After years of being snubbed by the holy trinity of film award organizations (Golden Globe, SAG, and the Oscars), it may finally be Will Smith’s time in the entertainment industry’s award circuit. The 28th Annual Screen Actors Guild Awards honored Smith with the “Actor for Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Leading Role” award at the Hollywood ceremony that took place on Sunday (Feb. 27).
The defining moment of Smith’s career resulted from his leading role as Richard Williams, the father of world famous tennis players Venus and Serena Williams in the biopic King Richard.
An emotional Smith showed intense excitement, leaping from his seat to accept the SAG award as his peer Denzel Washington gave him a standing ovation. A long way from his acting days as The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, Smith nabbed the win in a category filled with highly talented actors Benedict Cumberbatch for The Power of the Dog, Denzel Washington for The Tragedy of Macbeth, Andrew Garfield for tick, tick…Boom!, and Javier Bardem for Being the Ricardos.
“Richard Williams is a dreamer like no one you’ve ever known,” said a teary-eyed Smith during his acceptance speech. “He has a power of belief that borders on insanity and sometimes tips over the border, which is absolutely necessary to take something from impossible to possible.”
The bubbly Pursuit of Happyness actor continued to express his gratitude towards his co-stars Aunjanue Ellis, Saniyya Sidney, and Demi Singleton. Smith continued his glorious speech backstage during the SAG-AFTRA Zoom press conference.
“I definitely think that there is a certain amount of naivety, there’s a certain amount of insanity. But, you have to believe something that’s not yet true — and you have to believe it powerfully even though it doesn’t exist and even though the universe hasn’t opened the door for the thing to enter the world yet, and you have to believe it fully. You know, this is a thought universe, so I think it’s really critical to be able to dream wildly even if it’s not something that people view as realistic.”
Smith has already won top honors for the King Richard role at the Golden Globes, NAACP Image Awards, and the African-American Film Critics Association.
The Bel-Air executive producer is currently nominated for “Best Leading Actor” by the BAFTA Awards, taking place March 13, and “Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role” by an all-female hosted Academy Awards taking place March 27.
