Oscar Predictions 2015: How The SAG Awards Affected The Race For Every Major Category; 'Birdman' Gains An Edge

As the Oscar race continues to heat up, it’s looking more and more like a one-on-one showdown between “Birdman” and “Boyhood” for Best Picture. The latest skirmish took place Sunday at the 2015 Screen Actors Guild Awards, where “Birdman” may have gained an edge by taking home the biggest award of the night – Outstanding Cast in a Motion Picture. How did the SAG Awards affect the other big Oscar races?

The full list of winners can be viewed here. Below is a breakdown of how Sunday’s SAG Awards affected the race for the Oscars’ major categories:

Best Picture

Though “Birdman” and "Boyhood" have been squaring off at every major award show so far, “Birdman” had yet to win a Best Picture award over its rival. “Boyhood” won the Golden Globe for Drama, while “Birdman” lost the Golden Globe for Best Picture in a Comedy or Musical to "The Grand Budapest Hotel." "Bidman" once again fell short of “Boyhood” at the Critics’ Choice Awards, but that all changed over the weekend when the flick won Best Picture at the Producers Guild Awards Saturday and Outstanding Cast – the Best Picture equivalent – at the SAG Awards. With its recent wins, “Birdman” may be overtaking “Boyhood” in the hunt for Oscar gold.

Best Actor

“Birdman” may have been a big winner at the SAG Awards, but its lead actor, Michael Keaton, took a hit. After winning the Critics’ Choice award for Best Actor only a week ago, he lost out to Eddie Redmayne for Best Actor at the SAG Awards for Redmayne’s portrayal of Stephen Hawking in “The Theory of Everything.” Having won the Golden Globe for Best Actor in a Drama and now Best Actor at the SAG Awards – which has correctly predicted the Oscar race for the last 10 years – Redmayne becomes the new Oscar favorite.

Best Actress

No change here. Julianne Moore is cleaning up at awards shows this year for her role as a woman succumbing to Alzheimer’s disease in “Still Alice.” Moore won again at the SAG awards -- for Outstanding Actress -- and is perhaps the safest bet of the whole Oscars race.

Best Supporting Actor

Coming in second to Moore in the safest Oscar bets this year is J.K. Simmons for Best Supporting Actor for “Whiplash.” Simmons won the SAG Award for the category Sunday, and watching him try to come up with new things to say in his speeches at every awards show is getting pretty entertaining.

Best Supporting Actress

A few weeks ago this race was a bit of an unknown. However, after winning almost every major award for Best Supporting Actress – including the SAG Award Sunday – Patricia Arquette has emerged as the clear favorite in this category for "Boyhood."

Who will win Best Picture? Tweet your thoughts to @JaGarofaloTV.