Screen Actor’s Guild Awards 2012: Best And Worst Dressed

Reviews, Top Story

The Screen Actor’s Guilld Awards were on last night, an awards show that I usually enjoy watching. The actors are all excited to get to hang out together, and I love the little “and I’m an actor” intros they do at the beginning. And of course, I love watching red carpets.

The red carpet event on E! was a trainwreck. Seacrest wasn’t there, and Guiliana Rancic was able to make every single celebrity uncomfortable with her weird, probing, personal questions. The woman has no boundaries! Even the most gregarious celebrities looked a little freaked out, so you can only imagine how I cringed when she peppered poor, shy Michelle Williams with intimate questions.

Frankly, the whole thing was painful. I’m apparently a glutton for punishment though (or I just like making snarky tweets) because I did not opt to watch the show on mute. Anyway, let’s talk gowns.

The Highs

Ariel Winter, Julia Bowen, Sarah Hyland, Sofia Vergara

 The women of Modern Family killed it, didn’t they? Yes, I know Ariel Winter is only 14. But you know what? She’s very pretty and plays a nerd on TV and deserves to dress up fancy for these things. Sofia Vergara is getting a little predictable, but looked fantastic nonetheless. I think this might be the first time I’ve liked what Julie Bowen’s worn on a red carpet, and I thought Sarah Hyland looked beautiful as always.

Berenice Bejo, Viola Davis, Naya Rivera, Octavia Spencer

Viola Davis looked spectacular, right? Truly stunning. As for the other women in the collage? Good enough. Not on par with Viola, though.

Angelina Jolie, Stacy Keibler, Jayma Mays, Ashlee Simpson

I always find black a bit boring, but these women did it well. Angelina’s look was very well, Angelina, but she wore it well. Stacy Keibler has been fulfilling her duty as Clooney’s arm candy in all the right ways. Jayma Mays looked sparkly and beautiful. Now, who was surprised by Ashlee Simpson? I certainly was. She actually looked pretty good, and didn’t seem like a trainwreck. She was there as the date Lucky Luciano from Boardwalk Empire.

Dianna Agron, Emily Blunt, Melissa McCarthy, Natalie Portman, Michelle Williams, Kyra Sedgwick

My favorites here are Dianna Agron and Emily Blunt. I loved the sweet simplicity of Dianna’s look following her intricate, stunning Golden Globes gown, and I love that Emily Blunt wears color so often.

What do we think of this?

Rose Byrne

I’m pretty sure I’ve come to the conclusion that I like it. It’s daring, that’s for sure. But I think she pulls it off. I love her hair, too.

The Lows

Jessica Chastain, Kaley Cuoco, Zoe Saldana, Meryl Streep, Shailene Woodley

Oh, there are so many misses here. I love the color of Jessica’s dress, but the fit was weird. Kaley was too prom queen. Zoe was wearing a Hanes tank top under that gown, I do believe. Meryl – well, when did this become her signature look? I was chilly while watching the awards and had a blanket draped over my shoulders. Had someone handed me a belt, Meryl and I would have been twinsies. And that print on Shailene, well…it’s time to find a new stylist.

Tina Fey, Ellie Kemper, Busy Phillips, Kristen Wiig, Emma Stone, Maya Rudolph

Stop disappointing me, funny women! Tina Fey’s boobs look weirdly squished. Ellie Kemper is wearing a fancy swimsuit. Busy Phillips – well I don’t even know what to say about that. Kristen Wiig made all of Twitter mad with that choker, and could girlfriend wear some color once in a while? I always love Emma Stone, but I had this. And it was like Maya Rudolph wanted to look frumpy. I love all of these women. And I want better for them.

Lea Michele, Heather Morris, Amber Riley, Jenna Ushkowitz

(Most of) The Women of Glee. A few made the highs list – Dianna Agron, Jayma Mays and Naya Rivera – and I don’t have a photo of Jane Lynch, but she looked pretty good. But these women need to take some cues from their cast mates. Lea Michele is notorious for trying too hard, and this gown is the epitome of that. Too tight, slit too high. Her hair looked nice and shiny, though. Heather Morris is just a bad, bad scene. Amber Riley looks like a present that I hope came with a gift receipt. And Jenna, well she’s the worst of all. What is that?

The Show Itself

Now, as for the actual awards show, it was pretty good. There were some laughs (Martin Scorcese! Everyone drink!), and Dick van Dyke introduced Mary Tyler Moore, who was receiving a much-deserved lifetime achievement award.

Not all the awards (full list here) jived with what I would have chosen, though. Actors vote on these, so I think emotion and likable personalities play a huge role. The Help received honors that I don’t think are proportionate to the quality of the film, and I think we all know Betty White is not handed great material on Hot in Cleveland even though she herself is a very funny person.

As someone who’s not a big Boardwalk Empire fan I wasn’t thrilled to see the cast win in the drama category, and I was most certainly rooting for Kyle “Coach Taylor” Chandler for best actor. I hoped Parks and Recreation would beat out Modern Family for ensemble cast in a comedy even though, I know, they weren’t nominated. That was a crime.

Did you guys see the red carpet or the awards? What’s your take?


You can follow Jill at her blog, couchtimewithjill.com, or on Twitter @jillemader Jill has been an avid fan of TV since the age of two, when she was so obsessed with Zoobilee Zoo that her mother lied and told her it had been canceled. Despite that setback, she grew up to be a television aficionado and pop culture addict.