‘Crash,’ Hoffman and Witherspoon Win SAG Awards

Philip Seymour Hoffman was named outstanding male movie actor for his portrayal of the famed novelist Truman Capote in “Capote� and Reese Witherspoon won as outstanding female lead movie actor for her portrait of the late country-western singer June Carter in the Johnny Cash biographical drama “Walk the Line� on Sunday night at the 12th annual Screen Actors Guild Awards.

Both won Golden Globes two weeks ago and have received numerous awards from critics’ groups this awards season. Although Academy Award nominations will not be announced until Tuesday, Hoffman’s and Witherspoon’s wins Sunday position them as front-runners for Oscar gold: Of the last 22 winners in the guild’s leading actor categories, 15 have gone on to win Oscars.

In something of an upset, “Brokeback Mountain� went home empty-handed, losing out for outstanding male actor, outstanding male actor in a supporting role, outstanding female actor in a supporting role and outstanding ensemble. To date, the drama about cowboys in love has been the award season’s darling.

Golden Globe winner Rachel Weisz was selected outstanding female actor in a supporting role for her performance as an activist in “The Constant Gardener.� Paul Giamatti was chosen outstanding male actor in a supporting role for his portrayal of a boxing manager in “Cinderella Man.�

The cast of “Crash,� the gritty look at racial relations in Los Angeles, was honored for outstanding ensemble in a theatrical motion picture.

On the television side, Felicity Huffman won as best female actor in a comedy series for ABC’s “Desperate Housewives.� Sean Hayes was named for the third time as best male actor in a comedy series for the NBC sitcom “Will & Grace.� Best ensemble for a drama series went to ABC’s “Lost,� while outstanding comedy ensemble went to “Desperate Housewives�

Sandra Oh, who won a supporting actress Golden Globe two weeks ago, picked up the award for best female actor in a drama series for ABC’s medical series “Grey’s Anatomy,� and Kiefer Sutherland won as best male actor for Fox’s thriller “24.�

After their performances won each of them an Emmy and a Golden Globe, Paul Newman and S. Epatha Merkerson won for lead actor in a TV movie or miniseries. Merkerson was named best female actor for HBO’s “Lackawanna Blues,� and Newman won as outstanding male actor for the pay-cable channel’s “Empire Falls.�

Former child star Shirley Temple Black was honored with a life achievement award.

The two-hour ceremony was held at the Shrine Exposition Hall in Los Angeles and was telecast simultaneously on TNT and TBS. Two randomly selected panels, totaling 4,200 SAG members, chose the nominees, with the entire membership of about 98,000 voting for the winners.