Birdman leads 2015 Screen Actors Guild Awards nominations

Birdman,Alejandro GonzalezIrritu'sblack comedy starring Michael Keaton, is leading the nominations for the 21stAnnual Screen Actors Guild Awards that were revealed this morning inLosAngeles.

The satire, which centres on a fading action hero trying to reclaim his fame onBroadway, also stars Zach Galifianakis, Edward NortonandEmma Stone.

Boyhood, RichardLinklater'scoming-of-age story,the Alan Turing biopic The Imitation Game,and the Stephen Hawking story The Theory of Everythingfollowwith three nominations each.

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The annual awards for performances in television and filmare voted on by more than 100,000 actors and arefrequently an indication of how the Golden Globes and Oscar nominations might unfold.

"The SAG nominations are always worth paying attention to," says CBC's film critic, Eli Glasner.

"The largest block of Oscar votersover 20 per cent is made up ofactors, so the SAGs tend to be a good indicator of how the Academy Awards will play out."

The nominations in the main categories are:

Outstanding performance by a male actor in a leading role:

• Steve Carell Foxcatcher
• Benedict Cumberbatch The Imitation Game
• Jake Gyllenhaal Nightcrawler
• Michael Keaton Birdman
• Eddie Redmayne The Theory of Everything

Outstanding performance by a female actor in a leading role:

• Jennifer AnistonCake
• Felicity Jones The Theory of Everything
• Julianne Moore Still Alice
• Rosamund Pike - Gone Girl
• Reese Witherspoon - Wild

Outstanding performance by a male actor in a supporting role:

• Robert Duvall The Judge
• Ethan Hawke Boyhood
• Edward Norton Birdman
• Mark Ruffalo Foxcatcher
• J.K. Simmons Whiplash

Outstanding performance by a female actor in a supporting role:

• Patricia Arquette Boyhood
• KeiraKnightley The Imitation Game
• Emma Stone Birdman
• Meryl Streep Into the Woods
• Naomi Watts St. Vincent

Outstanding performance by a male actor in a television movie or miniseries:

• Adrien Brody Houdini
• Benedict Cumberbatch Sherlock: His Last Vow
• Richard Jenkins Olive Kitteridge
• Mark Ruffalo The Normal Heart
• Billy Bob Thornton Fargo

Outstanding performance by a female actor in a television movie or miniseries:

• Ellen Burstyn Flowers in the Attic
• Maggie Gyllenhaal The Honorable Woman
• Frances McDormand Olive Kitteridge
• Julia Roberts The Normal Heart
• Cicely Tyson The Trip to Bountiful

Canadian contingent

Canada's Tatiana Maslanyreceived her first SAG nomination for her role in the sci-fi TV series Orphan Black. The Regina native is up against Robin Wright, Maggie Smith, Claire Danes, Viola Davis and Julianna Margulies in the category of outstanding performance by a female actor in a drama series.

A full list of the nominations can be found here.

Wednesday'sSAG nominations were announced by The Fault in Our Stars actorAnsel Elgort and Divergent actor EvaLongoria.

The 21stannual awards will be handed out at a glitzy gala on Jan. 25.