The Screen Actors Guild‘s Actor Awards are an opportunity for Hollywood’s biggest names to celebrate one another — and the broadcast is consistently chock full of memorable moments.
Each year, actors, musicians, journalists and other members of the Screen Actors Guild‐American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (SAG-AFTRA) come together for one of the most well-produced awards shows of the season.
In 2010, the late Betty White left the room in stitches as she took the stage to accept the SAG Lifetime Achievement Award and alluded to having a few famous flings throughout her career.
“I’m still, to this day, starstruck. I look out at this audience and see so many famous faces, but what really boggles my mind is that I actually know many of you and I’ve worked with quite a few … and maybe had a couple … “ the Golden Girls alum trailed off.
The guild’s celebration of lifetime achievements in film and TV always proves to be one of the most nostalgic sections of the night. At the 21st annual Actor Awards, Carrie Fisher introduced her mother, Debbie Reynolds, before the legendary actress received the accolade.
“I’m very close to this year’s Lifetime Achievement Award honoree. Not only was my grandmother her mother, she is the grandmother to my alleged daughter. It also turns out that we’re neighbors. And, as if all this weren’t enough, she’s also my mother,” the Star Wars actress said in 2015.
The next year, the mother-daughter duo passed away within days of each other.
Debbie Reynolds receives Lifetime Achievement Award from her daughter, Carrie Fisher, at The 21st Annual Screen Actors Guild Awards on January 25, 2015 in Los Angeles, California. Vince Bucci/Invision/AP/Shutterstock
Jane Fonda, for her part, received the honor during the 2025 ceremony.
“This means the world to me. I’m going to talk loud. Thank you SAG-AFTRA. And your enthusiasm makes this seem like a twilight of my life and more like a, ‘Go girl kick ass!’ Which is good because I’m not done,” Fonda proclaimed to raucous applause. “I have had a really weird career — totally, not as my agents there at that table will tell you, totally unstrategic. I retired for a few years and then I came back at 65, which is not usual, and then I made one of my most successful movies in my 80s and probably in my 90s I’ll be doing my own stunts in an action movie. Have you ever heard the phrase, ‘It’s OK to be a late bloomer as long as you don’t miss the flower show’? I’m a late bloomer. This is the flower show.”
Along with these sentimental moments, the awards ceremony also gives Hollywood stars the opportunity to poke fun at some of their closest colleagues. In 2013, Tina Fey took that chance and ran with it when she won Best Female Actor in a Comedy Series.
“I also want to share this with my sweet friend Amy Poehler who I’ve known for so long. I’ve stolen so many of her moves,” the 30 Rock alum joked. “Amy, I’ve known you since you were pregnant with Lena Dunham.”
Watch the video above for more of the Actor Awards’ most memorable moments!