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"Everything Everywhere All at Once" Dominates SAG Awards


Mon 27 Feb 2023 | 11:58 AM
Yara Sameh

"Everything Everywhere All At Once" has cemented its status as the Oscars frontrunner after several big wins at the 29th Annual Screen Actors Guild (SAG) Awards on Sunday night.

"Everything Everywhere All At Once" follows a laundrette owner - played by Yeoh - who must connect different versions of herself in the parallel universe to stop someone who intends to harm the multiverse.

The sci-fi adventure's victory gives it significant momentum ahead of the Oscars on 12 March and indicates it is the clear frontrunner to win best picture. Its four SAG awards are the most ever won by a single movie.

The prize for best film cast is seen as the top honor at the SAG Awards in the absence of a best picture category. Winners at the annual ceremony, held in Los Angeles, are voted for by other actors.

The multiverse adventure won best film cast at the ceremony, while several of its stars were individually recognized.

Michelle Yeoh made history at the Screen Actors Guild Awards when she became the first Asian woman to win Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor Leading Role.

"This is not just for me, it's for every little girl who looks like me," Yeoh said in her acceptance speech.

She added: "We're here because we love what we do, we will never stop doing what we do. Thank you for giving me a seat at the table, because so many of us need this, we want to be seen, we want to be heard, and tonight you have shown us that it is possible."

Her co-star Ke Huy Quan also scored a historic victory as he was named best-supporting actor, becoming the first Asian actor to win the prize.

"When I heard that, I quickly realised that this moment no longer belongs to just me. It also belongs to everyone who has asked for change. This is a really emotional moment for me," Quan said as he collected his trophy.

The ceremony also saw his co-star Jamie Lee Curtis winning the supporting actress category.

"I love acting, I love the job we get to do, I love being a part of a crew, part of a cast, I love what we do with each other, it's such a beautiful job... what a dream," Curtis said during her acceptance speech.

Veteran actor James Hong, 94, who plays Yeoh's father in the movie, gave a comical acceptance speech, in which he vowed to return to the ceremony when he was 100 years old.

"I got my first SAG card 70 years ago. Back in those days... producers said that Asians were not good enough and they are not box office - but look at us now," he told the audience.

"When I heard that, I quickly realized that this moment no longer belongs to just me. It also belongs to everyone who has asked for change," Quan said as he collected his trophy. "This is a really emotional moment for me."

Quan rose to fame as a child star in films such as Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom, but he took a break from acting later in his career until returning with Everything Everywhere All At Once.

"When I stepped away from acting, it's because there were so few opportunities and yet here we are tonight, the landscape looks so different now than before. Thank you to everyone who contributed to these changes," he said. 

The movie's SAG honor was the second major accolade it achieved this weekend. On Saturday, it won the top prize at the Producers Guild of America (PGA) Awards, another valuable indicator of Academy Awards success. 

There was only one winner in SAG's movie acting categories who were not from "Everything Everywhere All At Once" - Brendan Fraser was named best actor for his performance in "The Whale".