictions and the unwritten laws about how young men should behave. The ground that they broke, that we broke because I was a part of it.
“Men were letting go of [the] wartime-related, uniform-related stance that if I wear this kind of outfit it makes me look like a man.”
Paris Fitzpatrick and Pete Townshend. Pic: Johan Persson
This struggle of modern masculinity and identity appears to be echoing today as manosphere influencers like Andrew Tate, incel culture, and Netflix’s Adolescence make headlines.
For dancer Paris Fitzpatrick, who takes on the lead role of Jimmy, the story resonates.
Paris Fitzpatrick, who takes on the lead role of Jimmy in the ballet
“I think there’s a connection massively and I think there may even be a little more revival in some way,” he tells Sky News.
“I love that myself. I love non-conforming to gender norms and typical masculinity; I think it’s great to challenge things.”
Despite the album being written before he was born, the dancer says he was familiar with the genre already.
“I actually did an art GCSE project about Mods and rockers and Quadrophenia,” he says.
“I think we’ll be able to bring it to new audiences and hopefully, maybe people will be inspired to to learn more about their music and the whole cultural movement of the early 60s.”
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In 1979, the album was adapted into a film directed by Franc Roddam starring Ray Winstone and Sting but Townshend admits because the film missed key points he is “not a big fan”.
“What it turned out to be in the movie was a story about culture, about social scenario and less about really the specifics of mental illness and how that affects young people,” he adds, also complimenting Roddam’s writing for the film.
Perhaps a testament to Pete Townshend’s creativity, Quadrophenia started as an album, was successfully adapted to film and now it will hit the stage as a contemporary ballet.
It appears that over six decades later Mod culture is still cool and their issues still relatable.
Quadrophenia, a Mod Ballet will tour to Plymouth Theatre Royal from 28 May to 1 June 2025, Edinburgh Festival Theatre from 10 to 14 June 2025 and the Mayflower, Southampton from 18 to 21 June 2025 before having its official opening at Sadler’s Wells Theatre, London on 24 June running to 13 July 2025 and then visiting The Lowry, Salford from 15 to 19 July 2025.
Russell Brand has been charged with rape and two counts of sexual assault between 1999 and 2005.
The Metropolitan Police say the 50-year-old comedian, actor and author has also been charged with one count of oral rape and one count of indecent assault.
The charges relate to four women.
He is due to appear at Westminster Magistrates’ Court on Friday 2 May.
Police have said Brand is accused of raping a woman in the Bournemouth area in 1999 and indecently assaulting a woman in the Westminster area of London in 2001.
He is also accused of orally raping and sexually assaulting a woman in Westminster in 2004.
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Ashna Hurynag discusses Russell Brand’s charges
The fourth charge alleges that a woman was sexually assaulted in Westminster between 2004 and 2005.
Police began investigating Brand, from Oxfordshire, in September 2023 after receiving a number of allegations.
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The comedian has denied the accusations and said he has “never engaged in non-consensual activity”.
He added in a video on X: “Of course, I am now going to have the opportunity to defend these charges in court, and I’m incredibly grateful for that.”
Metropolitan Police Detective Superintendent Andy Furphy, who is leading the investigation, said: “The women who have made reports continue to receive support from specially trained officers.
“The Met’s investigation remains open and detectives ask anyone who has been affected by this case, or anyone who has any information, to come forward and speak with police.”
Tom Cruise has paid tribute to Val Kilmer, wishing his Top Gun co-star “well on the next journey”.
Cruise, speaking at the CinemaCon film event in Las Vegas on Thursday, asked for a moment’s silence to reflect on the “wonderful” times shared with the star, whom he called a “dear friend”.
Kilmer, who died of pneumonia on Tuesday aged 65, rocketed to fame starring alongside Cruise in the 1986 blockbuster Top Gun, playing Tom ‘Iceman’ Kazansky, a rival fighter pilot to Cruise’s character Maverick.
Tom Cruise said ‘I wish you well on the next journey’. Pic: AP
Val Kilmer in 2017. Pic: AP
His last part was a cameo role in the 2022 blockbuster sequel Top Gun: Maverick.
Cruise, on stage at Caesars Palace on Thursday, said: “I’d like to honour a dear friend of mine, Val Kilmer. I can’t tell you how much I admire his work, how grateful and honoured I was when he joined Top Gun and came back later for Top Gun: Maverick.
“I think it would be really nice if we could have a moment together because he loved movies and he gave a lot to all of us. Just kind of think about all the wonderful times that we had with him.
“I wish you well on the next journey.”
The moment of silence followed a string of tributes from Hollywood figures including Cher, Francis Ford Coppola, Antonio Banderas and Michelle Monaghan.
Kilmer’s daughter Mercedes told the New York Times on Wednesday that the actor had died from pneumonia.
Tom Cruise at Caesars Palace on Thursday. Pic: AP
Diagnosed with throat cancer in 2014, Kilmer discussed his illness and recovery in his 2020 memoir Your Huckleberry and Amazon Prime documentary Val.
He underwent radiation and chemotherapy treatments for the disease and also had a tracheostomy which damaged his vocal cords and permanently gave him a raspy speaking voice.
Kilmer played Batman in the 1995 film Batman Forever and received critical acclaim for his portrayal of rock singer Jim Morrison in the 1991 movie The Doors.
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He also starred in True Romance and Kiss Kiss Bang Bang, as well as playing criminal Chris Shiherlis in Michael Mann’s 1995 movie Heat and Doc Holliday in the 1993 film Tombstone.
In 1988 he married British actress Joanne Whalley, whom he met while working on fantasy adventure Willow.
The couple had two children before divorcing in 1996.
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