Eddie Redmayne dedicated his award to people living with ALS, including Stephen Hawking
Eddie Redmayne has raised his chances of Oscars success after beating favourite Michael Keaton to win best actor at the Screen Actors Guild awards.
Keaton and the rest of the Birdman cast did however win the big award for best ensemble cast at Sunday’s awards.
There were also awards for Oscar hopefuls Julianne Moore, Patricia Arquette and JK Simmons.
While Downton Abbey won best ensemble cast in a TV drama.
In the TV categories Viola Davis and Orange is the New Black (OITNB) star Uzo Aduba made history as it was the first time both best actress awards have been won by black women.
The Netflix series OITNB also won the best comedy ensemble cast.
Oscar hopes
The SAG awards are seen as a strong indicator of who will win at the Oscars, because actors make up the largest portion of the Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences.
For the last 10 years the winners of the best actor at the SAG awards have gone on to win the best actor Oscar.
Keaton had been expected to pick up the best actor award but was beaten by Redmayne for his portrayal of Stephen Hawking.
The actor who looked shocked at his win dedicated his award to people living with ALS (amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, also known as motor neurone disease), such as Hawking for their “triumph of spirit”.
“I would like to dedicate this award to those people around the world living with ALS, to those who have lost their lives to this brutal disease,” he said.
“In preparing to play Stephen I met many people fighting ALS, and I met their families fighting alongside them. And the courage and …read more
Source:: BBC Entertainment
