What Do the SAG, DGA Awards Results Mean for the Oscars?

With each new awards show the Oscar field becomes a little narrower. There may be multiple nominees in any given category but the frontrunners emerge based on the results of the awards given out prior to the Oscars. With both the SAG and DGA awards issued, it's time to examine what the results might mean for the major Academy Award categories.

The Directors Guild of America recognized "The Artist's" Michel Hazanavicius as best director of the year. This shores up his shot at the Best Director Oscar quite well, the French filmmaker continuing to dominate at these earlier awards shows. By association, it helps the chances of "The Artist" clinching the Best Picture Oscar as well. At this point it seems extremely likely that Hazanavicius will be awarded the Oscar for directing; it's very rare for Best Director and Best Picture to go to different films.

The SAG Awards had a few surprises in some categories. The biggest was "The Help" claiming the award for Best Ensemble Cast. No doubt some pundits will take this as an indication that the film has a shot at Best Picture, as this category is the closest thing SAG has to a Best Picture award. However, being the closest thing doesn't mean that it's equivalent to Best Picture.

When organizations like the Oscars award a film Best Picture, voters are taking everything into account: the acting, the cinematography, the music, the script, and so much more. The SAG Awards are concerned with the acting only and aren't taking all of these other factors into account. As strong as the praise has been for the performances in "The Help," all of these other areas of the film have enjoyed less praise. In some cases, the non-acting factors have endured criticism from reviewers like Dana Stevens of Slate.

The individual awards give, out by SAG to the actors were a bit less surprising, though there was one notable upset. Viola Davis of "The Help" beat out Meryl Streep for her role in "The Iron Lady." This pretty much makes the Oscar for Best Actress a race between these two performers. Streep already claimed a Golden Globe for her role, so both actresses are in a fairly strong position.

Christopher Plummer took the first award of the night for Best Supporting Actor thanks to his work in "Beginners." This puts Plummer well on the road to becoming the oldest actor to win an Oscar. Octavia Spencer took Best Supporting Actress for "The Help," a category she has all but locked up at the Oscars given how well her performance has been received. Finally, Jean Dujardin was awarded Best Actor for "The Artist," which sets him up as going head-to-head with George Clooney for "The Descendants." Given the SAG Awards outcome, however, it appears Dujardin has the upper hand.

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