SAG Awards: A night when politics trumped the prizes themselves

Anyone tuning in to the SAG Awards on Sunday thinking they might be escaping news headlines for a couple of hours was quickly disabused of that notion as winner after winner used the platform to speak out against President Trump’s immigration ban.

By Glenn WhippColumnist

Jan. 29, 2017 9 PM PT

“This immigrant ban is a blemish and is un-American,” said “Veep’s” Julia Louis-Dreyfus, the evening’s first award recipient, getting the ball rolling.

Later, life achievement honoree Lily Tomlin noted: “The doomsday clock has been moved up to two and a half minutes to midnight — and this award came just in the nick of time.”

Politics blended into the awards themselves, including the night’s biggest winner, “Hidden Figures,” a historical drama about the largely unknown black women who helped NASA launch the space program. The film’s predominantly black cast won for ensemble, and its message of women of color overcoming prejudice was a perfect fit with the mood at the Shrine, where the SAG Awards were presented.

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Emma Stone won for female actor in a leading movie role.

(Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)

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The cast of “Hidden Figures” accepts outstanding performance by a cast in a motion picture.

(Kevin Winter / Getty Images)

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John Lithgow wins male actor in a drama series for “The Crown.”

(Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)

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Claire Foy wins female actor in a drama series for “The Crown.”

(Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)

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Emma Stone

(Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)

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“Stranger Things” wins ensemble in a drama series.

(Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)

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Sofia Vergara and Naomie Harris

(Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)

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“Stranger Things” actor Finn Wolfhard leaps for joy as his show wins the ensemble award.

(Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)

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Lily Tomlin was the recipient of the Lifetime Achievement Award.

(Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)

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Lily Tomlin, right, accepts the life achievement award from Dolly Parton.

(Kevin Winter / Getty Images)

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Salma Hayek presents the award for outstanding performance by a male actor in a television movie or limited series.

(Chris Pizzello / Invision / Associated Press)

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William H. Macy won for male actor in a comedy series.

(Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)

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Denzel Washington wins for male actor in a leading role for “Fences.”

(Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)

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LOS ANGELES, CA - January 29, 2017â€” Bryan Cranston won the ACTOR for Male Actor in a Television Movie or Limited Series during the show at the 23rd Annual Screen Actors Guild Awards at the Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles, CA on Sunday, January 29, 2017. (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times) (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)

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Taraji P. Henson receive a hug during the show.

(Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)

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LOS ANGELES, CA - January 29, 2017â€”Mahershala Ali won for Male Actor in a Supporting Role for MOONLIGHT during the show at the 23rd Annual Screen Actors Guild Awards at the Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles, CA on Sunday, January 29, 2017. (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)

(Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)

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Jon Lithgow shares a laugh with Claire Foy.

(Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)

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Kate Hudson

(Kevin Winter / Getty Images)

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Lucas Hedges and Casey Affleck

(Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)

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The “Orange Is the New Black” cast gathers onstage after winning ensemble in a comedy series at the SAG Awards.

(Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)

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Actors Seth Gabel and Bryce Dallas Howard.

(Dimitrios Kambouris / Getty Images)

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Model Chrissy Teigen and recording artist John Legend.

(Dimitrios Kambouris / Getty Images)

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Emma Stone, left, chats with and Octavia Spencer.

(Dimitrios Kambouris / Getty Images for TNT)

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Recording artist Keith Urban, left, with actors Bryan Cranston and Robin Dearden

(Dimitrios Kambouris / Getty Images)

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Sarah Paulson, left, accepts from Michelle Dockery the award for performance by a female actor in a miniseries or television movie. Paulson won for “The People v. O.J. Simpson: American Crime Story.”

(Kevin Winter / Getty Images)

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Sarah Paulson addresses the audience after receiving her award for her performance in “The People v. O.J. Simpson.”

(Chris Pizzello / Invision / Associated Press)

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Viola Davis, left, and Denzel Washington introduce “Fences.”

(Chris Pizzello / Invision / Associated Press)

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Actor Viola Davis accepts the award for performance by a female actor in a supporting role for “Fences.”

(Kevin Winter / Getty Images)

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“Hidden Figures” actors Janelle Monae, from left, Octavia Spencer and Taraji P. Henson speak at the 23rd Screen Actors Guild Awards.

(Chris Pizzello / Invision / Associated Press)

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Actors Viggo Mortensen and Kathryn Hahn introduce their film, “Captain Fantastic.”

(Kevin Winter / Getty Images)

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Ashton Kutcher speaks onstage during the 23rd Screen Actors Guild Awards at the Shrine Auditorium.

(Kevin Winter / Getty Images)

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Julia Louis-Dreyfus accepts the award for performance by a female actor in a comedy series for “Veep.”

(Chris Pizzello / Invision / Associated Press)

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“Stranger Things” actors Noah Schnapp, Caleb McLaughlin, Finn Wolfhard and Gaten Matarazzo.

(Kevin Winter / Getty Images for TNT)

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“Westworld” actors Evan Rachel Wood and Leonardo Nam.

(Kevork Djansezian / Getty Images)

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Actors Meryl Streep and Viola Davis

(Kevork Djansezian / Getty Images)

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William H. Macy won for male actor in a comedy series for his work in “Shameless.”

(Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)

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Actors Kevin Spacey and Denzel Washington

(Kevin Winter / Getty Images)

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Last-minute preparations are made for the show.

(Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)

“This film is about unity,” “Hidden Figures” star Taraji P. Henson said of the movie, which tells the story of the black female mathematicians who helped put John Glenn into space. “When we come together as a human race, we win … love wins every time.”

Love wasn’t in the air when it came to Trump’s executive order that suspended entry of all refugees to the United States for 120 days, blocked Syrian refugees indefinitely and denied entry into the country for 90 days for citizens of seven predominantly Muslim countries. The controversy over the immigration ban continued to be front-and-center throughout the night.

In that respect, much like the previous two years when the #OscarsSoWhite controversy dominated the SAG Awards, this year’s ceremony was less about who won and more about what was said from the stage.

Some winners made explicit pleas (Sarah Paulson called for donations to the American Civil Liberties Union), some went on epic, ferocious rants (“Stranger Things” actor David Harbour, with an assist from costar Winona Ryder’s facial expressions) and others, such as “Moonlight’s” Mahershala Ali, related their own experiences about the importance of valuing people’s differences.

Said an emotional Ali, who won for supporting film actor: “My mother is an ordained minister. I’m a Muslim. She didn’t do backflips when I called her to tell her I converted 17 years ago. But I tell you now, you put things to the side, and I’m able to see her and she’s able to see me. We love each other. The love has grown.”

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Julia Louis-Dreyfus backstage at the 23rd Screen Actors Guild Awards at the Shrine in Los Angeles. She won for “Veep.”

(Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)

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Taraji P. Henson, Octavia Spencer, and Janelle Monae backstage at the 23rd Screen Actors Guild Awards at the Shrine. They won for “Hidden Figures.”

(Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)

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Ashton Kutcher and Julia Louis-Dreyfus backstage at the 23rd Screen Actors Guild Awards at the Shrine.

(Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)

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Ashton Kutcher and Julia Louis-Dreyfus backstage at the 23rd Screen Actors Guild Awards at the Shrine.

(Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)

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Ashton Kutcher and Julia Louis-Dreyfus backstage at the 23rd Screen Actors Guild Awards at the Shrine.

(Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)

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William H. Macy, who won for “Shameless,” and Gina Rodriguez backstage at the 23rd Screen Actors Guild Awards at the Shrine.

(Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)

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William H. Macy and Gina Rodriguez backstage at the 23rd Screen Actors Guild Awards at the Shrine.

(Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)

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The cast of “Orange Is the New Black” with Yael Stone and Uzo Aduba backstage at the 23rd Screen Actors Guild Awards at the Shrine. They won the award for comedy series ensemble.

(Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)

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Viggo Mortensen and Kathryn Hahn backstage at the 23rd Screen Actors Guild Awards at the Shrine. They were nominated for “Captain Fantastic.”

(Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)

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The cast of “Orange Is the New Black” backstage at the 23rd Screen Actors Guild Awards at the Shrine.

(Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)

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Gina Rodriguez and John Legend backstage at the 23rd Screen Actors Guild Awards at the Shrine.

(Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)

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Danielle Brooks of “Orange Is the New Black” backstage at the 23rd Screen Actors Guild Awards at the Shrine.

(Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)

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Elizabeth Rodriguez of “Orange Is the New Black” backstage at the 23rd Screen Actors Guild Awards at the Shrine.

(Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)

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Ashton Kutcher backstage at the 23rd Screen Actors Guild Awards at the Shrine.

(Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)

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Lin Tucci of “Orange is the New Black” backstage at the 23rd Screen Actors Guild Awards at the Shrine .

(Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)

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Backstage at the 23rd Screen Actors Guild Awards at the Shrine Auditorium.

(Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)

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SAG Awards winner Viola Davis (“Fences”) and presenter John Krasinski backstage at the 23rd Screen Actors Guild Awards at the Shrine.

(Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)

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SAG Award winner Viola Davis is seen from backstage.

(Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)

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SAG Award winner Mahershala Ali (as supporting actor for “Moonlight,” and again with the cast of “Hidden Fences”) is seen from backstage.

(Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)

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SAG Award winner Mahershala Ali takes the stage.

(Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)

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SAG Award winner Mahershala Ali is seen from backstage.

(Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)

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SAG Award winner Sarah Paulson (“The People v. O.J. Simpson: American Crime Story”) backstage.

(Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)

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SAG Award winner Sarah Paulson, right, and Michelle Dockery (a nominee with the cast of “Downton Abbey”) backstage.

(Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)

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SAG Award winner Sarah Paulson, right, embraces Michelle Dockery backstage.

(Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)

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Presenter Dolly Parton backstage.

(Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)

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SAG Award winner Sarah Paulson is seen from backstage.

(Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)

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SAG Award winner Sarah Paulson is seen from backstage.

(Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)

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SAG Award winner Sarah Paulson is seen from backstage.

(Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)

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SAG Award winner Bryan Cranston (“All the Way”) and presenter Salma Hayek are seen from backstage.

(Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)

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Lucas Hedges and Casey Affleck, nominees for “Machester by the Sea,” backstage.

(Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)

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The SAG life achievement award recipient Lily Tomlin backstage with Dolly Parton, her “9 to 5” costar, who introduced her at the ceremony.

(Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)

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Dolly Parton is seen from backstage.

(Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)

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Dolly Parton welcomes life achievement award recipient Lily Tomlin to the stage.

(Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)

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Lily Tomlin delivers her humor-laced life achievement award acceptance speech.

(Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)

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Riz Ahmed, a nominee for “The Night Of,” with Rashida Jones and Alia Shawkat backstage.

(Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)

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SAG Award winner Claire Foy (“The Crown”) backstage.

(Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)

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SAG Award winner Claire Foy (“The Crown”) backstage.

(Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)

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Alia Shawkat backstage.

(Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)

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Stage manager Valdez Flagg and Common backstage.

(Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)

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SAG award winnner John Lithgow (“The Crown”) and publicist Rosalind Jarrett Sepulveda backstage.

(Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)

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Alia Shawkat backstage.

(Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)

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Stage manager Valdez Flagg and Common backstage.

(Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)

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Emma Stone onstage after winning outstanding performance by an actress in a leading role for “La La Land.”

(Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)

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Emma Stone onstage after winning outstanding performance by an actress in a leading role for “La La Land.”

(Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)

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Emma Stone and presenter Jonah Hill after she won outstanding performance by an actress in a leading role in “La La Land,” as seen from backstage.

(Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)

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Emma Stone reacts after winning outstanding performance by an actress in a leading role for “La La Land.”

(Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)

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Matthew Modine and the cast of “Stranger Things” onstage after winning outstanding performance by an ensemble in a drama series.

(Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)

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Winona Ryder and the cast of “Stranger Things” react after winning outstanding performance by an ensemble in a drama series.

(Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)

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SAG Award winner Claire Foy won outstanding performance by a female actor in a drama series for “The Crown.”

(Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)

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SAG Award winner John Lithgow took the prize for outstanding performance by a male actor in a drama series for “The Crown.”

(Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)

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SAG Award winner John Lithgow is seen from backstage.

(Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)

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Riz Ahmed, Rashida Jones and Alia Shawkat backstage.

(Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)

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Brie Larson backstage.

(Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)

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Brie Larson backstage with stage manager Valdez Flagg.

(Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)

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Emma Stone reacts after winning outstanding performance by an actress in a leading role for “La La Land.”

(Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)

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Emma Stone, followed by Jonah Hill, reacts after winning outstanding performance by an actress in a leading role for “La La Land.”

(Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)

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Denzel Washington onstage after winning outstanding performance by an actor in a leading role for “Fences.”

(Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)

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Denzel Washington onstage after winning outstanding performance by an actor in a leading role for “Fences.”

(Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)

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Denzel Washington after winning outstanding performance by an actor in a leading role for “Fences.”

(Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)

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Denzel Washington after winning outstanding performance by an actor in a leading role for “Fences.”

(Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)

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Taraji P. Henson backstage after winning for outstanding performance by a cast in a motion picture for “Hidden Figures.”

(Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)

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“Hidden Figures” director Theodore Melfi, left, and actors Octavia Spencer, Kirsten Dunst, Taraji P. Henson and Janelle Monae celebrate backstage after winning for outstanding performance by a cast in a motion picture.

(Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)

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“Hidden Figures” writer-director Theodore Melfi, left, Octavia Spencer, Taraji P. Henson, and Janelle Monae backstage.

(Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)

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Taraji P. Henson seizes her SAG statuette backstage.

(Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)

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The director and cast of “Hidden Figures” celebrate backstage.

(Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)

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The director and cast of “Hidden Figures” celebrate backstage.

(Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)

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Octavia Spencer, center, and Taraji P. Henson celebrate backstage.

(Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)

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“Hidden Figures’ ” Theodore Melfi, Taraji P. Henson, Janelle Monae and Octavia Spencer celebrate backstage.

(Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)

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“Hidden Figures” cast members Aldis Hodge and Janelle Monae, who play a married couple in the film, celebrate the cast’s big win backstage.

(Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)

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Mehershala Ali holds his supporting actor (“Moonlight”) and motion picture cast (“Hidden Figures”) awards.

(Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)

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Janelle Monae from “Hidden Figures” backstage.

(Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)

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Octavia Spencer, Taraji P. Henson, and Janelle Monae from “Hidden Figures” backstage.

(Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)

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Kirsten Dunst, Octavia Spencer, Taraji P. Henson and Janelle Monae backstage..

(Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)

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Viola Davis squeezes through the crowded backstage.

(Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)

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Aldis Hodge speaks with “Hidden Figures” cast mate Taraji P. Henson backstage.

(Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)

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Janelle Monae, left, Octavia Spencer and Taraji P. Henson backstage.

(Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)

And you didn’t even have to win (or present) an award to get in on the action. “Scandal” actress Kerry Washington tweeted: “Whoa. Lotta truth telling here at #SAGAwards”

Whether the dialogue was appreciated or appropriate will be left to viewers’ discretion. Backstage, Bryan Cranston, honored for his portrayal of President Lyndon B. Johnson in HBO’s “All the Way,” said speaking out against something that “appears before you in a way that feels like oppression” is “up to the citizenry.”

“The collective of people coming together and talking about the issues as you’ve seen tonight — it’s alive,” Cranston said.

As for the awards themselves, if last year’s ceremony was, in the words of two-time winner Idris Elba, a moment of “diverse TV,” this year’s slate was all that and then some with three of the four individual prizes on the film side going to black actors (Ali, Denzel Washington and Viola Davis for “Fences”) and the aforementioned cast award going to “Hidden Figures.”

The “Hidden Figures” win gives the crowd-pleasing, hit movie a boost a month before the Oscars ceremony on Feb. 26. Best picture front-runner “La La Land” won the Producers Guild’s top honor Saturday night, and its headlining actress Emma Stone took the SAG Awards’ lead actress prize. Damien Chazelle’s musical wasn’t nominated in SAG’s cast category, as it is mainly centered on the romance between Stone’s aspiring actress and a jazz pianist played by Ryan Gosling.

Full coverage: 2017 Screen Actors Guild Awards features, news and photos »

Washington’s win for his towering turn as the charming, troubled and dialogue-devouring storyteller in “Fences” adds a wrinkle to the lead actor Oscar race. Previously, Casey Affleck won the Globe and countless critics prizes for “Manchester by the Sea.” But the actor has been dogged in recent weeks with media reports focusing on past allegations against him of sexual harassment.

Constance Wu, star of the ABC television comedy “Fresh Off the Boat,” took to Twitter shortly after Oscar nominations were announced, slamming voters who checked off Affleck’s name.

“He’s running for an award that honors a craft whose purpose is examining the dignity of the human experience & young women are deeply human,” she wrote.

Whether qualms over Affleck’s past had any impact — or if the 121,546 eligible SAG-AFTRA members who voted simply preferred Washington’s outsized acting over his inward turn — is difficult to know. (Or maybe it was simply Washington’s time. He was one of five actors with four SAG Awards nominations for lead actor in a film. The other four — Russell Crowe, Leonardo DiCaprio, Tom Hanks, Sean Penn — had won prizes.)

But Sunday’s win does give Washington momentum as we head into the awards season’s final lap. The last 12 actors to win SAG’s lead honor went on to take the Oscar.

That itself is enough to make Washington the favorite — even if, on this night of politics, he was one of the few who kept his expressions of gratitude on the traditional side — God, family and colleagues.

Times staff writer Yvonne Villarreal contributed to this report.

[email protected]

Twitter: @glennwhipp

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