About a year ago, something happened at the SAG Awards that few expected: the ceremony that was supposed to confirm the major winners at the Oscars ended up being quite the opposite. And believe me, that changed the game quite a bit.

Most critics and analysts had almost decided that Timothée Chalamet would take home the Best Actor award for *The Supreme Marty*. It was practically a given. But then Michael B. Jordan won for *Sinners*, and suddenly no one knew what to expect. That moment defined the entire night because the actors' union voters chose Jordan over Chalamet and Leonardo DiCaprio, who didn't even attend the ceremony.

What’s interesting is that *Sinners* was the film that left the most surprises. It arrived at the SAG Awards as the most nominated film with seven mentions but only took home one statue: Best Supporting Actor for Sean Penn. However, the real twist was that it later won the Best Ensemble award, positioning it unexpectedly for the Oscars. Especially considering that *One Battle After Another*, Paul Thomas Anderson’s film, had won the Producers Guild Award just a day earlier, making it the favorite.

What happened that night was fascinating because the Academy voters who chose the SAG Award winners are largely the same ones who vote at the Oscars. So when Michael B. Jordan took home the award, it was a clear sign that things weren’t going to be as predictable as they seemed a few weeks ago. His presence and commanding stature on stage that day represented a shift in direction that no one fully anticipated.

What became clear is that *Sinners* was heading to the Oscars with 16 nominations, the most in the history of those awards. That’s a significant weight. Meanwhile, experts who were confident that Timothée Chalamet was virtually unbeatable started to doubt. In fact, the entire SAG Awards ceremony hosted by Kristen Bell revolved around jokes about a ping-pong tournament among stars, with the prize being a clay sculpture of Chalamet. That’s how present the uncertainty was.

Regarding the actresses, Jessie Buckley won Best Actress in a Leading Role for *Hamnet*, and that seemed more certain. But in the supporting categories, something different happened: the SAG Award nominees didn’t exactly match those of the Oscars. Stellan Skarsgård and Delroy Lindo weren’t nominated by the actors’ union but were competing at the Oscars. The same happened with Amy Madigan, who won at the SAG Awards but would have to face Elle Fanning and Inga Ibsdotter Lilleaas at the Oscars, who weren’t nominated by the union.

There were also surprises in television. Everyone expected Rhea Seehorn to win Best Actress in a Drama for *Pluribus*, especially after winning the Golden Globe and critics’ awards. But Keri Russell took home the statue for *The Diplomat* on Netflix. The rest was more predictable: Seth Rogen won in Comedy for *The Studio*, Catherine O’Hara received the posthumous award for Best Supporting Actress in Comedy, and *The Pitt* took home the main awards in Drama.

Michelle Williams won for *Death by Pleasure* in the Miniseries category, while Owen Cooper completed an impressive quintet of awards for his debut role in *Adolescence*: Emmy, Golden Globe, Critics’ Choice, Independent Spirit Awards, and this SAG Award.

But what truly remained uncertain that night was the total unpredictability. What seemed like a decided race turned into an open battle. And honestly, that made the Oscars much more interesting than anyone expected.

The only thing that seemed certain was the lifetime achievement award for Harrison Ford. The 83-year-old actor joked that it felt a little strange to receive a lifetime achievement award when he was still in the middle of his career. He thanked George Lucas and Steven Spielberg for Han Solo and Indiana Jones, and he got emotional recalling how he found his calling in theater when he was lost in college. His friend Woody Harrelson introduced him, and Michael J. Fox accompanied him at the ceremony after working together on the third season of *Shrinking* on Apple TV. Ford closed his speech by talking about the responsibility that success brings in this business: keeping the door open for the next lost kid looking for a place to belong.