Screen Actors Guild Awards: Parasite, Brad Pitt and Phoebe Waller-Bridge among winners

South Korean film Parasite has won the biggest award of the night at the Screen Actors Guild Awards.

It was a surprise win for Bong Joon Ho’s black comedy about two families, one rich and one poor, which won the prize for best ensemble cast in a movie, beating Once Upon A Time in Hollywood, The Irishman, Bombshell and Jojo Rabbit.

Other big winners on the night were Renee Zellweger and Joaquin Phoenix, while former husband and wife Brad Pitt and Jennifer Aniston both bagged awards too.

In TV, The Crown and The Marvellous Mrs Maisel both had double wins.

Black comedy Parasite continued its record-breaking run, becoming the first foreign-language film to win best motion picture cast at the SAGs.

Collecting the prize at the awards ceremony in Los Angeles, the film’s lead actor Song Kang Ho said through a translator: “Although the title is Parasite, I think the story is about co-existence and how we can all live together.

“But to be honoured with the best ensemble award, it occurs to me, maybe we haven’t created such a bad movie.

“I am so honoured to receive this award in front of such amazing actors that I admire, I will never forget this beautiful night.”

The SAGs, which celebrates both film and TV, is voted for by actors, musicians and journalists, and is one of the final major ceremonies before the Academy Awards.

As SAG guild members overlap with Academy Award voters, a win here is considered a strong bellwether for Oscar potential.

In the film categories, Joaquin Phoenix won best actor win for his portrayal of a troubled loner in controversial movie Joker, while Renee Zellweger did likewise by winning best actress for Judy.

Their wins mirrored the Golden Globe results earlier this month.

Accepting his award, Phoenix paid tribute to his Joker predecessor, saying: “I’m really standing here on the shoulders of my favourite actor Heath Ledger, so thank you and good night”.

Ledger won a posthumous Oscar for his 2008 turn as the Crown Prince of Crime, which tragically turned out to be his penultimate role.

Brad Pitt won outstanding supporting actor for his portrayal of an ageing stuntman in Once Upon A Time… In Hollywood and Laura Dern won the best supporting actress prize for Marriage Story.

Pitt was pictured with his ex-wife Jennifer Aniston backstage, as she accepted outstanding performance by a female actor in a drama series for The Morning Show.

The 56-year-old star joked about his love-life as he picked up the statue, referencing his “Tinder profile” before summarising his role in the film: “It was a difficult part, a guy who takes his shirt off, gets high and doesn’t get on with his wife. It was a big stretch, big.”

Aniston said she was “overwhelmed” to be taking home the prize, which marked Apple TV’s first SAG win.

She paid tribute to her co-star Reese Witherspoon, saying: “It took 20 years but we did it, finally.”

Phoebe Waller-Bridge took home yet another prize for Fleabag, adding to her Golden Globes, Critics’ Choice Awards and Emmy wins.

Taking to the stage to collect her gong for best female actor in a comedy series, she said: “At some point, it will all hit me and I will have a good old cry about it.

“Tonight as a Fleabag gang we will soak this up… in a room I never imagined I would be in.

“This whole thing really has been a dream and if I wake up tomorrow and discover it has been just that then thank you, it has been the most beautiful dream.”

She also alluded to the glamour and trappings of LA, joking that her make-up artist had drawn a six-pack onto her exposed midriff ahead of the show.

Despite Waller-Bridge’s win, Fleabag failed to take home best comedy series, a prize which went to Amazon’s The Marvellous Mrs Maisel.

The period comedy also took home a second prize, with Tony Shalhoub winning best actor in a comedy series.

Another British success on the night was The Crown, which won outstanding performance by an ensemble in a drama series, beating Game Of Thrones, Big Little Lies, The Handmaid’s Tale and Stranger Things.

Peter Dinklage won outstanding performance by a male actor in a drama series for his turn as Tyrion Lannister in Game of Thrones, which came to an end after eight seasons last year.

Robert De Niro was honoured with a lifetime achievement award, despite being snubbed in the best actor category.

The 76-year-old, who has starred in over 100 films, was presented his award by Leonardo DiCaprio.

He received a standing ovation, and as a vocal critic of Donald Trump, he made reference to the president in his acceptance speech.

“There’s right and there’s wrong. And there’s common sense and there’s abuse of power. As a citizen, I have as much right as anybody – an actor, an athlete, anybody else – to voice my opinion.

“And if I have a bigger voice because of my situation, I’m going to use it whenever I see a blatant abuse of power.”

With the Oscars just weeks away, many of the night’s successful actors will be hoping they can repeat their winning streak at the Academy Awards.

(c) Sky News 2020: Screen Actors Guild Awards: Parasite, Brad Pitt and Phoebe Waller-Bridge among winners