Green Book boosts Oscar odds with big win at PGA Awards

The big win by Green Book at the 30th Producers Guild of America (PGA) Awards sets up the film, which stars Mahershala Ali as an African-American pianist (above) and Viggo Mortensen as his white driver in the early 1960s Deep South, as a major contender f
Mahershala Ali
The big win by Green Book at the 30th Producers Guild of America (PGA) Awards sets up the film, which stars Mahershala Ali as an African-American pianist and Viggo Mortensen (above) as his white driver in the early 1960s Deep South, as a major contender f
Viggo Mortensen

LOS ANGELES • In a surprise win last Saturday, Hollywood producers named Green Book the best film of 2018, boosting its profile just days before nominations are announced for the annual Academy Awards.

The big win by Green Book at the 30th Producers Guild of America (PGA) Awards sets up the film, which stars Mahershala Ali as an African-American pianist and Viggo Mortensen as his white driver in the early 1960s Deep South, as a major contender for next month's Oscars.

In many past years, PGA best film winners have gone on to win the best picture Oscar, Hollywood's top prize.

The PGA's best film had been predicted to be a contest between A Star Is Born and Roma. Earlier this month, Green Book won the Golden Globe as best musical or comedy.

The Producers Guild of America, among the leading industry organisations representing makers of movies and TV shows, also named its best animated film which went to Spider-Man: Into The Spider-Verse, favourite documentary, won by Won't You Be My Neighbor?, and honoured FX's The Americans as the top television drama in its final season.

FX scored again when Ryan Murphy's The Assassination Of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story won the award for limited series.

Among other honours for television productions, Amazon Video's The Marvelous Mrs Maisel won the comedy series award and HBO's Fahrenheit 451 prevailed as best television movie.

CNN's Anthony Bourdain: Parts Unknown, starring the late celebrity chef who committed suicide last year, won for non-fiction television, while RuPaul's Drag Race on VH1 took home the prize for reality competition series.

PBS' Sesame Street, which debuted nearly 50 years ago, won for children's programme. The live entertainment/talk award went to Last Week Tonight With John Oliver, while Being Serena took best sports programme.

The Academy Awards will be given out on Feb 24 to producers, directors, actors and actresses by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.

REUTERS

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A version of this article appeared in the print edition of The Straits Times on January 21, 2019, with the headline Green Book boosts Oscar odds with big win at PGA Awards. Subscribe