Cuba Gooding Jr. and Jennifer Lawrence Cate Blanchett Kerry Washington Mariah Carey and Nick Cannon James Marsden Emilia Clarke From left, Tom Hanks, Emma Thompson and Rita Wilson Sandra Bullock Sarah Hyland Julie Bowen Matthew McConaughey and Camila Alves Jennifer Garner Bradley Cooper Tina Fey Julia Louis-Dreyfus Aaron Paul Sofía Vergara Lupita Nyong'o, left, and Emma Thompson Abigail Breslin Julia Roberts Amy Adams Amanda Peet Matt Damon and his wife, Luciana Giselle Blondet Maria Menounos Oprah Winfrey Kathy Griffin Rita Moreno and Morgan Freeman Paris Barclay June Squibb and Jesse Tyler Ferguson Natalie Dormer Ty and Holly Burrell Jared Leto and his mother, Constance Leto Carice Van Houten Dean Norris Morena Baccarin Paul Sparks Sarah Paulson Anna Gunn Anna Gunn's "Breaking Bad" clutch Elisabeth Rohm Ariel Winter JoBeth Williams Anna Chlumsky Hannah Simone Renee Bargh Rocsi Diaz Thea Andrews Mario Lopez Alex Hudgens Stuart Brazell Shaun Robinson Kelly Osbourne Nancy O'Dell Giuliana Rancic Ross Mathews - NEW: "American Hustle" beats "12 Years a Slave," others to win top SAG Awad
- NEW: Matthew McConaughey, Cate Blanchett also win
- "Modern Family" wins fourth straight SAG Award for comedy series
- "Breaking Bad" wins for drama series
(CNN) -- "American Hustle" has stepped up its game.
The comedic film, loosely based on the Abscam scandal of the late '70s, received just two nominations at the 20th Annual Screen Actors Guild Awards Saturday night, but it won the big one: outstanding performance by a cast in a motion picture.
Star Bradley Cooper, practically yelling his approval, paid tribute to director David O. Russell for the film.
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"Hustle" and "12 Years a Slave" are among the leading Oscar nominees, and at the SAG Awards the two films faced off for outstanding ensemble -- the SAG Awards' equivalent of Oscar's best picture. Last week, "American Hustle" won the Golden Globe for best comedy or musical film; "12 Years" took home that award for best drama.
Gaining entrance to the Screen Actors Guild is a point of pride for actors, and the roles they take on to get their first card are often quirkier than you'd think. For example, Kerry Washington earned her SAG card with ... How these stars got their SAG cards
ABC's 1994 after-school special, 'Magical Make-Over'
Jennifer Lawrence earned her SAG card with ...
A promo for MTV's 'My Super Sweet 16'
Mayim Bialik earned her SAG card with ...
A role on the '80s TV series 'Beauty and the Beast'
Chiwetel Ejiofor earned his SAG card with ...
A role in 1997's 'Amistad'
Tom Hanks landed his SAG card with ...
The TV series 'Bosom Buddies' (1980-82)
Sarah Paulson earned her SAG card with ...
A 1994 episode of 'Law & Order'
Claire Danes earned her SAG card with ...
A 1991 pilot called 'Dudley'
Lupita Nyong'o earned her SAG card with ...
2014 SAG nominee '12 Years A Slave'
How these stars got their SAG cards Outstanding performance by a cast in a motion picture: "American Hustle" Outstanding performance by a male actor in a leading role: Matthew McConaughey, "Dallas Buyers Club" Outstanding performance by a female actor in a leading role: Cate Blanchett, "Blue Jasmine" Outstanding performance by a male actor in a supporting role: Jared Leto, "Dallas Buyers Club" Outstanding performance by a female actor in a supporting role: Lupita Nyong'o, "12 Years a Slave" Outstanding performance by a male actor in a television movie or miniseries: Michael Douglas, "Behind the Candelabra" Outstanding performance by a female actor in a television movie or miniseries: Helen Mirren, "Phil Spector" Outstanding performance by a male actor in a drama series: Bryan Cranston, "Breaking Bad" Outstanding performance by a female actor in a drama series: Maggie Smith, "Downton Abbey" Outstanding performance by a male actor in a comedy series: Ty Burrell, "Modern Family" Outstanding performance by a female actor in a comedy series: Julia Louis-Dreyfus, "Veep" Outstanding performance by an ensemble in a drama series: "Breaking Bad" Outstanding performance by an ensemble in a comedy series: "Modern Family" Outstanding action performance by a stunt ensemble in a motion picture: "Lone Survivor" Outstanding action performance by a stunt ensemble in a comedy or drama series: "Game of Thrones" 2014 SAG Awards: Winners Rita Moreno sings at SAG awards "12 Years," about a freeman forced into slavery in 19th-century America, led all SAG Awards nominees with four nominations.
SAG Awards winners list
Other winners established themselves as Oscar front-runners as well.
Matthew McConaughey of "Dallas Buyers Club" took home the Screen Actors Guild Award for outstanding performance by a male actor in a leading role Saturday night. He plays an AIDS-afflicted man in the film.
He won the Golden Globe for the same role last week.
Cate Blanchett, who also won a Globe, won the SAG Award for lead female actor.
For Oscar watchers, the awards offer a key indicator of which way the wind is blowing among members of the Motion Picture Academy. The actors' branch is the largest of any of the academy's voting blocs.
The Academy Awards are scheduled for Sunday, March 2.
2014 Oscar nominations announced
Winfrey: 'We do movies to move people'
J-Law: Dress is 'squeezing my breasts' Outstanding performance by a male actor in a leading role: Chiwetel Ejiofor "12 Years a Slave" (pictured); Tom Hanks "Captain Phillips;" Matthew McConaughey "Dallas Buyers Club;" Bruce Dern "Nebraska;" Forest Whitaker "Lee Daniels' The Butler." Outstanding female actor in a leading role: Sandra Bullock "Gravity" (pictured); Cate Blanchett "Blue Jasmine;" Judi Dench "Philomena;" Meryl Streep "August: Osage County;" Emma Thompson "Saving Mr. Banks." Outstanding male actor in a supporting role: James Gandolfini "Enough Said" (pictured); Barkhad Abdi "Captain Phillips;" Daniel Brühl "Rush;" Michael Fassbender "12 Years a Slave;" Jared Leto "Dallas Buyers Club." Outstanding female actor in a supporting role: Jennifer Lawrence "American Hustle" (pictured); Lupita Nyong'o "12 Years a Slave;" Julia Roberts "August: Osage County;" June Squibb "Nebraska;" Oprah Winfrey "Lee Daniels' The Butler." Outstanding cast in a motion picture: "Lee Daniels' The Butler" (pictured); "12 Years a Slave," "American Hustle," "August: Osage County," "Dallas Buyers Club." Outstanding male actor in a drama series: Peter Dinklage "Game of Thrones" (pictured); Steve Buscemi "Boardwalk Empire;" Bryan Cranston "Breaking Bad;" Jeff Daniels "The Newsroom;" Kevin Spacey "House of Cards." Outstanding female actor in a drama series: Kerry Washington "Scandal" (pictured); Claire Danes "Homeland;" Anna Gunn "Breaking Bad;" Jessica Lange "American Horror Story: Coven;" Maggie Smith "Downton Abbey." Outstanding ensemble in a drama series: "Breaking Bad" (pictured); "Boardwalk Empire," "Downton Abbey," "Game of Thrones," "Homeland." Outstanding male actor in a comedy series: Alec Baldwin "30 Rock" (pictured); Jason Bateman "Arrested Development;" Ty Burrell "Modern Family;" Don Cheadle "House of Lies;" Jim Parsons "The Big Bang Theory." Outstanding female actor in a comedy series: Julia Louis-Dreyfus "Veep" (pictured); Mayim Bialik "The Big Bang Theory;" Julie Bowen "Modern Family;" Edie Falco "Nurse Jackie;" Tina Fey "30 Rock." Outstanding ensemble in a comedy series: "The Big Bang Theory" (pictured); "30 Rock," "Arrested Development," "Veep," "Modern Family." Outstanding male actor in a TV movie or miniseries: Michael Douglas "Behind the Candelabra" (pictured); Matt Damon "Behind the Candelabra;" Jeremy Irons "The Hollow Crown;" Rob Lowe "Killing Kennedy;" Al Pacino "Phil Spector." Outstanding female actor in a TV movie or miniseries: Angela Bassett "Betty & Coretta" (pictured); Helena Bonham Carter "Burton and Taylor;" Holly Hunter "Top of the Lake;" Helen Mirren "Phil Spector;" Elisabeth Moss "Top of the Lake." Photos: 2014 SAG nominees Julia Roberts causes barricade crush Lupita Nyong'o and Jared Leto led off the awards by winning prizes for supporting female actor and supporting male actor, respectively.
Leto, who stars as a transgender woman in "Dallas Buyers Club," paid tribute to those who have been victims of AIDS, "that terrible disease."
Nyong'o, who plays a slave terrorized by a plantation owner in "12 Years a Slave," won over competition that included Oprah Winfrey ("Lee Daniels' The Butler") and Jennifer Lawrence ("American Hustle").
Winfrey addressed the controversy about not being nominated for an Oscar with CNN's Nischelle Turner on the red carpet.
After praising all the other supporting actress nominees, she pointed out that "The Butler" -- a box-office success -- has had an impact.
"We don't do movies to get awards," she said. "We do movies to move people."
Rita Moreno accepted the Screen Actors Guild's Life Achievement Award on Saturday night.
She and presenter Morgan Freeman fell into their old "Electric Company" roles, pronouncing out "SAG-AFTRA."
Then Moreno got serious.
"It's early in the third act of my life," the 82-year-old Moreno said, and then went into a snippet of "This Is All I Ask": "Let the music play as long as there's a song to sing / And I will stay younger than spring."
'Breaking Bad,' 'Modern Family' win TV honors
Like the Globes, the SAG Awards also nominate television performers.
Nominees for ensemble in a drama were "Boardwalk Empire," "Breaking Bad," "Downton Abbey," "Game of Thrones" and "Homeland."
"Modern Family" won comedy series ensemble. It's the show's fourth straight SAG Award.
"Veep's" Julia Louis-Dreyfus and "Modern Family's" Ty Burrell won SAG Awards for their performances in TV comedies. Michael Douglas ("Behind the Candelabra") and Helen Mirren ("Phil Spector") also took home trophies.
"Breaking Bad" won drama series ensemble and star Bryan Cranston took home the award for male actor in a drama.
Members of the cast of "Downton Abbey" knew what was coming. Before the show, they responded in unison when asked who was going to win.
" 'Breaking Bad,' " they told CNN.
But "Downton's" Maggie Smith did win for female actor in a drama series.
Special coverage: Awards season 2014
For performers, the Screen Actors Guild Awards represent recognition from their peers. The trophy is even called "the Actor."
But the red carpet gave those performers some challenges.
Sarah Paulson, who was nominated as part of the ensemble with "12 Years a Slave," was dressed in a somewhat flowy white dress. Complimented on the look, she could only laugh.
"(People will say), what's with your weird princess dress?" she said.
And Lawrence had the line of the night for every person who's ever had to get uncomfortable to look good.
Her Dior couture gown, she said, was "squeezing my breasts into my armpits."
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