On Sunday 27th February, the annual Screen Actors Guild Awards (SAG) were held in Santa Monica, California. The best performances in film and television were celebrated, and saw actors such as Will Smith and Kate Winslet take home awards.
The awards came three days after the devastating invasion of Ukraine by Russia, and as a result, many actors used this as an opportunity to show solidarity with Ukraine.
As the Succession cast took the stage for winning best ensemble in a drama series, lead actor Brian Cox shared his thoughts on the conflict:
“The thing that’s really distressed me is what’s happening in Russia, to my fellow actors and actresses and performers and writers and critics. They are told under pain of high treason that they cannot say a word about Ukraine and I think that is pretty awful. I think we should all stand together”.
Similarly, when Michael Keaton accepted his award for best male actor in Dopesick, he gave an incredibly heart-felt speech and praised Ukraine’s president, Volodymyr Zelensky: “We have a fellow actor, Zelensky, who deserves some credit tonight for fighting the fight.”
Whilst accepting the award for best female actress in The Eyes of Tammy, Jessica Chastain said:”My heart is with our international family all over the world right now who is fighting for their safety and their freedom”.
Various other stars such as Lady Gaga and Andrew Garfield spoke out for Ukraine in red carpet interviews, and many more were seen wearing pins of the Ukrainian flag.
#Peace.Love.Ukraine
