‘Slave’ receives four SAG nominations

Associated Press

LOS ANGELES

Steve McQueen’s historic saga “12 Years a Slave” topped the nominations list for the 20th annual Screen Actors Guild Awards on Wednesday, cementing it as a solid Academy Awards prospect with four nominations.

John Wells’ dysfunctional family adaptation “August: Osage County,” which hits theaters Dec. 25 and features an all-star cast including Meryl Streep and Julia Roberts, also picked up awards-season momentum with three nominations, including outstanding performance for the cast.

The SAG nominations are one of Hollywood’s first major announcements on the long road to the March 2 Oscars. Also key are the Golden Globe nominations, which will be revealed this morning.

Noticeably absent from Wednesday’s SAG lineup were Spike Jonze’s futuristic computer love story “Her,” starring Joaquin Phoenix; Ethan and Joel Coen’s folk-scene-focused dark comedy “Inside Llewyn Davis;” Richard Linklater’s raw and romantic “Before Midnight;” and Martin Scorsese’s stockbroker story “The Wolf of Wall Street,” which features performances by Leonardo DiCaprio and Jonah Hill.

The SAG Awards will be presented Jan. 18 in Los Angeles.