Chadwick Boseman makes history with 4 Screen Actors Guild nominations

Boseman, who died of colon cancer last year, received posthumous nominations for his work in 'Ma Rainey's Black Bottom' and 'Da 5 Bloods'.

The late Chadwick Boseman earned double Screen Actors Guild awards nominations Feb 4, boosting hopes of posthumous Oscars glory for the trailblazing Black Panther star.

Hollywood's acting union nominated Boseman for his lead role as an ambitious young horn player in 1920s blues drama Ma Rainey's Black Bottom, and his supporting role as a Vietnam War soldier in Spike Lee's Da 5 Bloods.

Both films also scored nominations for best cast – the top prize at the SAG ceremony, which like much of the Tinseltown awards calendar has been delayed by the coronavirus pandemic.

This makes Boseman the first actor to land four nominations in a single year.

Although less high-profile than the Golden Globes nominations a day earlier, the SAG awards are seen as a stronger indicator of Oscars glory, since actors represent the largest branch of the roughly 10,000 Oscar voters in the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.

Only two actors have ever posthumously won Oscars – Peter Finch for 1976's Network, and Heath Ledger for 2008's The Dark Knight.

Boseman died at age 43 in August last year from colon cancer, a diagnosis he never publicly discussed.

Boseman's co-star Viola Davis also earned a lead actress nod for Ma Rainey, putting it in a tie atop the SAG film acting nominations with Korean-American drama Minari.

Minari, which follows an immigrant family who move to 1980s rural Arkansas to scrape together a new life, is hoping to emulate Parasite – which won last year's SAG best cast prize before ultimately being named the Oscars best picture.

Former Walking Dead favourite Steven Yeun and veteran South Korean star Youn Yuh-jung were both recognised for the film, along with the ensemble cast.

Rounding out the prestigious best cast category were a pair of 1960s-set civil rights movies: One Night In Miami and courtroom drama The Trial Of The Chicago 7.

Netflix again dominated the film nominations with 13, while rival streamer Amazon followed with four. – AFP