In 2025, SAG-AFTRA—the union that represents performers across the U.S.—made a major change. After 30 years of presenting the Screen Actors Guild Awards, aka the SAG Awards, the premier event for actors celebrating their favorite performances of the year, the union renamed the annual ceremony the Actor Awards. Curious to know more? Keep reading!
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The Actor Awards is one of several Hollywood events that make up the oft-referenced “awards season,” in combination with the Golden Globes, the Oscars, and the Emmys. Where the other ceremonies focus on all aspects of making film and TV (and in the Globes’ case, podcasts), the Actor Awards focus solely on performance, be it leading, supporting, ensemble, or stunt work. Each category is voted on by actors in the union, with prizes given to performers for their work during the previous year. Because of the overlap in votership, the Actor Awards are often seen as a way to predict the winners at the Oscars (for movies) and Emmys (for TV).
The Actor statuette—from which the newly de-monikered show gets its name—has been given out by the SAG-AFTRA performers’ union since 1995. The trophy, designed by American Fine Arts Foundry, is 16 inches tall and made of solid bronze, weighing in at 12 pounds.
According to SAG-AFTRA’s November 2025 announcement of the change, the union is “simply evolving the show’s name to align with the award itself…. We wanted to provide clearer recognition in terms of what the show is about for our domestic and global audiences—we honor actors in film and television. Laser-focusing the name on those two things became the clearest and most straightforward path for this new chapter of the show.”
The 2026 Actor Awards is set for March 1 at 8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. PT. The ceremony will take place at the Shrine Auditorium and Expo Hall in Los Angeles.
Kristen Bell will host the 32nd Actor Awards, her third stint in the role after 2025 and 2018. Since its inception, the show has only featured two other hosts—Megan Mullally in 2019 and Idris Elba in 2024.
How to watch the 2026 Actor Awards
For the third year in a row, the Actor Awards will stream exclusively, worldwide, live on Netflix. The awards ceremony first partnered with the streaming brand when the show aired on Netflix’s YouTube channel in 2023. Previously, the show aired on TNT and TBS in the 2000s, and NBC back in the ’90s.
Here is a complete list of the categories that make up the awards show:
Film
Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture
Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Leading Role
Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Leading Role
Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Supporting Role
Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Supporting Role
Outstanding Stunt Ensemble in a Motion Picture
Television
Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series
Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Drama Series
Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Drama Series
Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Comedy Series
Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Comedy Series
Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Comedy Series
Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Television Movie or Limited Series
Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Television Movie or Limited Series
Outstanding Stunt Ensemble in a Television Series
“One Battle After Another” Courtesy Warner Bros.
Here are the full lists of 2026 film nominees and TV nominees. This year’s ensemble cast nominees include:
Film
TV drama
- “The Diplomat”
- “Landman”
- “The Pitt”
- “Severance”
- “The White Lotus”
TV comedy
The Actor Award nominations process is twofold. First, actors submit their performances from the current year for nominations consideration in the categories of their choosing. With the actor’s permission, producers, studios/networks, agents, managers, or publicists may also submit performances on their behalf. From there, two nominating committees—one for motion pictures and one for television—review the submissions in order to determine the nominees. The 2,500 members in each of the two nominating committees are randomly selected on an annual basis in the spring, and must opt-in to serve. After serving, union members may not be drawn for the same committee again until eight years have passed. All of the members selected must be in good standing with the union and paid up on their dues.
Once announced, the rest of the union members get the opportunity to vote on who brings home the statuette on the big night. In 2026, voting for the winners began on Jan. 14. All actors in the union in good standing and paid up on their dues have access to screeners of all the eligible movies and series. They are encouraged to watch everything before voting. You can read all of the rules and regulations regarding the awards show’s nomination and voting processes here.