“Coda” the indie drama based on a deaf family won big awards at the 2022 SAG Awards ceremony last night. Troy Kotsur won in the best supporting actor category, becoming the first deaf actor to win an individual SAG Award, defeating big names such as Kodi Smit-McPhee, Ben Affleck, Bradley Cooper, and Jared Leto. The movie also won the best ensemble in a movie, competing against many other favorites on the list.
Marlee Matlin who plays the mother gave an acceptance speech saying, “This validates the fact that we deaf actors can work like anyone else. We look forward to more opportunities for deaf actors.”
Kotsur gave an incredibly heartfelt and emotional acceptance speech of his own, saying, “Now I feel I’m finally part of the family. I know you all are artists, and I know you all know what it’s like to be a starving actor. Back then I used to sleep in my car, I slept in my dressing room backstage, I couch-surfed and all of that. You feel me, right? So thank you so much.” His speech was also signed via an interpreter at the SAG Awards.
The family drama was bought at the Sundance film festival 2021 for $25m. The 28th Screen Actors Guild Awards saw many historic wins, and this was a top one on the list.
Jessica Chastain also beat several big names such as Nicole Kidman, Lady Gaga, and Olivia Colman to win the best lead female actor for her portrayal in “The Eyes of Tammy Faye.” She said in her acceptance speech, “It was a dream of mine to play Tammy Faye. I worked on the project for 10 years and I hope we made the story in a way that she would be proud of. I love my artistic family and my heart is with our international family who is all around the world right now and fighting for their safety and their freedom.” Both Lee Jung-Jae and Jung Ho-Yeon from the “Squid Game” won the best male and female actor in a drama series, as the first foreign language series picked up small screen awards at SAG Awards. best drama ensemble was awarded to “Succession” and best male actor in a leading role to Will Smith for his role in “King Richard.”
