This year’s SAG Awards will be a glitzy evening with actors honoring their peers and Sally Field receiving the Life Achievement Award. As usual there will be no host but the proceedings can all be viewed on YouTube.
Taking place at 8 p.m. ET/5 PT Feb. 26 at the Fairmont Century Plaza in Los Angeles, the kudos celebrate the motion picture and television performances of the year, which are voted on by SAG-AFTRA’s diverse membership of more than 122,000 performers, existing as the largest voting body on the awards circuit.
Says Jon Brockett, executive producer, Screen Actors Guild Awards. “It’s a star-studded show that’s filled with an overwhelming sense of community. You’ve got the stars and the glam and the fashion, but also a peek into this big family of artists and how they support and care for each other. You really feel the camaraderie in the room and how meaningful the moment for winners is when they get on stage, because they know it was voted on by their peers.”
And with categories in both film and television — including stunt ensembles — it’s a chance to showcase the actors. “These outstanding performances celebrate our differences while also demonstrating how strong and meaningful our common bonds are, showing us that the power of a great performance is universal,” says Brockett.
The 29th annual event will be broadcast live on Netflix’s YouTube channel, YouTube.com/Netflix, and it was recently announced that, starting in 2024, the SAG Awards will stream live on Netflix, thanks to a multi-year partnership.
“Our partnership with Netflix is representative of the next step for award shows,” says Brockett. “Our audience is streaming, and now the SAG Awards will be more accessible and available on a global scale. We were pretty far along in the production of this year’s show when the deal was finalized, and we can’t wait to truly partner with them next year to elevate and expand the show globally.”
SAG Award and Oscar-winning actor Field has been named the 58th recipient of SAG-AFTRA’s highest tribute, the SAG Life Achievement Award. Field has previously received two Oscars (“Norma Rae,” “Places in the Heart”), a SAG Award (“Brothers & Sisters”), three Emmys (“Sybil,” “ER,” “Brothers & Sisters”).
Given that the show is pivoting from a standard television broadcast and moving over to Netflix’s channel on YouTube for the event, viewers are in store for an awards show that looks a little different, but retains many of the classic qualities that have come to define it in previous years. “There will be a few new surprises as we transition to a streaming format, notably the structure of our show breaks, as we will be pre-producing some packages in lieu of commercials to make the viewing experience that much more entertaining for those watching at home,” says Brockett.
Some things will stay the same, says Brockett. The show will include the “I Am an Actor” segment in which people address the camera directly and tell stories about their careers. And casts from the nominated films will introduce their films.
But unlike other shows, actors will get to finish their speeches — there will be no music rushing them or playing them off. “My favorite moments are always the speeches. They’re heartfelt and meaningful and rarely rote,” says Brockett.
Tip Sheet
What: The 29th Annual SAG Awards
When: 8 p.m. ET/5 p.m/ PT Feb. 26
Where: Fairmont Century Plaza
WEB: sagawards.org