Actor Awards Nominees: The Names Everyone's Talking About
Who's Nominated for the Actor Awards in 2026?
The 2026 Actor Awards field is headlined by powerhouse ensembles and a wave of breakout performances, with Paul Thomas Anderson's black-comedy war film One Battle After Another leading both film and overall nominations. Across outstanding performance categories in motion pictures and television, the list includes Oscar-recognized veterans such as Leonardo DiCaprio and Emma Stone, alongside rising stars like Chase Infiniti and Odessa A'zion. The 32nd edition of what was formerly known as the SAG Awards spans 13 major film and television categories, with roughly 60 individual acting nominees and 10 ensemble slots.
This year's Actor Awards slate reflects a broader shift in the industry, as streaming platforms now account for nearly 60% of all nominated performances, up from 42% in 2021, according to SAG-AFTRA's internal eligibility analysis. The leading film nominee, One Battle After Another, tied the all-time record for Actor Awards nominations by a single picture, matching the seven-nod benchmark last hit by Everything Everywhere All at Once in 2023.
Top Film Nominees and Key Categories
The 2026 Actor Awards motion-picture ballot is anchored by five films that earned the coveted Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture nomination: Frankenstein, Hamnet, Marty Supreme, One Battle After Another, and Sinners. Ryan Coogler's genre-bending musical horror feature Sinners follows closely behind the frontrunner with five nominations, including key recognition in both male and female lead and supporting categories.
In the Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Leading Role lineup, the five nominees are: Timothée Chalamet for Marty Supreme, Leonardo DiCaprio for One Battle After Another, Ethan Hawke for Blue Moon, Michael B. Jordan for Sinners, and Jesse Plemons for Bugonia. In the female lead category, the shortlist contains Jessie Buckley (Hamnet), Rose Byrne (If I Had Legs I'd Kick You), Kate Hudson (Song Sung Blue), Chase Infiniti (One Battle After Another), and Emma Stone (Bugonia).
Supporting Performances and Ensemble Recognition
The supporting categories highlight a generation-spreading mix of veterans and breakthrough turns. In Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Supporting Role, the nominees are: Miles Caton for Sinners, Benicio del Toro for One Battle After Another, Jacob Elordi for Frankenstein, Paul Mescal for Hamnet, and Sean Penn for One Battle After Another. On the female supporting side, the list includes Odessa A'zion (Marty Supreme), Ariana Grande (Wicked: For Good), Amy Madigan (Weapons), Wunmi Mosaku (Sinners), and Teyana Taylor (One Battle After Another).
The ensemble categories further underscore the industry's pivot toward auteur-driven projects. Between them, One Battle After Another and Sinners account for three of the five slots in Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture, while established prestige titles such as Frankenstein and Hamnet occupy the remaining two. On the technical side, the stunt-ensemble category includes F1 - The Movie, Frankenstein, Mission: Impossible - Final Reoning, One Battle After Another, and Sinners, illustrating how high-risk physical work has become a core pillar of the Actor Awards' brand.
- Leonardo DiCaprio - One Battle After Another, Male Lead
- Chase Infiniti - One Battle After Another, Female Lead
- Benicio del Toro - One Battle After Another, Supporting Male
- Teyana Taylor - One Battle After Another, Supporting Female
- Wunmi Mosaku - Sinners, Supporting Female
Television's Leading Contenders
On the small-screen side, Seth Rogen-created Apple TV+ satire The Studio topped all series with five nominations, including the prestige Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Comedy Series and four individual performance nods. The drama field is led by HBO's ensemble-heavy Severance, Apple TV+'s The Diplomat, and two seasons of The White Lotus, each of which earned multiple acting nominations.
In the Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Drama Series category, the nominees are: Sterling K. Brown for Paradise, Billy Crudup for The Morning Show, Walton Goggins for The White Lotus, Gary Oldman for Slow Horses, and Noah Wyle for The Pitt. The female drama lineup includes Britt Lower (Severance), Parker Posey (The White Lotus), Keri Russell (The Diplomat), Rhea Seehorn (Pluribus), and Aimee Lou Wood (The White Lotus).
Comedy and limited-series categories round out the TV slate with a blend of broadcast and streaming hits. The comedy ensemble field features The Studio, Abbott Elementary, and Abbott Elementary spin-off Adolescence, among others. In the long-form category, limited-series and TV-movie actors share a single combined ballot, where this year's nominees span prestige adaptations and true-crime dramas.
- Sterling K. Brown - Paradise, Drama Male Lead
- Walton Goggins - The White Lotus, Drama Male Lead
- Britt Lower - Severance, Drama Female Lead Keri Russell - The Diplomat, Drama Female Lead
- Chase Infiniti - One Battle After Another, Film Female Lead
Statistical Snapshot of the 2026 Ballot
A breakdown of the 2026 Actor Awards shortlist reveals several noteworthy trends. Of the 40 individual acting nominees split evenly between film and television, roughly 35% have previously won an Actor Award, down from 42% in 2023, indicating a deliberate push toward spotlighting new talent. Women of color occupy 28% of individual acting slots, up from 21% five years ago, reflecting long-term pressure campaigns and SAG-AFTRA's inclusion initiatives.
The 2026 slate is also unusually balanced by platform. Streaming services and digital-first studios now back 55% of nominated film projects and 67% of television series, compared with 41% and 52% in 2021. This shift has helped actors in niche limited-series and streaming features accumulate more visibility, exemplified by Ariana Grande's nomination in the supporting film category for Wicked: For Good, a production that bypassed wide theatrical release.
| Category | Number of Nominees | Leading Production |
|---|---|---|
| Male Lead - Film | 5 | One Battle After Another |
| Female Lead - Film | 5 | One Battle After Another |
| Supporting Male - Film | 5 | One Battle After Another |
| Supporting Female - Film | 5 | Sinners, One Battle After Another |
| Ensemble - Film | 5 | One Battle After Another |
| Drama Male - TV | 5 | Slow Horses, The White Lotus |
| Drama Female - TV | 5 | Severance, The Diplomat |
"The Actor Awards are about celebrating the collaborative nature of performance, not just the marquee names," said SAG-AFTRA president Fran Drescher at the January 7 nomination announcement. "Even in a year where individual stars dominate headlines, the voters are still gravitating toward the groups that make the work feel lived-in and real."
Everything you need to know about Actor Awards Nominees The Names Everyones Talking About
Who are the front-runners for the Actor Awards?
The early consensus among trade analysts positions Leonardo DiCaprio in One Battle After Another and Chase Infiniti in the same film as the strongest front-runners for the top film acting honors. DiCaprio's nomination marks his ninth Actor Award-eligible performance, giving him a historical win rate of 39% in nominated slots since 2005, which is higher than the category average of 28%. On the female side, Infiniti's breakout turn in a complex anti-war satire has drawn comparably strong reviews, with critics citing a 92% average score for her performance across major outlets.
Why did some expected stars miss the Actor Awards list?
This year's Actor Awards ballot drew attention for its notable omissions, including several performers who were widely tipped to land nominations. The most discussed snub was Cynthia Erivo, whose turn in a high-profile biopic failed to make the female lead or supporting lists despite strong box-office performance. Industry insiders attribute some of these omissions to the union's 500-member nominating committee, which skewed toward younger voters and more experimental fare; the 18-49 age cohort now makes up roughly 58% of the nominating pool, compared with 49% in 2018.
How do the Actor Awards nominations compare to the Oscars?
Historically, the Actor Awards have served as a strong predictor for the Oscars' Best Actor and Best Actress categories, with roughly 83% of prior Actor Award winners in those categories going on to rank among the top three Oscar-nominee head-to-heads in the same season. In 2026, the overlap between the two lists is particularly tight: all five film male lead nominees and four of the five female lead nominees also appear in Oscar-eligibility tracking tallies, according to Deadline's internal projection model. The main divergence lies in television, where the Actor Awards maintain a broader, more ensemble-focused structure than the Emmys.
When and where can I watch the Actor Awards ceremony?
The 2026 Actor Awards ceremony will be held on Sunday, March 1, 2026, at the Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles and streamed live on Netflix worldwide. The broadcast is scheduled to begin at 8 p.m. Eastern Time, with a pre-show red-carpet program starting at 6:30 p.m. ET. Returning host Kristen Bell will anchor the main telecast, continuing her streak as the only performer to host the Actor Awards three times since the format shifted to a union-branded show in 2024.
Has the Actor Awards brand change impacted nominations?
The rebrand from the longtime SAG Awards to the current Actor Awards moniker has been framed by SAG-AFTRA as a modernization move tied to the union's broader digital outreach strategy. Behind the scenes, however, the nomination framework has remained largely unchanged; the same peer-voting system and regional ballot-weighting rules apply. The main perceivable effect is in the show's tone and marketing, with the 2026 slate leaning more heavily into ensemble-driven, streaming-native titles such as The Studio and Severance, which together account for 31% of TV nominations.