Ke Huy Quan hails increasing diversity within film industry in SAG award speech
The actor, who won best male actor in a supporting role, became the first Asian actor to win in the category.
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Everything Everywhere All At Once star Ke Huy Quan hailed the increasing diversity within the entertainment industry, as he collected a top Screen Actors Guild (SAG) award.
The actor, who won best male actor in a supporting role, became the first Asian actor to win in the category and thanked those who had “contributed to these changes”.
Quan beat Irish stars Brendan Gleeson and Barry Keoghan for the award at the ceremony in Los Angeles on Sunday.
Acknowledging his achievement as the first Asian actor to win the award, he said: “I quickly realised that this moment no longer belongs to me.
“It also belongs to everyone who has asked for change.
“The landscape looked so different now than before. So, thank you so much to all of you in this room and everyone who contributed to these changes.”
Finishing his remarks, he added: “To all those at home who are watching and struggling and waiting to be seen. Please keep on going, because the spotlight will one day find you.
“Thank you everyone for rooting for me. I will be rooting for you.”
Moments before, the SAG award for female actor in a supporting role went to Quan’s Everything Everywhere… co-star Jamie Lee Curtis, who hailed actors and acting as she collected the award.
“My parents were actors. I married an actor. I love actors. I love acting… I love what we do with each other. It’s such a beautiful job.
“And I know you look at me and think ‘well Nepo baby, that’s why she’s there’ and I totally get it. But the truth of the matter is I’m 64-years-old and this is just amazing.”
Curtis defeated Kerry Condon, who stars with Gleeson and Keoghan in The Banshees Of Inisherin, for the accolade.
Her win leaves just Colin Farrell in with a chance of scoring a major individual acting win for Martin McDonagh’s dark Irish comedy – which sees the sudden end of a relationship between two life-long friends.
Farrell is named in the top acting category – outstanding performance by a male actor in a leading role – after previously triumphing at the Golden Globes and earning a coveted Oscar nod in the equivalent categories.
Other contenders competing in the category include Bill Nighy, Adam Sandler, Brendan Fraser and Austin Butler.
Butler, who is also Oscar-nominated for his turn as Elvis Presley in Baz Luhrmann’s biopic, beat the Irish actor last week to claim Bafta’s best actor award.
In the category for SAG outstanding performance by a female actor in a leading role, Oscar-nominees Cate Blanchett, Michelle Yeoh and Ana de Armas have all received nods, as have Viola Davis and Danielle Deadwyler.
The Banshees Of Inisherin is also nominated for best cast in a motion picture – the SAG equivalent of best picture – along with The Fabelmans, Babylon, Everything Everywhere All At Once and Women Talking.
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