Screen Actors Guild Award Nominees Out – Will It Be a Sweep Season?

Hot on the heels of this week's Golden Globe nominations, Hollywood woke up Thursday to more honors – with the announcement of the Screen Actors Guild Award nominees – which brought some obvious choices as well as a few surprises among the names from big screen and small.

While the already honored (by critics' groups) George Clooney is again off and running as a nominated actor of Up in the Air, and Meryl Streep received yet another nod for her leading role in Julie & Julia, the field of leading men also included Jeff Bridges, Crazy Heart; Colin Firth, A Single Man; Morgan Freeman, Invictus; and relative newcomer Jeremy Renner, The Hurt Locker

Streep's competition is made up of Sandra Bullock, The Blind Side; Helen Mirren The Last Station; Carey Mulligan An Education; and Gabourey Sidibe, Precious: Based on the Novel Push by Sapphire.

Female supporting actor nominees are Penélope Cruz, Nine; Vera Farmiga, and Anna Kendrick Up in the Air; Diane Kruger, Inglourious Basterds ; and Mo'Nique, Precious.

The male supporting honorees are Matt Damon, Invictus; Woody Harrelson, The Messenger; Christopher Plummer, The Last Station; Stanley Tucci, The Lovely Bones; and the Oscar favorite, Christoph Waltz, Inglourious Basterds.

Ensemble cast from a motion picture nominees are An Education, The Hurt Locker, Inglourious Basterds, Nine and Precious.

In the TV categories, the nominated ensemble casts of a comedy series are the stars of 30 Rock, Curb Your Enthusiasm, Glee, Modern Family and The Office. Dramatic series ensembles up for the award are the actors of The Closer, Dexter, The Good Wife, Mad Men and True Blood.

Nominees for outstanding performance by a male actor in a drama series are Simon Baker, The Mentalist; Bryan Cranston, Breaking Bad; Michael C. Hall, Dexter; Jon Hamm, Mad Men; and Hugh Laurie, House.

Because there was a tie in the category, the six female actor in a drama series nominees are Patricia Arquette, Medium; Glenn Close, Damages; Mariska Hargitay, Law & Order: Special Victims Unit; Holly Hunter, Saving Grace; Julianna Marguilies, The Good Wife; and Kyra Sedgwick, The Closer.

In the TV comedy honors, male nominees are Alec Baldwin, 30 Rock; Steve Carell, The Office; Larry David, Curb Your Enthusiasm; Tony Shalhoub, Monk; and Charlie Sheen, Two and a Half Men. Female nominees are Christina Applegate, Samantha Who?; Toni Collette, United States of Tara; Edie Falco, Nurse Jackie; Tina Fey, 30 Rock; and Julia Louis-Dreyfus, The New Adventures of Old Christine.

Exclusively devoted to honoring actors – the group's individual trophies are called The Actor – the SAG awards are also a primary bellwether for the Academy Awards, whose nominations will be announced February 2nd.

The two-hour 16th annual SAG Awards ceremony will be simulcast on TNT and TBS starting at 8:00 pm (ET) on Saturday, January 23rd.

At the ceremony, to take place at the Shrine Exposition Center in Los Angeles, TV's Golden Girl favorite (and animal-rights advocate), Betty White, will receive the group's 46th annual lifetime achievement award, "bestowed for outstanding achievement in fostering the finest ideals of the acting profession," according to the Guild.