Jessica Gunning couldn’t contain her excitement as she took home her first Screen Actors Guild (SAG) Award on Sunday night.
The 38-year-old actress picked up the Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Television Movie or Limited Series accolade for her portrayal of Martha in the critically acclaimed Netflix series Baby Reindeer.
She began her acceptance speech by sweetly paying tribute to her fellow nominees, Kathy Bates (The Great Lillian Hall), Cate Blanchett (Disclaimer), Jodie Foster (True Detective: Night Country), Lily Gladstone (Under The Bridge), and Cristin Milioti (The Penguin).
‘Wow, thank you so much. Wow. I feel like such a lucky bunny to even be in this room, let alone be nominated or up here, honestly,’ she told the audience.
She continued: ‘When I first started acting, I had an office job alongside acting for about eight years. It’s a very geeky thing to admit but in the mornings I used to go into work and look at a PowerPoint presentation, it was like a positive thinking vision board of all the things that I wanted to do and the people I wanted to meet or work with.’
Gunning proceeded to reveal that Blanchett, Foster, and Bates ‘were on that vision board,’ which made being ‘listed amongst them today’ even more surreal.
Jessica Gunning couldn’t contain her excitement as she took home her first Screen Actors Guild (SAG) Award on Sunday night
The star also went to give shout-outs to Gladstone and Milioti, who she said ‘gave performances that absolutely knocked’ her ‘socks off’ before explaining how much it meant to her to be nominated alongside such a talented group of women.
Gunning went on to pay tribute to those who had worked with her on Baby Reindeer, including creator and co-star Richard Gadd.
Read MoreEXCLUSIVE Baby Reindeer star Jessica Gunning shares hopes of working with ‘idol’ Kathy Bates 
‘Thank you to everybody involved in Baby Reindeer for changing my life, thank you to Richard Gadd for making my dreams come true, I will never ever forget Baby Reindeer or playing the part of Martha,’ she raved. ‘Thank you to my team and my family back home, I love you and cannot wait to celebrate with you.’
She concluded her speech by saying: ‘Honestly, genuinely, this means the world to me so thank you so much.’
Jessica made a splash for herself last year in Baby Reindeer, which became a runaway sensation upon its debut in Netflix and won six Emmys.
When she won this Saturday at the Independent Spirit Awards, she remarked from the stage that the rapturous response to the show felt like a ‘crazy dream.’
She noted that she had worked in the UK for 17 years before becoming a name in America thanks to her performance as Martha in Baby Reindeer.
During her speech, she thanked her co-star Richard Gadd, who also created the series, based on his one-man show about his life.
The 38-year-old actress picked up the Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Television Movie or Limited Series accolade for her portrayal of Martha in the critically acclaimed Netflix series Baby Reindeer
During her speech, Gunning also paid tribute to those who had worked with her on Baby Reindeer, including creator and co-star Richard Gadd (seen with Gadd after her win)
‘I would wait another 17 years if I had to to play Martha again,’ said Jessica. ‘I’ll never forget her, or you, or any of this time. I’ve loved every second of it, and I’m incredibly proud that you chose me to be your Martha.’
Baby Reindeer had a banner night at the Independent Spirit Awards, where Jessica’s co-stars Richard Gadd and Nava Mau were also honored for their performances.
A UK law graduate called Fiona Harvey has claimed to be the basis for Martha and is currently suing Netflix for $120 million in defamation over the character’s portrayal.
Following the Independent Spirit Awards on Saturday, she told DailyMail.com that Kathy Bates was one of her role models and that she ‘love to work with’ her someday.
The SAG Awards were held Sunday night at the Shrine Auditorium & Expo Hall in Los Angeles
‘I have had the honor of having chance to meet Kathy a few times now, at the Golden Globes. She’s also one of my absolute idols,’ the West Yorkshire-born actress said. ‘I’ve admired her for very long time, so if ever I cross paths to work with her would be great.’
The SAG Awards were held Sunday night at the Shrine Auditorium & Expo Hall in Los Angeles.
Demi Moore cemented her comeback status when she won Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Leading Role, while Timothée Chalamet shocked awards prognosticators when he won the Male Actor in a Leading Role award for his Bob Dylan biopic A Complete Unknown.
Demi beat out Pamela Anderson, who was hoping for her own comeback win for Gia Coppola’s The Last Showgirl, after earning her first-ever SAG nomination.
Conclave also continued its awards-season success by winning the final honor of the night for Cast in a Motion Picture for the papal-selection drama Conclave.
The annual ceremony, which was hosted by Nobody Wants This star Kristen Bell, was streamed live on Netflix for the second year in a row.
It was presented by the Screen Actors Guild–American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (SAG-AFTRA) and bills itself as the ‘only televised awards ceremony to exclusively honor actors.’
During the hours-long ceremony, 13 awards were handed for ‘outstanding performances’ in both film and TV that were decided on by SAG-AFTRA’s 130,000+ members.
Demi Moore — who is on track for an Oscar win — snagged a best actress nod for her lead role in the body horror film The Substance, which has already earned her a Golden Globe and a Critics Choice Award
She starred in the satirical body-horror film The Substance (pictured)
Timothée Chalamet shocked awards prognosticators when he won the Male Actor in a Leading Role award for his Bob Dylan biopic A Complete Unknown
He said he aspired to greatness in a refreshing acceptance speech
The musical blockbuster Wicked — based on the Tony Award-winning Broadway musical — led the nominations for SAG’s top film honors with five nods, but the film and its stars Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande were completely shut out
According to the official website, the SAG Awards have ‘the largest voting body on the awards circuit.’
Unlike prior years, the official SAG Awards nomination ceremony was canceled for 2025 in wake of the devastating Los Angeles wildfires that broke out in January.
Instead, SAG-AFTRA shared the nominations online.
The musical blockbuster Wicked — based on the Tony Award-winning Broadway musical — led the nominations for SAG’s top film honors with five nods, but the film and its stars Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande were completely shut out.
Ariana kept a brave face as the award for Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Supporting Role went to Zoe Saldaña for Emilia Pérez.
That film’s awards-season hopes cratered after racist and Islamophobic tweets — with some quite recent — from its star Karla Sofía Gascón were discovered, but Zoe managed to triumph anyway.
Selena Gomez wasn’t nominated for the film individually and missed out on its ensemble nomination after Conclave’s win, but she still got a boost when she accepted the best comedy ensemble award for Only Murders In The Building, which had a surprise win over compeтιтors The Bear, Abbott Elementary, Hacks and Shrinking.
Anora had high hopes ahead of the SAG Awards, but it also went home empty-handed despite a string of wins in recent weeks that boosted its odds for the upcoming Academy Awards.
Ariana Grande kept a brave face as the award for Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Supporting Role went to Zoe Saldaña for Emilia Pérez
Emilia Pérez’s awards-season hopes cratered after racist and Islamophobic tweets — with some quite recent — from its star Karla Sofía Gascón were discovered, but Zoe managed to triumph anyway
Screen Actors Guild Awards 2025: Winners at a glance
MOVIES
Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Leading Role: Timothée Chalamet — A Complete Unknown
Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Leading Role: Demi Moore — The Substance
Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Supporting Role: Kieran Culkin — A Real Pain
Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Supporting Role: Zoe Saldaña – Emilia Pérez
Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture: Conclave
Outstanding Performance by a Stunt Ensemble in a Motion Picture: The Fall Guy
TELEVISION
Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Television Movie or Limited Series: Colin Farrell — ‘The Penguin’
Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Television Movie or Limited Series: Jessica Gunning – ‘Baby Reindeer’
Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Drama Series: Hiroyuki Sanada – ‘Shōgun’
Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Drama Series: Anna Sawai – ‘Shōgun’
Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Comedy Series: Martin Short – ‘Only Murders In The Building’
Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Comedy Series: Jean Smart — ‘Hacks’
Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series — ‘Shōgun’
Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Comedy Series — ‘Only Murders In The Building’
Outstanding Performance by a Stunt Ensemble in a TV series — ‘Shōgun’
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For the TV categories, Shogun was the big winner.
It’s star Hiroyuki Sanada took home the lead actor award, while Anna Sawai gave an emotional speech when she won the supporting actress prize.
The show also nabbed the best ensemble award, as well as the best stunt cast honor.
Milioti, who starred in The Penguin, lost to Gunning.
Her costar Colin Farrell was luckier, and he came out on top ahead of Baby Reindeer’s Richard Gadd and Ripley’s Andrew Scott for the supervillain origin story.
Host Kristen Bell was also among the night’s nominees, as she received a best female actor in a comedy series nod for Netflix’s Nobody Wants This alongside The Bear’s Ayo Edebiri and Hacks’ Jean Smart.
Smart proved to be unstoppable and took home the award, though she wasn’t able to attend the ceremony.
Stunt crews that have worked on the latest and greatest TV shows and movies are were also being recognized at the 2025 ceremony.
For the TV categories, Shogun was the big winner won for best drama ensemble and TV stunt cast
Its star Hiroyuki Sanda (pictured) won lead actor, while Anna Sawai won supporting actress
Cristin’s costar Colin Farrell was luckier, and he came out on top ahead of Baby Reindeer’s Richard Gadd and Ripley’s Andrew Scott for the supervillain origin story.
Jean Smart won best female actor in a comedy series, though she wasn’t present to accept her award; pictured in Hacks
Fittingly, The Fall Guy — in which Ryan Gosling plays a stunt actor — won the film honor, while the brutal drama Shōgun won the award for TV stunt cast.
The ceremony also looked back on a legend by honoring Jane Fonda with the SAG Life Achievement Award, making her the 60th recipient of the ceremony’s highest tribute.
In a statement, SAG-AFTRA president Fran Drescher described Fonda, 87 — a two-time Oscar-winner with a career spanning over six decades — as a ‘trailblazer and an extraordinary talent.
‘[Fonda is] a dynamic force who has shaped the landscape of entertainment, advocacy and culture with unwavering pᴀssion,’ the Nanny star continued.
‘We honor Jane not only for her artistic brilliance but for the profound legacy of activism and empowerment she has created.’
