7 standout moments you might have missed from the 2023 SAG Awards
Here are the seven best moments of the SAG Awards 2023
The 2023 SAG Awards provided a bevy of memes and moments – some touching, others hilarious – but all equally memorable.
Everything Everywhere All At Once took home four awards, Jennifer Coolidge gave us yet another amazing speech, and Jenna Ortega and Aubrey Plaza made huge strides in representation for “strange and off-putting women”.
The White Lotus did well too, with Coolidge adding another trophy to her “Jenaissance”, the Abbott Elementary cast grabbed best comedy series ensemble, Michelle Yeoh and Jamie Lee Curtis snogged and Ariana DeBose did the thing.
Here are the seven highlights from the evening.
Jenna Ortega and Aubrey Plaza’s double act
In a “great day for strange and off-putting women,” horror icon Jenna Ortega and White Lotus star Aubrey Plaza gave a hilarious speech while presenting the award for best male actor in a TV or limited series.
In their signature deadpan tones, the duo joked that they would “find the people” who paired them up, then “curse their bloodlines and watch as misfortune follows their family for the next seven generations” in a nod to Ortega’s hit Netflix series Wednesday.
Aside from looking stunning, the pair solidified their status as cultural legends. We’re still not sure if they were joking, though.
Jennifer Coolidge’s tribute to her Dad
If there’s one thing we’ve learned from awards season, it’s that Jennifer Coolidge can always be relied upon to deliver a brilliant speech.
While accepting the award for best female in a drama series (which she won for her role as widow Tanya McQuoid-Hunt in The White Lotus), Coolidge’s regaled the audience with a tale of being taken out of her first-grade class so that she and her father could go to a Charlie Chaplin film festival, making the audience laugh and tear up. It’s called versatility!
Jamie Lee Curtis kissing Michelle Yeoh
The screams of sapphics around the world could be heard as Everything Everywhere All At Once co-stars Jamie Lee Curtis and Michelle Yeoh shared a smooch.
Just after Lee Curtis was announced as the winner for female actor in a supporting role, she stood up, yelled “Shut up,” then grabbed Yeoh for a kiss on the lips.
If it proves anything, Ariana DeBose was right: Jamie Lee, you are all of us!
James Hong’s powerful speech about discrimination
In one of the most powerful moments of the evening, EEAOO actor James Hong gave a speech recalling the discrimination Asian actors faced in Hollywood during his youth, and the strides that have since been made when it comes to representation.
“My first movie [Soldier of Fortune] was with Clark Gable, but in those days the leading role was played by these guys with their eyes taped like this,” Hong shared, before demonstrating the gesture.
“And the producer said: ‘Asians are not good enough, they’re not box office’. But look at us now!”
Michelle Yeoh said ‘F**k’
Michelle Yeoh sprinkling her speech with expletives has got to be one of our favourite moments of the entire night.
After the Everything Everywhere All at Once star was announced as the winner of the award for best female in a leading role, she hit the audience with a classic “S**t! F**k!” combo, before dedicating the award to “every little girl who looks like me”.
A legend, a winner, a mother.
Abbott Elementary stars Quinta Brunson and Janelle James took the lead
Aside from winning best comedy series ensemble, the Abbott Elementary stars gave us a segment to die for when the camera approached their table and Janelle James “mistook” it for a waiter.
“Oh, no thanks, I haven’t look at the menu yet,” she told the camera, before asking Quinta Brunson: “This ain’t one of them kiss cams, is it?”
It was part of the “I am an actor” monologues that many of the assembled stars took part in, but James stole the show.
Ariana DeBose did indeed do ‘the thing’
All roads lead back to Ariana DeBose.
After making internet herstory for her viral performance at the BAFTAs, is looks like DeBose is ready to reclaim her narrative.
“Angela Bassett did the thing” and so did DeBose, who handed over the spotlight to co-presenter Diego Luna by saying “Diego, do the thing.”
If you can’t beat ’em, join ’em. Welcome to the club, Ariana!
