HOLLYWOOD—This morning the nominees for the Screen Actors Guild Awards were announced and leading the pack of contenders with five nominations is “Modern Family.”  “The Help” leads all film nominees with four nominations including Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture.  That movie will face off against “Bridesmaids,” “The Descendants,” “The Artist” and “Midnight in Paris.”  This is a tough race, but look for either “The Artist,” “The Help” or “The Descendants” to reign supreme.

Nominees for Lead Female Actor in a Motion Picture include Glenn Close “Albert Nobbs,” Viola Davis “The Help,” Meryl Streep “The Iron Lady,” Tilda Swinton “We Need To Talk About Kevin” and Michelle Williams “My Week With Marilyn.”   Missing from this list of nominees is “Young Adult” star Charlize Theron who was believed to be a strong contender in this category.

Viola Davis is a nominee for Lead Female Actor for "The Help."

  

For Lead Actor in a Motion Picture the nominees include George Clooney “The Descendants,” Brad Pitt “Moneyball,” Leonardo DiCaprio “J. Edgar,” Demian Bichir “A Better Life” and Jean Dujardin “The Artist.”   Some were expecting Gary Oldman to nab a nomination for his performance in “Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy,” but it’s still a possibility for him to be nominated for a Golden Globe.

Surprises occurred in both the Supporting Male and Supporting Female in a Motion Picture categories.  Nominees for Supporting Male include Kenneth Branagh “My Week With Marilyn,” Armie Hammer “J. Edgar,” Jonah Hill “Moneyball,” Nick Nolte “Warrior” and Christopher Plummer “Beginners.”  For Supporting Female contenders include Berenice Bejo “The Artist,” Janet McTeer “Albert Nobbs,” Melissa McCarthy “Bridesmaids,” Jessica Chastain “The Help” and Octavia Spencer “The Help.”

On the television side, “Modern Family” is nominated for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Comedy Series.  They’ll compete against “30 Rock,” “The Big Bang Theory,” “Glee” and “The Office.” For Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series the nominees include “The Good Wife,” “Game of Thrones,” “Dexter,” “Breaking Bad” and “Boardwalk Empire.” 

A dark horse in the category for Female Actor in a Drama Series is Jessica Lange for “American Horror Story.”  It’s a surprise many probably didn’t see coming, but she has a very strong chance of winning.  Her work on the show is sensational.  She’ll vie for the award against Kathy Bates “Harry’s Law,” Glenn Close “Damages,” Julianna Margulies “The Good Wife” and Kyra Sedgwick “The Closer.”  For Male Actor in a Drama Series nominees include Kyle Chandler “Friday Night Lights,” Bryan Cranston “Breaking Bad,” Michael C. Hall “Dexter,” Steve Buscemi “Boardwalk Empire” and Patrick J. Adams “Suits.”

Nominees for Male Actor in a Comedy Series include Steve Carell “The Office,” Alec Baldwin “30 Rock,” Ty Burrell “Modern Family,” Jon Cryer “Two and a Half Man” and Eric Stonestreet “Modern Family.” For Female Actor in a Comedy Series the nominees are Betty White “Hot in Cleveland,” Sofia Vergara “Modern Family,” Tina Fey “30 Rock,” Edie Falco “Nurse Jackie” and Julie Bowen “Modern Family.”

The 18^th Annual Screen Actors Guild Awards will be handed out on Sunday, January 29, 2012 at the Los Angeles Shrine Exposition Center. The ceremony will air live on TBS and TNT at 8pm.  Let awards season begin!

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