Superhero fliek Black Panther took the top award at the Screen Actors Guild (SAG) Awards on Sunday.The two leading Oscar nominees - Roma and The Favourite - were bypassed for the best cast ensemble, which included BlacKkKlansman, Crazy Rich Asians, Bohemian Rhapsody and A Star Is Born.
Although Black Panther wasn’t nominated for any individual award, it took home the award for best picture at the Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles.
It also won for best stunt ensemble.
Black Panther lead actor Chadwick Boseman, 41, said: “We know what it’s like to be told there isn’t a screen for you to be featured on, a stage for you to be featured on... We know what it’s like to be beneath and not above.
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“And that is what we went to work with every day.
“We knew that we could create a world that exemplified a world we wanted to see.
“We knew that we had something to give.”
The win puts Black Panther in the running for best picture at the Academy Awards where it is nominated for seven honours including best picture.
Rami Malek and Glenn Close took the lead acting categories.
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Close, 71, a seven-time nominee but never an Oscar winner, won the best actress for her performance in The Wife.
Malek, 37, beat contenders Christian Bale (Vice) and Bradley Cooper (A Star Is Born) for his performance in Bohemian Rhapsody.
As he did at the Globes, Malek dedicated his award to Queen lead singer, the late Freddie Mercury.
A surprise on the night was Emily Blunt’s win for best supporting actress for her role in the horror thriller A Quiet Place.
Best supporting actor in a film went to Mahershala Ali for his performance in Peter Farrelly’s interracial road trip Green Book.