Cast of "Only Murders in the Building" nominated for SAG award

The Screen Actors Guild nominations were revealed this morning (sans an in-person announcement due to the raging L.A. wildfires), and the cast of Only Murders in the Building has been nominated for Best Ensemble in a Comedy Series. Meryl, while not a huge part of the latest season, nonetheless is part of the ensemble and therefore nominated. Martin Short was the sole other nominee from the show, snagging a nom for Male Actor in a Comedy Series. 

EDIT: It's been brought to my attention after posting that, similar to receiving individual recognition for many awards, there are requirements for having been in a certain number of episodes to be considered as part of the ensemble. In this case, Meryl is not part of the ensemble and therefore not officially nominated. My apologies for the lazy posting. I should've known better. 

I wonder if Meryl will attend the ceremony along with the rest of the cast. My gut tells me she probably will not (especially if by chance the rumors are true and the filming of Devil Wears Prada 2 starts in February). But mostly it seems that since she's just not in a major role this season she's more likely to bow out of the ceremony. At last year's event, she, Anne Hathaway and Emily Blunt re-teamed to award Lead Actor in a Comedy series. I still don't know if her tripping at the beginning was a bit. Regardless, enjoy the video and congrats to the cast!

Cast of "Only Murders in the Building" nominated for SAG award

The Screen Actors Guild Award nominations were announced this morning. The lone nomination for Only Murders in the Building was for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Comedy Series...which includes Meryl, of course. There is no SAG category for supporting roles in television. 

I'm a little surprised that either Martin Short or Steve Martin didn't get nominated. But they're in their third season at this point, and The Bear, for example, is a very popular new(er) show, and Ted Lasso had its final season. Regardless, it might mean we get to see Meryl as part of the ensemble at the show when winners are announced on February 24. It's fun having Meryl be a part of awards season again

The full list of nominees can be seen here. 

Streep at the SAGs

Although Don't Look Up lost out to the cast of CODA in the ensemble category at the Screen Actors Guild Awards last night, it was nice to see that Meryl was in attendance. She joined co-stars Tyler Perry and Cate Blanchett to present the clip for their film. 

Meryl looks great! I might be crazy but I feel like usually when she's this trim she's either just finished filming something or is about to start. I know Extrapolations might have wrapped for her recently, but I'm just hoping and wishing that she's going to start something this spring for a late 2022 release. 

She also got to snap a pic with the night's Lifetime Achievement honoree, Dame Helen Mirren, as well as getting a shout out from Marlee Matlin during the acceptance speech for CODA's ensemble win (2:08 below).  

I love when she ends up playing a sort of a supporting role in awards shows, even if she isn't nominated in an individual category. 

The state of the race: 2021

Happy New Year!  I'm guessing few of us have been more excited to say goodbye to year than we are with 2020. Normally by January 1, we already have Golden Globe and SAG nominations a few weeks in the bag. Not in the year of Covid, however. Due to the pandemic, the film awards timeline if of course pushed back significantly. We won't see Globe and SAG noms until the week of February, and the Oscar ceremony isn't going to be until the last Sunday in April! That's going to seem so weird. 

So while we have a ways to go, I thought it a good time to do a little "lay of the land" in regard to the Best Actress race. I should start by stating I think Meryl is barely in the conversation this year. But the fact that she's likely to get a Golden Globe nod for her performance in The Prom, and that she is after all, herself, we can never really count her out. I don't think it's out of the realm of possibility that she'd get double-nommed in Comedy at the Globes (The Prom and Let Them All Talk), but there doesn't seem to be much buzz around the latter film, nor Meryl's performance--despite it having great reviews. 

The Oscars is where the real fun is though for following the race. The two main sources I use to follow current predictions are from Awards Worthy forums and Gold Derby. As this goes to post, the current top ten for both are as follows:

Awards Worthy: 

1. Frances McDormand (Nomadland)

2. Viola Davis (Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom) 

3. Carey Mulligan (Promising Young Woman) 

4. Andra Day (The United States vs Billie Holiday) 

5. Vanessa Kirby (Pieces of a Woman) 

6. Sophia Loren (The Life Ahead) 

7. Kate Winslet (Ammonite)

8. Sidney Flanigan (Never Rarely Sometimes Always) 

9. Meryl Streep (The Prom) 

10. Zendaya (Malcolm and Marie)

Gold Derby:

1. Viola Davis (Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom) 

2. Frances McDormand (Nomadland) 

3. Vanessa Kirby (Pieces of a Woman) 

4. Carey Mulligan (Promising Young Woman) 

5. Andra Day (The United States vs Billie Holiday) 

6. Sophia Loren (The Life Ahead) 

7. Kate Winslet (Ammonite) 

8. Meryl Streep (The Prom)  

9. Sidney Flanigan (Never Rarely Sometimes Always) 

10. Zendaya (Malcom and Marie)

Exact same top ten, exact same top five (although in slightly different orders). I've listed the one's I've seen up to this point in bold. With how similar these two lists are, I'm confident in saying this is the working group from which we can expect names to show up nomination morning. 

Although I'd most certainly prefer that going out to theaters were as safe as in previous years, I've been thankful that so many great films are available from home on streaming platforms. I'm most looking forward to seeing Nomadland. It's got overwhelmingly positive reviews and is a strong contender for Best Picture and Best Director (Chloé Zhao). 

Some people are suggesting that Viola Davis's role in Ma Rainey's Black Bottom isn't big enough to be considered lead. I think that's silly, because 1) I've seen the film, and 2) that's never stopped a multitude of other actors in borderline roles from getting nominated, or even winning. It's a great performance by Davis in a baity role. I think the biggest advantage she has this year is that she's never won in lead, while McDormand has won twice, and recently. I'm picking Davis as of right now. 

Both Sophia Loren and Kate Winslet do lovely jobs in their films, but I definitely think Sophia Loren has a better chance. Her movie, while not in the English language, is very well-received by critics. She's also Hollywood royalty who hasn't been in consideration for a nomination in decades. Ammonite wasn't bad, but I think it needed to be amazing for Winslet to be a real contender here. I also felt that it was too close in tone to director Francis Lee's other recent queer drama, God's Own Country (one of my all-time favs) to feel fresh. 

Carey Mulligan is getting raves. Fun development as well: she's going Drama at the Globes. This greatly opens up chances for a Meryl win there, but I'm still skeptical. Maria Bakalova will probably win if she's put in lead for Borat Subequent Moviefilm. And deservedly. 

My guess is Sidney Flannigan's movie is too small for her to break through with the Academy. But I thought her performance was touching and wonderful. No one's seen Andra Day yet, and being that it's a Lee Daniels movie and Day's debut role, it really could go either way. If the film is great and Day is good to great, it's also a baity role. The Academy has gone bonkers for singer biopics as of late. Another reason Davis is in a good position here (even though Ma Rainey is actually an adaptation of an August Wilson play, not a traditional biopic). 

I'll be able to watch Vanessa Kirby's performance next week. She's sort of been trending down in recent weeks, but I loved her in the first two seasons of The Crown and would be tickled if she managed to squeeze in.

My prediction, ultimately, for the top five most likely to be nominated for an Oscar are, in descending order of likelihood of winning, are:

1. Viola Davis 

2. Frances McDormand

3. Carey Mulligan

4. Sophia Loren

5. Andra Day

Happy watching!

No 'individual' SAG nom for Meryl

The Screen Actors Guild announced it nominations this morning for the best in TV and film for 2019. Sadly, Meryl was left off the list for individual work. Big Little Lies was recognized with an Ensemble nomination in the Drama Series category. Other than that the show was SHUT OUT.

I keep forgetting that SAG doesn't do supporting categories for television, only film. It's pretty understandable how Streep wouldn't get in for her supporting role in Big Little Lies, when more borderline performances like Helena Bonham Carter (The Crown) and Patricia Arquette (The Act) are out there. Both happened to receive nominations, while up to this point, and no doubt at the Emmys next summer, they've been nominated in supporting. But not even Nicole Kidman?! Regardless, I'm optimistic for Meryl's chances for a supporting nom at the Emmys.

Speaking of shut out, that was also the case for Little Women. No ensemble, no Saoirse Ronan, no Florence Pugh. I have to say that if I were told one of these two projects would be shout out at SAG, I would've expected BLL to get something before Little Women. This doesn't bode well for Academy Award chances, but there's still the BAFTA noms the first week of January, where I think Little Women will fare better--at least in the acting categories. If it does not, it's probably game over with the Oscars.

"Big Little Lies" officially returning to HBO in June

Executives at HBO announced today that the second season of Big Little Lies will officially arrive in June. Producer/star Nicole Kidman had previously alluded to that month being the potential return date, and now we have confirmation.

Well, I'm glad we know when it's coming, but I'm sad we have to wait four more months! It's also interesting that the June time frame means the show misses the cutoff for Emmy consideration for the current season. The show (now in Drama Series and not in Limited Series) was likely placed there so as to avoid a clash with awards juggernaut Game of Thrones in its final season. Any Emmy love for BLL will have to wait until 2020, but we could see noms for the Golden Globes and SAGs as early as December of this year.

Can't wait to see more of Meryl! Now time for news of a juicy new project.

Nicole Kidman and Meryl Streep

No SAG nom for Meryl

The Post was completely shut out from the Screen Actors Guild award nominations this morning. While it's certainly possible that the voting members just weren't big fans of the film, after its strong showing with the Hollywood Foreign Press two days ago, one has to wonder if the early concerns about the film's late release, and therefore sort of last minute effort to send out screeners, may have played a factor in its lack of recognition from SAG. 

Regardless, this is a blow for Meryl's Oscar chances, as well as Tom Hanks, Steven Spielberg and the film itself. If Meryl somehow manages to bag the Golden Globe for Actress in a Drama, however, I'll be much more relaxed about her possibilities.  If I'm being as objective as I possibly can, I still think it is extremely unlikely that Streep will be snubbed by the Academy for a film that's getting good reviews and raves for her. Time will tell of course, and it makes this season a really fun and exciting one to watch. 

The five actors nominated in Meryl's category were as follows:

Judi Dench (Victoria & Abdul)
Sally Hawkins (The Shape of Water)
Frances McDormand (Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri)
Margot Robbie (I, Tonya)
Saoirse Ronan (Lady Bird)

The SAG awards will be held Sunday, January 21. The full list of nominees can be seen here.

Full cast of characters revealed for "The Papers"

I was checking out Awards Watch this morning and noticed that someone had posted that the full cast of The Papers had been revealed.  There was no source cited, so I checked IMDbPro, but several actors' names are still not associated with specific characters.  Wikipedia, however, does now list the main cast and whom each will be playing:

Tom Hanks as Ben Bradlee
Meryl Streep as Kay Graham
Alison Brie as Lally Weymouth
Carrie Coon as Meg Greenfield
David Cross as Phil Geyelin
Bruce Greenwood as Robert McNamara
Tracy Letts as Paul Ignatius
Bob Odenkirk as Ben Bagdikian
Sarah Paulson as Tony Bradlee
Jesse Plemons as Roger Clark
Matthew Rhys as Howard Simons
Michael Stuhlbarg as Gene Patterson
Bradley Whitford as Fritz Beebe
Zach Woods as Daniel Ellsberg

No surprises here, really. With the exception of Hanks and Streep, the list is essentially made up of great television actors.  This list looks like a wonderful recipe for a SAG ensemble nomination.  Assuming the film is decent, the only thing standing if the way of that would be if screeners don't get out to members in time for voting to end on December 10, considering the film just wrapped less than a month ago. SAG noms are set to be announced on December 13. The film opens in limited release on December 22, going wide on January 12.

My 2017 SAG predictions

 The Screen Actors Guild Awards are tomorrow night, so of course I have to post my film winner predictions.  It's fun this year that every category doesn't seem like an absolute slam dunk.  Without further ado:

Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture
Moonlight

I think Fences is a close second here, mostly because of the very strong performances of Denzel Washington and Viola Davis.  Moonlight is the better film in my opinion, and not dominated by one or two powerhouse roles.  Manchester by the Sea has the most nominations (3), but I actually think they'll come in 3rd.

Actress in a Leading Role
Emma Stone (La La Land)

I truly would not be shocked if Meryl took this, remembering that the voters include only actors and her Golden Globes speech probably spoke most closely to them, as far as industry insiders go.  Awarding Streep could be a political statement, and then they'll give the Oscar to Emma.

Actor in Leading Role
Casey Affleck (Manchester by the Sea)

Denzel is a very close second for me here.

Actress in a Supporting Role
Viola Davis (Fences)

Will win.

Actor in a Supporting Role
Mahershala Ali (Moonlight)

Maybe not as guaranteed as Viola, but pretty close.

Streep lands SAG nomination

Woo hoo!  Meryl received a nomination from the Screen Actors Guild this morning for her performance in Florence Foster Jenkins.  Her co-star Hugh Grant was also recognized in the supporting category.  This is a very good sign for Meryl's chances at her 20th Academy Award nomination next month.  I'm pretty sure the only other time she was nominated for both a Golden Globe and SAG and didn't get an Oscar nomination was for 1994's The River Wild.  Joining Meryl in her category were the following actresses:

Amy Adams (Arrival)
Emily Blunt (The Girl on the Train)
Natalie Portman (Jackie)
Emma Stone (La La Land)

I'm rather surprised by Blunt making the top five.  I was more expecting Annette Bening.  Stone and Portman were slam dunks, and I think those two and Adams are at this point shoe-ins for Oscar noms.  The Academy will announce their nominations on Tuesday, January 24.   The full list of SAG nominations can be seen here.

"Look, darling, we're both nominated."

Previewing Golden Globe and SAG nominations

Next week will be very telling for Meryl's chances at landing her record 20th Oscar nomination in January for Florence Foster Jenkins.  Dark and early Monday morning, the Golden Globe nominees will be revealed, where she is expected to be recognized in the category of Best Actress in a Musical or Comedy.  She is likely to be joined by Emma Stone (La La Land), Annette Bening (20th Century Women) and Kate Beckinsale (Love and Friendship).  That fifth slot in this category is a bit tough to choose, but my money is on Sally Field in Hello, My Name is Doris.  

Revealed two days later, the Screen Actors Guild Award nominations are more of an enigma for Streep, and will be much stronger predictor of her chances for Oscar than are the Globes.  Stone is for sure in at SAG, as is Natalie Portman (Jackie).  Those are perhaps the only slam dunks in the category, but I'd be shocked if Amy Adams (Arrival) weren't nominated.  Ruth Negga (Loving) has perhaps her best shot at SAG.  That would leave one more slot.  Meryl will have to contend with Bening, Isabelle Huppert (Elle) and longshot Taraji P. Henson (Hidden Figures).

Actors love Streep and despite strong showings from a larger than usual field this year at SAG, I have hope that she'll sneak into that fifth spot.

"Florence Foster Jenkins" getting re-release

With awards season looming, Paramount is set to re-release Florence Foster Jenkins in several major cities starting Friday.  No doubt they want to boost the film's presence in the minds of voters.  Golden Globe nominations are announced on Monday, December 12 and SAG two days later.  Glad to see that the studio is taking it seriously.  I think the best chances for Meryl are by far at the Globes, but if she happens to snag a SAG nom in addition to a Globe, Oscar seems within grasp.  BAFTA is real chance this year as well, considering the film's U.K. director/production.

In other unrelated news, in maybe a bit of a surprise announcement, Meryl is going to be honored by The Costume Designers Guild with a 'Career Achievement Award.' The award "honors individuals who demonstrate unwavering support of costume design and creative partnerships with costume designers."  Streep will join designer Jeffrey Kurland in a presentation in Beverly Hills on February 21. I tend to forget that Meryl took her theater degree in costume design, so not surprising that she understands the importance of developing a character through close collaboration with designers.

These two announcements in addition to the Cecil B. DeMille award she's set to receive during the Golden Globe ceremony on January 8 keep her at the forefront of the race, despite the film for which she will hopefully be nominated being released six months ago in the U.K.  I like how things are shaping up for Meryl's chances.

"Florence Foster Jenkins" officially coming to video in December

Broadway World reported yesterday that Florence Foster Jenkins will be released on Blu-ray, DVD and On Demand on December 13.  The digital HD release is a couple weeks earlier, November 29.  Interestingly, the Blu-ray/DVD release is sandwiched right between the Golden Globe and SAG nominations announcements, which happen to take place on December 12 and 14, respectively.  Not an accident, I presume.

Click on the link above to get more detail on the special features that are attached to the home video release.  Hopefully Meryl will at the very least receive a Globe nom, which will help with marketing.  Hard to believe these nominations come out in just two months!

My SAG predictions

The Screen Actors Guild will present its awards tonight for best performances in television and cinema.  Meryl as we know is nominated in the Supporting Actress category for her performance in Into the Woods.  My predictions in the film categories are as follows:

Cast
1. Birdman
2. Boyhood
3. The Grand Budapest Hotel
4. The Imitation Game
5. The Theory of Everything

I'm predicting Boyhood for Best Picture at the Oscars, but I have a feeling Birdman will take this one, and in fact, The Grand Budapest has a chance here as well.

Male Actor in Leading Role
1. Michael Keaton (Birdman)
2. Eddie Redmayne (The Theory of Everything)
3. Benedict Cumberbatch (The Imitation Game)
4. Jake Gyllenhaal (Nightcrawler)
5. Steve Carell (Foxcatcher)

Redmayne has a shot, but I'd be surprised if Keaton didn't take this.

Female Actor in a Leading Role
1. Julianne Moore (Still Alice)
2. Reese Witherspoon (Wild)
3. Rosamund Pike (Gone Girl)
4. Felicity Jones (The Theory of Everything)
5. Jennifer Aniston (Cake)

Moore all the way.

Male Actor in a Supporting Role
1. J.K. Simmons (Whiplash)
2. Edward Norton (Birdman)
3. Mark Ruffalo (Foxcather)
4. Ethan Hawke (Boyhood)
5. Robert Duvall (The Judge)

Simmons only.

Female Actor in a Supporting Role
1. Patricia Arquette (Boyhood)
2. Emma Stone (Birdman)
3. Keira Knightley (The Imitation Game)
4. Meryl Streep (Into the Woods)
5. Naomi Watts (St. Vincent)

I'd be absolutely shocked if Arquette were not the winner.  If by some miracle Meryl took this it would be exciting, and since Arquette has won everything in sight up to this point and will likely win the Oscar, this wouldn't seem that undeserved.

Tune in tonight on either TNT or TBS at 7:00 pm CT.

Streep recognized by Screen Actors Guild

As expected, Meryl was recognized by the Screen Actors Guild this morning with a nomination for Best Actress in a Supporting Role for her performance as the Witch in Into the Woods. This brings her SAG nominations total to a whopping 16.  Congratulations, Meryl.  I was a bit disappointed to see that the cast for Into the Woods wasn't also recognized for best ensemble, but of course I'd rather Meryl be nominated than the other way around.  

A few surprises:  Naomi Watts sort of came out of nowhere with her supporting role in St. Vincent, as did Jennifer Aniston in Cake.  Robert Duvall in The Judge and Jake Gyllenhaal for Nightcrawler also weren't expected among most, but all four were certainly in the conversation on many prognosticators' lists.

The list for Meryl's category includes:

1. Patricia Arquette (Boyhood)
2. Keira Knightley (The Imitation Game)
3. Emma Stone (Birdman)
4. Meryl Streep (Into the Woods)
5. Naomi Watts (St. Vincent)

The full list of nominees can be seen here.  The SAG awards will air simultaneously on TBS/TNT on Sunday, January 25.

SAG predictions

The SAG nominations will be announced tomorrow morning at 8:00 am central.  I expect Meryl to be nominated in Supporting for her role as the Witch in Into the Woods.  Of course there's a chance she misses, but with the early word of mouth the film, and particularly Meryl, has received, she should be in really good standing for consideration.  My five picks for Meryl's category are as follows:

1. Meryl Streep (Into the Woods)
2. Patricia Arquette (Boyhood)
3. Keira Knightley (The Imitation Game)
4. Emma Stone (Birdman)
5. Jessica Chastain (A Most Violent Year)

Laura Dern could very well sneak into the fifth slot for her role in Wild, with a smaller chance for Carmen Ejogo in Selma.  I'll add my Golden Globe predictions (which are announced Thursday) tomorrow after SAG announcements are made.

In related news, yesterday was the world premiere of Into the Woods, with Meryl present on the red carpet. She's looking pretty good these days.

SAG predictions

Ok, I'm like 99% sure Meryl won't win tonight but I'm still riding high from her squeaking out a nomination from the Academy two days ago.  Since the SAGs only involve acting categories, I thought I'd list my entire predictions in order of liklihood of winning.

Best Ensmemble
1. American Hustle
2. 12 Years a Slave
3. August: Osage County
4. Dallas Buyer's Club
5. Lee Daniels' The Butler

Best Actress in a Leading Role
1. Cate Blanchett (Blue Jasmine)
2. Sandra Bullock (Gravity)
3. Judi Dench (Philomena)
4. Meryl Streep (August: Osage County)
5. Emma Thompson (Saving Mr. Banks)

Best Actor in a Leading Role
1. Matthew McConaughey (Dallas Buyer's Club)
2. Bruce Dern (Nebraska)
3. Chiwetel Ejiofor (12 Years a Slave)
4. Tom Hanks (Captain Phillips)
5. Forrest Whitaker (Lee Daniels' The Butler)

Best Actress in a Supporting Role
1. Lupita Nyong'o (12 Years a Slave)
2. Jennifer Lawrence (American Hustle)
3. Julia Roberts (August: Osage County)
4. June Squibb (Nebraska)
5. Oprah Winfrey (Lee Daniels' The Butler)

Best Actor in a Supporting Role
1. Jared Leto (Dallas Buyer's Club)
2. James Gandolfini (Enough Said)
3. Michael Fassbender (12 Years a Slave)
4. Barkhad Abdi (Captain Phillips)
5. Daniel Brühl (Rush)

I may be kicking myself for picking Nyong'o over Lawrence, but hey, Lupita won Critics' Choice two nights ago.  Plus I just don't want to vote for Jennifer Lawrence anymore.  James Gandolfini may be a spoiler, as voters have a tendency to award actors posthumously.   Also watch for Dern.  Although I have him in second place, he's been around for a long time and this is an opportunity for actors to give him his due.  I'd be shocked if Cate Blanchett didn't win.  She better.   

Streep receives two SAG nominations

The nominations for the 20th annual Screen Actors Guild Awards were announced this morning and I'm pleased to report that our girl Meryl was recognized with nominations for her leading role as Violet Weston in August: Osage County as well as for being part of the ensemble for the film.  Julia Roberts was nominated for her supporting role as Barbara Fordham.  Congratulations to Meryl, Julia and the fantastic cast of this film.  The five nominees for Actress in a Leading Role are as follows:

1. Cate Blanchett (Blue Jasmine)
2. Sandra Bullock (Gravity)
3. Judi Dench (Philomena)
4. Meryl Streep (August: Osage County)
5. Emma Thompson (Saving Mr. Banks)

These were my predicted five but it was a pretty easy five to predict.  I've read that since American Hustle screeners were some of the last sent to SAG members that Amy Adams may have trouble getting in.  I don't buy that suggestion now, as Jennifer Lawrence got in for supporting, as did the ensemble.  Adams will get nominated for a Globe tomorrow and absolutely still has a chance at an Oscar nom, especially as support for her film grows in the coming weeks.

What was interesting to see was the support for both Oprah Winfrey and Forrest Whitaker for their performances in Lee Daniels' The Butler.  With those two nominations, Dench and the August girls,  The Weinstein Company landed five individual performance nominations to lead all studios.  Despite knowing Harvey's voracity at acquiring nominations for his films, I was skeptical of how well his films would do.  But many of the films he has in the running this year are rather "actory."  It's not a guarantee that this will translate into Oscar nominations, but I'm very glad he's in Meryl's corner.  Here's hoping his pushing of Judi Dench doesn't hurt Meryl's chances.  Regardless, I'm pleased with Meryl's nomination(s) and fully expect another one tomorrow morning.

Coincidentally(?), a new promotional clip of August: Osage County was released this morning, attempting to paint this film as an "outrageous comedy."  I guess that's sort of accurate, but the sugar plum fairy-ish music in the background is a bit much perhaps.  But hey, that's marketing.  As long as it gets butts in the seats.

The state of the race and SAG predictions

With the Screen Actors Guild nominations set to be announced tomorrow morning, I thought it best to take stock of where the Best Actress race stands, in particular as it pertains to Meryl's chances at recognition for her work in August: Osage County.  Several critics groups have given out their awards and/or nominations.  Thus far Meyl has been nominated by the following organizations:

Satellite Awards
Washington D.C. Area Film Critics Associations
Detroit Film Critics Society
St. Louis Film Critics
Phoenix Film Critics Society

Not exactly cream of the crop.  Nothing from New York, L.A. or Boston.  Not a huge deal as the televised awards are a whole different ball game.  I'm predicting Meryl to be nominated for a SAG and I think the film has a great chance at an ensemble nod as well.  That said, it's not impossible for her to miss based on the predictions I've noticed throughout the web.  The Golden Globe noms are announced Thursday morning, but Meryl missing there is next to impossible.

Were she to be snubbed tomorrow morning, I think her chances at an Oscar nomination will dramatically decrease, as the actors branch is the largest in the Academy.  Fingers crossed!  My SAG predictions for Actress in a Leading Role:

1. Cate Blanchett (Blue Jasmine)
2. Sandra Bullock (Gravity)
3. Meryl Streep (August: Osage County)
4. Emma Thompson (Saving Mr. Banks)
5. Judi Dench (Philomena)
 alternate: Amy Adams (American Hustle)

Streep again named favorite to portray Hillary Clinton

Fourth day in a row blogging!  Quick note on the SAGs last night:  I was 4-for-5 in predictions, only missing ensemble, which ended up going to Argo instead of my selection of Silver Linings Playbook.   That bodes well for Argo's continued momentum for Best Picture at the Academy Awards.  Despite predicting her, I was slightly surprised at Jennifer Lawrence's win for Silver Linings.   Her status as front-runner has definitely been cemented.  Um, thanks Harvey.

In other news, I came across a poll today which lists Meryl as the #1 pick of whom the public thinks should play Hillary Clinton in a biopic.  No such pic (of Clinton during her political career) is in the making, but it's fun to see Meryl mentioned again.  Goodness knows I'd love to see a film about Clinton made, and I think Meryl would of course nail it.  Clinton says goodbye as Secretary of State within the next couple of weeks, so a retreat from public life (hopefully brief (wink)) certainly gives screenwriters an opportunity to get their pens active.  I'll leave you with this video of Clinton with president Obama last night on 60 Minutes: