Screen Actors Guild Awards nominations released

January 12, 2006 The Screen Actors Guild™ recently announced the nominees for its 14th annual SAG Awards™.

Nominated for "Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture" are Brokeback Mountain, Capote, Crash, Good Night, and Good Luck., and Hustle & Flow.

"Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Leading Role" includes Russell Crowe (Cinderella Man), Philip Seymour Hoffman Capote, Heath Ledger Brokeback Mountain, Joaquin Phoenix Walk the Line, and David Strathairn Good Night, and Good Luck. This continues last year's trend of highly nominated biopic portrayals. This year's historical figures were boxer James J. Braddock, writer Truman Capote, and singer Johnny Cash, and broadcast journalist Edward R. Murrow.

"Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Leading Role" nominees are Judi Dench (Mrs. Henderson Presents), Felicity Huffman (Transamerica), Charlize Theron (North Country), Reese Witherspoon (Walk the Line), Ziyi Zhang (Memoirs of a Geisha).

NBC newcomer My Name is Earl faces off against longtime award-magnet Everyone Loves Raymond in the "Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Comedy Series" category. Also nominated are Desperate Housewives, Curb Your Enthusiasm, Arrested Development, and Boston Legal.

The cat's drama equivilent sees nominees like The West Wing, Six Feet Under, LOST, Grey's Anatomy, and TNT's The Closer. Female dramatic actors include movie-turned-television personalities like Sandra Oh (Grey's Anatomy), Geena Davis (Commander in Chief), and Patricia Arquette (Medium).

Other nominees of note include Alan Alda, famous for his role in M*A*S*H, who now plays presidential candidate Arnold Vinnick, Candice Bergen, formerly of Murphy Brown, who now plays Shirley Schmidt on Boston Legal, and Star Trek alumni William Shatner, who acts the role of Denny Crane, also on Boston Legal.

Shirley Temple Black will receive Screen Actors Guild Awards 42st Annual Life Achievement Award. Temple is considered by many to be the most famous child actor in history. She is currently an American diplomat.

Then-Screen Actors Guild President Melissa Gilbert said, "I can think of no one more deserving of this year’s SAG Life Achievement award than Shirley Temple Black. Her contributions to the entertainment industry are without precedent; her contributions to the world are nothing short of inspirational... In everything she has done and accomplished, Shirley Temple Black has demonstrated uncommon grace, talent and determination, not to mention compassion and courage... She has been an indelible influence on my life. She was my idol when I was a girl and remains my idol today."

This will be new president Alan Rosenberg's first time at the helm of the ceremonies.

Final ballots for the SAG Awards are due by 12 Noon PT, Friday, January 27, 2006. The awards will be broadcast Sunday, January 29, 2006, on TNT and TBS.