The 2025 SAG Awards were a resounding success, all the way from the red carpet to the ceremony stage.
Television and film’s brightest stars gathered to recognize each other, flaunt their best style and simply kick back with their peers. The laidback energy resonated throughout the entire night, which featured minor goofs from Timothée Chalamet and Jessica Williams along with comical bits reuniting cast members from our favorite shows of the past. And, despite our best efforts, Kristen Bell’s Frozen-inspired opening monologue is still stuck in our heads.
Even in the levity, there were poignant moments during the show, including Jane Fonda’s powerful acceptance speech for her lifetime achievement award. Ahead, see all the highs, lows and hilarious flubs from the 2025 SAG Awards.
Simply the Best
Julia Louis-Dreyfus presented the life achievement award to the “absolutely peerless” Jane Fonda as the entire auditorium gave the legendary 9 to 5 actress a standing ovation.
In her all-encompassing acceptance speech, she talked about her lengthy career, her belief in unions and the need for empathy.
“Make no mistake, empathy is not weak or ‘woke’ — and by the way, ‘woke’ just means you give a damn about other people,” Fonda said. “Back to empathy: A whole lot of people are gonna be really hurt by what is happening; what is coming our way.”
She continued, “And even if they are of a different political persuasion, we need to call upon our empathy and not judge, but listen from our hearts, and welcome them into our tent. Because we are gonna need a big tent to resist successfully what’s coming at us.”
Best Color of the Night: Glinda Pink
Several actresses looked pretty in pink on the red carpet, including Millie Bobby Brown, Fran Drescher, Sofia Carson and Glinda herself, Ariana Grande! Even if Wicked didn’t take home any awards at the ceremony, it definitely gave the color pink its best PR since Barbie.
Worst Night for Parents Sick of ‘Frozen’
Kristen Bell kicked off the night with every parents’ nightmare: an actor-themed rendition of “Do You Want to Build a Snowman?” It’s a melody that would wake kids from their slumber and draw them to the television like Frozen zombies.
Best Use of a Flask
The 2025 SAG Awards paid tribute to a show near and dear to many actors’ hearts, since it gave them some of their earliest roles: Law & Order! The Bear‘s Liza Colón-Zayas revealed that she had played six characters in six different episodes of the police procedural, while Tony Hale was shocked to find out that he was in not one, but two episodes.
Presenters Colman Domingo and Keke Palmer dared everybody in the room to drink if they had ever guest-starred in a Law & Order series, prompting celebrities like Leighton Meester, Zoe Saldaña and more to take a sip. Domingo whipped out a flask from his coat, and we have to say, this is probably the snazziest use of a flask ever.
Worst Night for Sitting Down
Danielle Deadwyler was red all over for the SAG Awards, arriving in a three-tiered custom Louis Vuitton gown. But the question on everyone’s mind is, “How are you going to sit down in that?”
“You don’t sit, you stand,” the actress told PEOPLE on the red carpet.
Oops!…She Wore It Again
Karen Pittman glowed on the red carpet in a black-and-yellow Carolina Herrera gown — but Joey King had just worn the exact same dress to last year’s Academy Museum Gala.
Best ‘Brat’ on the Carpet
Timothée Chalamet is known for his one-of-a-kind red carpet style — and his get-up for the SAG Awards was no different. The star, who won outstanding performance by a male in a leading role for A Complete Unknown, wore a neon “brat” green shirt under his leather look, and we’re going to be thinking about it all the time.
Worst Night to Pick Up an Award — Literally
Several actors commented on the weight of “The Actor” statuette throughout the night, starting with Kieran Culkin riffing during his speech that the award was “incredibly heavy.”
Shōgun‘s Anna Sawai, The Penguin‘s Colin Farrell and The Substance‘s Demi Moore all corroborated Culkin’s assessment as they gave their acceptance speeches.
Best Prom Inspo
If you’re looking for matching outfits to wear with your prom date, look no further than Jonathan Scott and Zooey Deschanel’s contrasting monochrome outfits. The actress sported a black Giorgio Armani gown with a white tuxedo bib, while Scott looked dapper in a white jacket with black slacks and a bowtie.
Worst Scheduling Conflict
Unfortunately, we weren’t blessed with seeing Jonathan Bailey’s face at the 2025 SAG Awards due to the actor being booked and busy. He’s currently in London starring in a production of Richard II at the Bridge Theatre, but we’re holding out for an appearance next week at the Oscars.
Worst Time for a Light Snack
Retelling her acting journey for the SAG Awards’ “I Am an Actor” tradition, Jessica Williams had to pause to jokingly scold her Shrinking costar Harrison Ford for munching on some crackers during her monologue.
“I told him to turn away! Don’t look!” she said after the room laughed at Ford eating the table’s snacks on-camera.
Most Oops, We Should Have Rehearsed!
As A Complete Unknown‘s stars presented the film for their outstanding performance by a cast in a motion picture nomination, Chalamet had a minor mix-up and suggested the foursome could have used a few run-throughs of the script.
“As David Lynch once said about Bob Dylan, he tapped into some kind of vein and he keeps on keeping on,” the actor began.
Not realizing it was still his turn to speak, Chalamet let the silence linger before continuing with a laugh, “A Complete Unknown traces that vein — should have done a rehearsal — that vein back to Greenwich Village, where the story of rock’s legendary poet begins.”
Most Oops Sound System Interruption
In the middle of Fonda’s acceptance speech, a soundbite accidentally played over the audio system, but the actress wasn’t fazed. She recovered with her quick wit, quipping, “I can conjure voices!” A true industry legend.
Most Oops Missed Delivery
While chatting with PEOPLE and Entertainment Weekly, Sheryl Lee Ralph said that despite her subscription to PEOPLE’s print magazine, the only issue she never received was the one with her on the cover. We promise we’re on it, Sheryl!
Best Night for TV Show Reunions
This year’s ceremony was like a candy shop for TV fanatics. The X-Files‘ Gillian Anderson and David Duchovny presented outstanding performance by an ensemble in a drama series, and their onstage chemistry reminded everyone that they “still got it.” New Girl‘s Zooey Deschanel and Max Greenfield reminisced about their days in the Los Angeles loft and joked about costar Lamorne Morris’ recent success.
Meanwhile, Bell, the iconic voice of Gossip Girl, reunited with the series’ star Leighton Meester to spoof the rumor blog’s posts. The host then had a moment with her Nobody Wants This costar — and Meester’s husband — Adam Brody, poking fun at their viral kiss.
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