2026 Actor Awards: Date, Time, How to Watch & Nominees
The 2026 award season is nearing its conclusion, and the spotlight this week shines on the 32nd annual Actor Awards, formerly known as the Screen Actors Guild Awards. The Actor Awards celebrate “outstanding motion picture and television performances from the previous calendar year,” and uniquely, “are the only top industry honors where actors vote on actors,” selected entirely by the over 160,000 members of SAG-AFTRA [1].
As an important indicator for the upcoming Academy Awards on March 15, the Actor Awards hold significant weight, given that actors comprise the largest voting body within the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. Historically, there’s a notable correlation between the two ceremonies; last year, the Oscars and SAG Awards aligned on four out of five nominees in the best actor, best actress, and supporting actor categories, and three out of five in supporting actress [2].
Leading Nominees
Paul Thomas Anderson’s “One Battle After Another” leads this year’s nominations with a record seven nods, followed by “Sinners” with five, and “Hamnet” and “Marty Supreme” each receiving three nominations [2]. “One Battle” is in contention for best ensemble – the SAG equivalent of the Oscars’ best picture – alongside “Sinners,” “Hamnet,” “Marty Supreme,” and “Frankenstein.”
In the television categories, Apple’s “The Studio” garnered five nominations, including best comedy ensemble, while Netflix’s limited series “Adolescence” and HBO’s drama “The White Lotus” each secured four nominations [2].
Harrison Ford to Receive Lifetime Achievement Award
Harrison Ford will be honored with the 61st SAG-AFTRA Life Achievement Award during the ceremony, joining recent recipients Jane Fonda, Barbra Streisand, Sally Field, Helen Mirren, and Robert De Niro [2].
How to Watch the 2026 Actor Awards
Date: Sunday, March 1, 2026
Location: Shrine Auditorium and Expo Hall, Los Angeles
Time: 8 p.m. ET / 5 p.m. PT
The 32nd annual Actor Awards will stream live on Netflix, with the ceremony expected to last approximately two hours [3], [4].
Red Carpet Coverage
The red carpet pre-show, “The Actor’s Red Carpet,” will stream live on Netflix beginning at 7 p.m. ET / 4 p.m. PT, hosted by Paige DeSorbo and Scott Evans [1], [4]. E! will also provide live red carpet coverage starting at 6 p.m. ET / 3 p.m. PT with Justin Sylvester, Keltie Knight, and Erin Lim Rhodes.
Kristen Bell Returns as Host
Kristen Bell will host the 2026 Actor Awards, marking her third time hosting the ceremony, now rebranded as the Actor Awards [4]. She acknowledged the challenge of remembering the new name, stating, “Renaming it is a considerable thing to apply to the old processor…There’s been a lot of slip-ups.”