SAG Awards are now called Actor Awards? Even host Kristen Bell forgets
SAG Awards are now called Actor Awards? Even host Kristen Bell forgets
Bryan Alexander, USA TODAYThu, February 26, 2026 at 1:00 PM UTC
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Kristen Bell has been tripping up over the name of this weekend's glam awards show, which is a problem since the "Frozen" star is the host.
Bell, 45, has hosted the Screen Actors Guild Awards twice, including last year's ceremony. Since then, the SAG-AFTRA union representing Hollywood actors officially changed the name of their annual celebration to the Actor Awards.
So on her third run as host but first under the show's new name, Bell says it's a group effort to nail the change at the 32nd annual awards (March 1 on Netflix, 8 ET/PT).
"Renaming it is a big thing to apply to the old processor," says Bell. "There's been a lot of slip-ups. But we politely correct each other when I say the SAG Awards. Nope, it's now called the Actor Awards."
Host Kristen Bell speaks onstage during the 31st Annual Screen Actors Guild Awards at Shrine Auditorium and Expo Hall on Feb. 23, 2024. Bell is the host of the 32nd Annual Actor Awards Presented by SAG-AFTRA on March 1.Why are SAG Awards now called the Actor Awards?
Bell, a proud SAG-AFTRA member for more than two decades, says she had nothing to do with the name change. "That's not my department, and above my pay grade," she says.
But she's accepting because the rebranding signifies what makes this show different from others in a crowded awards season. The Golden Globes are voted on by a group of foreign journalists who now weigh in on podcasts, TV and film. Critics Choice are voted on by critics. The Actor Awards rely on actors to vote on the film and TV performances of their peers.
"That's what this show is about, that's what makes it unique," Bell says. "Some branding genius was like, 'Why not call it the Actor Awards?' And they called me, told me it's called the Actor Awards, and I said, 'Let's roll!'"
It has led to solid comedic fodder, with a show promotion featuring Bell calling every SAG-AFTRA member to let them know about the name change. Bell will also "lean into the new name" during the show opening for laughs.
Will Bell discuss ICE or sing 'Frozen' tunes at Actors Awards?
Bell has been the only host of the SAG Awards/Actor Awards, starting as first-ever host in 2018. While the actors frequently make political statements on the red carpet or during acceptance speeches, Bell, as host, has avoided contentious issues during the monologue. That will continue.
"It's a political-free zone," Bell says. "There's something for everyone. There will be no division on the show."
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Bell will not burn her fellow stars in the audience during the show.
"If I roast anyone, it's going to be myself," Bell says. "I like the idea of an old vaudeville act where you're just trying to goof, maintain someone's attention and have them walk away refreshed."
In her last hosting gig, Bell changed the classic "Frozen" song "Do You Want to Build a Snowman?" to "Do You Want to Be an Actor?" to open the show. She won't guarantee a return to "Frozen."
"But I will push very hard to sing if I can," she says.
1 / 0See actors Kristen Bell and Dax Shepard's romance in photos
Hollywood couple Dax Shepard and Kristen Bell married in 2013 and share daughters Lincoln and Delta. See their relationship in photos, beginning here at the premiere of "Couples Retreat" on Oct. 5, 2009, in Westwood, California.
What are the perks of hosting?
Bell, who goes right into filming Season 3 of "Nobody Wants This" a week after the Actor Awards, says she's overworked, but loves hosting.
"I had a freaking blast last year as host," Bell says. "I like entertaining and hosting things, where I get to be a goofball in my own little show constructed around this prized award honor."
Plus, she gets her own parking space at Los Angeles' Shrine Auditorium.
"It's a great perk, because parking in LA is so cattywampus," Bell says.
'Nobody Wants This' stars are the world's best awards show losers
Bell and the cast of Netflix's "Nobody Wants This" have already set the template for how to lose gracefully at an awards show after getting blanked from all five categories at last month's Critics Choice Awards. Bell posted an array of happy pictures at the end of the show on her Instagram page.
"At the end, bluntly, we were still celebratory," Bell says. "We're in the game baby, what's not to love?"
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Host Kristen Bell still keeps calling the Actor Awards the SAG Awards
Source: “AOL Entertainment”
