Jodie Foster in 1996.Photo:SGranitz/WireImage
SGranitz/WireImage
Jodie Fosterwas surprised to realize she had won aScreen Actors Guild Awardin 1995 — because she didn’t know the awards existed.
“I first heard about my win the next morning,” she toldNetflix’s Tudumin an interview published Wednesday about the SAG Awards’30-year history.
“I’d never heard of the nomination,” recalled the actress, 61, who earned a SAG statuette for her leading performance in the movieNell. Learning about her nomination and win, she added, “was kind of a shock, as if someone had made a mistake.”
As Kathy Connell, a SAG Awards Committee founding member and former executive producer, told Tudum, the starry show wasn’t an awards season staple right out of the gate.
“People would say, ‘SAG awards, what SAG awards?’ It was so nerve-racking because we were throwing one of the biggest parties in Hollywood and we didn’t know if anybody would come," Connell said.
In addition to Foster, the inaugural SAG Award winners wereTom HanksforForrest Gump,Dianne WiestforBullets over BroadwayandMartin LandauforEd Wood. The ceremony was held at Stage 12 at Universal Studios in Los Angeles. Members ofSAG-AFTRAvoted upon the winners, as they still do today.
NYPD Bluestar Dennis Franz, who won SAG’s first Outstanding Male Actor in a Drama Series prize, recalled fitting the ceremony in between appearances atFrank Sinatra’s golf tournament alongsideFrasiernomineeKelsey Grammer.
“Honestly, when I first heard about the SAG Awards, my knee-jerk reaction was, ‘Oh, great. Just what we needed, another award show,’” Franz, 79, said. “But as I thought more about it, I thought, ‘This is really actors acknowledging other actors,’ and it seemed like a unique, good idea to me.”
Never miss a story — sign up forPEOPLE’s free daily newsletterto stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from juicy celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.
Jodie Foster in 2019.Kevork Djansezian/Getty
Kevork Djansezian/Getty
“Nellwas a performance that was life-changing for me personally but wasn’t necessarily a critics’ favorite,” said Foster. “It meant a lot that fellow actors from my very own guild felt moved enough to honor me at [the] first ever event.”
Jodie Foster and Nicolas Cage in 1996 at the 2nd annual Screen Actors Guild Awards.SGranitz/WireImage
Foster alsoappearedat the2019 SAG Awardsto presentBlack Panther’s cast the best ensemble prize — which she told Tudum is her “favorite category.”
“Yes, actors work in ensembles, and rarely is that aspect acknowledged,” she said of the award.
Foster is in contention once again for a SAG Award this year. At the upcoming ceremony, she is nominated a second time, in the supporting movie actress category for her work playingBonnie StollinNyad.
The 30th annual Screen Actors Guild Awards will stream live on Netflix on Saturday, Feb. 24, at 8 p.m. ET, from the Shrine Auditorium & Expo Hall in Los Angeles. SAG-AFTRAannounceda list of ceremony presenters that includesIdris Elba,Jessica Chastain,Erika Alexander,Emily Blunt,Fran DrescherandJennifer Aniston. The latter will presentBarbra Streisandwith this year’sSAG Life Achievement Award.
source: people.com
