Television and film thespians recognized their peers at the 24th Screen Actors Guild (SAG) Awards, which aired last night (January 21) on TBS and TNT.
Only one of the eight actors and actresses of color nominated for SAG Awards actually won, but he made history while doing so.
Sterling K. Brown continued his awards season sweep with yet another win for his performance as Randall Pearson on the NBC family drama, “This Is Us.” Brown is the first Black actor to win the SAG Award for Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Drama Series. He is also the only Black actor to earn a lead drama actor award at the Golden Globes, as well as the first in 19 years at the Emmys. In his acceptance speech last night, Brown recognized co-star Susan Kelechi Watson, who plays Randall’s wife Beth Pearson. “Let’s keep on repping for the people,” he said (video is below).
Sterling K. Brown receives the Actor for Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Drama Series! #sagawards pic.twitter.com/88Hq3ygWUb
— SAG Awards® (@SAGawards) January 22, 2018
The “This Is Us” cast also took home the award for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series.
The only other solo awardee of color was Morgan Freeman (“Going in Style”), who won the guild’s 54th Lifetime Achievement Award. The veteran actor is the first Black thespian to receive the honor since James Earl Jones (“Star Wars” franchise) in 2008. Freeman ended his speech (below) with a sly criticism of the SAG Awards’ “gender-specific” awards statue:
Morgan Freeman Receives the Life Achievement Award at the #sagawards pic.twitter.com/SJ4WeoAyKc
— SAG Awards® (@SAGawards) January 22, 2018
Read the full list of awardees at sagawards.org.