Timothée Chalamet Makes History at SAG Awards 2025 with Best Actor Win

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The Screen Actors Guild Awards gave movie buffs yet another taste of what to anticipate for the Oscars next month — and plenty of funny moments from Hollywood’s biggest names. The Screen Actors Guild — American Federation of Television and Radio Artists, known as SAG-AFTRA, held its 31st awards ceremony Sunday at the Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles. The event, which was streamed on Netflix, saw “Conclave” win the night’s top honor, best ensemble. Meanwhile, internet darling Timothée Chalamet took home best actor after coming up empty so far this awards season for his portrayal of Bob Dylan in “A Complete Unknown.” And Demi Moore won for best actress — further sparking Oscars buzz after her win at the Golden Globes in January and the Critics Choice Awards on Feb. 7.

Timothée Chalamet just made history as the youngest person ever to win Best Actor in a Leading Role at the SAG Awards, and his acceptance speech proves that in an industry built on the art of pretending, Timmy is as real as it gets. In case you’ve not been keeping up with the 2025 awards race, the 29-year-old’s win for his transcendent portrayal of Bob Dylan in A Complete Unknown came as somewhat of a surprise at last night’s ceremony — not only to fans and critics but to Timothée himself, whose shocked reaction said it all. Since the Golden Globes in January, Adrien Brody has solidified himself as the frontrunner and Timothée’s closest competitor in the run-up to the Oscars on March 2. However, Timmy prevailed at the SAG Awards, beating Adrien (who’s nominated for his performance in The Brutalist), along with Ralph Fiennes (for Conclave), Colman Domingo (for Sing Sing), and Daniel Craig (for Queer).

The following are some of the notable nominees and winners at the SAG Awards 2025:

• Best Actor: Timothée Chalamet for A Complete Unknown
• Best Actress: Demi Moore
• Best Ensemble: Conclave
• Best Supporting Actor: nominees included Adrien Brody for The Brutalist, Ralph Fiennes for Conclave, Colman Domingo for Sing Sing, and Daniel Craig for Queer

If you can believe it, this marks Timothée’s first-ever major award win for acting, and as he took to the stage, he certainly rose to the occasion — even if the onstage microphone didn’t. Hunched over the mic, Timmy began by thanking his mom before candidly laying his cards on the table: “I know the classiest thing would be to downplay the effort that went into this role and how much this means to me, but the truth is, this was five and a half years of my life. I poured everything I had into playing this incomparable artist, Mr. Bob Dylan, a true American hero, and it was the honor of a lifetime playing him.” As someone who watches a lot of awards shows, I can confidently say that a lot of A-list acceptance speeches feel like a PR-approved arrangement of the right “thank-yous” to the right people, with stars expressing just the right amount of gratitude — but not so much that they’d risk looking too hungry for accolades.

However, under the watch of his peers, Timothée put aside pretenses and made no secret of how much he wants, deserves, and strives for success. “I know we’re in a subjective business, but the truth is, I’m really in pursuit of greatness. I know people don’t usually talk like that, but I want to be one of the greats,” he said. Name-checking icons from Hollywood and beyond, he continued: “I’m inspired by the greats. I’m inspired by the greats here tonight. I’m as inspired by Daniel Day-Lewis, Marlon Brando, and Viola Davis as I am by Michael Jordan, Michael Phelps, and I want to be up there. So I’m deeply grateful. This doesn’t signify that, but it’s a little more fuel. It’s a little more ammo to keep going. Thank you so much.” Now, if people weren’t already pleased enough by his surprise win, Timothée’s refreshingly honest speech is also garnering all kinds of praise online — with many hailing the star for being totally and unashamedly authentic about how much he wants to win, both now and in the future.

Some also noted that it serves as a good lesson: Never be afraid to openly wish for success! Now, I might be a little biased, but Timothée’s pursuit of greatness is certainly well on its way. This year, he’s in two out of ten of the films nominated for Best Picture at the Oscars: A Complete Unknown and Dune: Part Two. And it’s not even the first time he’s achieved this feat, having done the same in 2018 (for Lady Bird and Call Me by Your Name) and 2022 (for Dune and Don’t Look Up). Light work. This year, Timothée also earned his second Oscar nomination for Best Actor. Although with Adrien Brody’s competitive run this awards season, it remains to be seen whether he’ll take the win — which would make him the youngest Best Actor winner in history, snatching the title from Adrien, of all people, who won the award 22 days before his 30th birthday in 2003.

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