Sinners wins top prize at Screen Actors Guild awards

Voting for the Academy Awards does not close until March 5, meaning the results on March 1 could be influential. Read more at straitstimes.com.

LOS ANGELES – Sinners scooped the top prize at the Screen Actors Guild (SAG) gala in Los Angeles on March 1, tightening the race to the Oscars with two weeks to go before Hollywood’s awards season finale.

The honour at the newly rebranded Actor Awards recognises the ensemble cast of a film – a decision that sometimes, but not always, presages Academy Award Best Picture glory.

American film-maker Ryan Coogler’s vampire fable about the United States’ difficult racial history has stormed through awards season, garnering a record 16 Oscar nominations.

“We brought our hearts, we brought our souls, we brought our spirits to this endeavour,” said British-American actor Delroy Lindo, who plays blues musician player Delta Slim, as he accepted the award on behalf of the cast.

“This project is anointed. And from that standpoint, we are all anointed to be a part of this incredible journey created by the genius Ryan Coogler.”

It was the first time Sinners seized a top prize at a pre-Oscars gala, which have so far been largely swept by One Battle After Another, including at the Producers Guild Awards on Feb 28.