SAG Awards Diary: Behind the Scenes with PEOPLE

Go on the red carpet, backstage and at the parties during the Screen Actors Guild Awards

Kevin Mazur/WireImage

What happened after the last SAG award was handed out and the parties got going? Read on for all the behind-the-scenes happenings.

One of the biggest nights in Hollywood, the Screen Actors Guild Awards honors performers in both film and television.

Unlike the Golden Globes, however, the categories are entirely acting-based and the winners are voted on by actors themselves. As a result, the SAG Awards is one of the most star-studded Hollywood events of the year — and PEOPLE was there!

From the red carpet schmoozing to inside the Shrine Auditorium for the ceremony all the way to the afterparties, PEOPLE brings you all the scoop you didn’t see on TV.

To follow the SAG Awards festivities from the very beginning, click here.

10:25 p.m. PT, Weinstein Company after party: Lupita Nyong’o and Jared Leto looked cozy chatting in a corner. Very cozy. And they continued the closeness together on the dance floor.

9:54 p.m. PT, Weinstein Company after party: After a security guard offered to hold her heels (cheers to him!), a barefoot Keira Knightley danced with her husband, James Righton, and friends to “Are You Gonna Go My Way.” Then at the bar, Eric Stonestreet struck up a conversation with her.

8:41 p.m. PT, Weinstein Company afterparty: OITNB‘s Danielle Brooks tried to post a video on her phone from the ladies room (hey, social media doesn’t take bathroom breaks).

//platform.instagram.com/en_US/embeds.js8:39 p.m. PT SAG Awards afterparty: The cast of Boyhood wins the award for outstanding showing at an afterparty as the group that posted up the longest at their booth.

8:38 p.m. PT, Weinstein Company afterparty: Looks like Keira Knightley and her husband have this pregnancy thing down: Righton waited for his expectant wife outside the ladies room before they entered the Heineken-sponsored party together.

8:31 p.m. PT, SAG Awards afterparty: Who doesn’t want to get down to “Uptown Funk?” A laughing Viola Davis got serious about her dancing, taking off her shoes and donning flats as the hit song came on.

8:19 p.m. PT, SAG Awards afterparty: Claire Danes did a little dance in her seat to Madonna’s “Like a Prayer” as she chatted and laughed with Homeland costar Laila Robins.

7:49 p.m. PT, SAG Awards afterparty: The weight of those SAG Awards statuettes is very real — while catching up with Liev Schreiber, Julianna Margulies joked about how hauling around her SAG Award once gave her a crick in her neck. (Which SAG Award, though? Though she lost to Viola Davis on Sunday, Margulies has taken home a whopping eight SAG trophies!)

7:43 p.m. PT, Shrine Auditorium press room: “Thank God other people make decisions that I’m terrible at,” Patricia Arquette told reporters, laughing about the dress-choosing process. “I would be wearing overalls if I got my way.” (Good thing she didn’t — the winner for outstanding performance by a female actor in a supporting role looked gorgeous in her green frock.)

7:39 p.m. PT, Shrine Auditorium: No cutsies, Sarah Hyland! The
Modern Family
actress caused a bit of a stir backstage when she couldn’t find the bathroom, inadvertently cutting the line for the PEOPLE photo booth. Oops! We’ve all been there.

7:37 p.m. PT, Shrine Auditorium press room: So sweet — Eddie Redmayne was so overwhelmed and excited by his win that his hands were shaking during his photo shoot. “I can’t say what went through my mind because it’s kind of this white noise of euphoria,” he told reporters. “It’s lovely, and you’re only as good as the actors you work with and I was so lucky on this film to be surrounded by the most amazing troupe of actors and to be recognized by your peers, by people you admire, it means the world.

“I’m on Cloud 9 somewhere, floating up there.”

7:31 p.m. PT, Shrine Auditorium press room: Julianne Moore may be taking awards home by the truckload this season for her performance in Still Alice, but there’s still one thing she’s missed about being a soap opera actress: “To be honest, the great thing about working on a soap is that you work every day,” she told reporters, laughing. “I think every actor loves that. Going to work.”

//platform.instagram.com/en_US/embeds.js7:28 p.m. PT, SAG Awards afterparty: Uzo Aduba took selfies with her tablemates and then looked at the pics and laughed. (She is us and we are her.) Also, her table is absolutely covered in SAG trophies — no huge surprise there, considering her solo win and Orange Is the New Black‘s ensemble win.

7:21 p.m. PT, SAG Awards afterparty: SAG trophies are the new wine glasses — winners William H. Macy and J.K. Simmons tapped their trophies together as they posed for a photo.

7:17 p.m. PT, SAG Awards afterparty: Cheers! Maggie Gyllenhaal congratulated Viola Davis on her win inside the SAG Awards afterparty, and the two clinked champagne glasses. (The party, by the way, is held inside a tent just outside the auditorium.)

//platform.instagram.com/en_US/embeds.js7:05 p.m. PT, Shrine Auditorium: Julianne Moore walked into the PEOPLE photo booth while the Downton Abbey cast was still snapping pics, but they didn’t seem to mind too much — they erupted into squeals of delight, gushing over meeting Moore. (Oh, and the trophy is as heavy as it looks — Joanne Froggatt said she couldn’t lift it over her head!)

7:00 p.m. PT, Shrine Auditorium: Eric Stonestreet was spotted having a solo dance party at the Modern Family table!

6:48 p.m. PT, Shrine Auditorium press room: “It’s really a transformation role for me,” Viola Davis told reporters of her lead role in How to Get Away with Murder, which earned her the award for outstanding female actor in a drama series. “It’s not a role that people usually give me, and for me to step into it and for people to recognize it, I feel like I’ve done my job.”

On her reaction to winning, Davis continued: “There are a lot of great actresses in that category … it was excitement. Thrilled. I’m at the point in my life where I’m stepping into my power. The thing about awards is that you can’t embrace the fact that you’re the best because we know that’s not the truth. There’s no such thing. You have to embrace the fact that you deserve it. I felt appreciated.” The classiest of acts!

6:13 p.m. PT, Shrine Auditorium press room: Of all his fellow nominees, J.K. Simmons had yet to meet The Judge star Robert Duvall, he told reporters following his SAG Award win for outstanding performance by a male actor in a supporting role.

“One of the things that is so difficult to negotiate in this kind of scenario is that I can spend half an hour talking about each one of the guys who was nominated along with me,” he said, “but I wanted to make it about the guys that I had done the movie with. I would have loved to be able to talk about all those guys because they’re obviously all extraordinary actors that I admire.

“I still haven’t met Duvall, which is pissing me off,” he continued, laughing, “but hopefully tonight I’ll find out where his table is and get to go shake his hand, but obviously it’s the ultimate in esteemed colleagues to be mentioned alongside.”

6:01 p.m. PT, Shrine Auditorium press room: Frances McDormand skipped the photo booth to steal William H. Macy away from an interview so that the two could hug it out over their respective wins — the two are longtime friends, having costarred in Fargo back in 1996. (No heads were bonked with SAG trophies during the hug — some nearby staffers kept the awards safe!) McDormand effectively ended press for the both of them, leading Macy back inside the auditorium.

//platform.instagram.com/en_US/embeds.js5:52 p.m. PT, Shrine Auditorium press room: Following Uzo Aduba’s win for female actor in a comedy series for her role as Suzanne “Crazy Eyes” Warren in Orange Is the New Black, the actress told reporters that she “really, truly could not believe” her win. “I just was blown away. I feel like my heart stopped! I felt like it stopped for a second,” she said. When asked whether her heart had started up again by that point, Aduba laughed and said: “I’m still waiting! I’m still waiting. I just couldn’t believe it.” She also recalled looking over at Bryan Cranston, who presented the award — “an actor I love and respect, and this is what we come here for.”

OITNB also took home the award for best ensemble cast for a comedy series. Notably absent was star Taylor Schilling, who was away performing in the off-Broadway play A Month in the Country, starring alongside
Game of Thrones
‘s Peter Dinklage.

5:28 p.m. PT, Shrine Auditorium press room: Here’s William H. Macy doing his winner’s walk! He took home the trophy for outstanding performance by a male actor in a comedy series. When he heard his name called, he said, “Motherf—, I wish I had written a speech … I might have said that on camera.” He didn’t, but we caught it! After sharing a kiss with wife Felicity Huffman, she told him: “Don’t say that, please.” Good advice.

//platform.instagram.com/en_US/embeds.js4:55 p.m. PT, Shrine Auditorium: Backstage, Rosamund Pike and Amanda Peet peeled off to use the restrooms as Pike laughed about the tiny steps she had to take thanks to her dress. When they came back out, they ran into William H. Macy and Felicity Huffman. (Perhaps better known as Filliam H. Muffman.) Hugs and kisses ensued.

4:52 p.m. PT, Shrine Auditorium red carpet: Jennifer Aniston hit the carpet with fiancé Justin Theroux, walking hand-in-hand. Aniston turned, smiled and gave a thumbs-up to a fan when they screamed how much they love Theroux’s HBO drama The Leftovers! (Adorable.)

//platform.instagram.com/en_US/embeds.js4:47 p.m. PT, Shrine Auditorium red carpet: Matthew McConaughey and wife Camila Alves tuned out the red carpet noise as they caught up with Naomi Watts and Liev Schreiber.

4:45 p.m. PT, Shrine Auditorium red carpet: Sofia Vergara and Joe Manganiello caused a total uproar when they hit the red carpet with her arm around his waist.

4:40 p.m. PT, Shrine Auditorium red carpet: Maggie Gyllenhaal and Naomi Watts were deep in conversation before being interrupted by photographers asking for a photo. Duty calls!

4:37 p.m. PT, Shrine Auditorium: Meryl Streep is truly a queen. We spotted her inside the venue counseling a young man on a relationship gone bad. The best thing you’ve ever heard, or, the best thing you’ve ever heard?

4:15 p.m. PT, Shrine Auditorium red carpet: Mom-to-be Keira Knightley was glowing on the carpet as she walked hand-in-hand with husband James Righton.

4:06 p.m. PT, Shrine Auditorium red carpet: Ariel Winter was one of many ladies on the SAG red carpet whose dress has a long train — the
Modern Family
star had to have someone help her hold it up as she hustled down the carpet!

3:43 p.m. PT, Shrine Auditorium red carpet: Modern Family star Sarah Hyland looked totally incredible on the red carpet in custom Vera Wang as she chats with PEOPLE’s own Jen Garcia.

//platform.instagram.com/en_US/embeds.js3:39 p.m. PT, Shrine Auditorium red carpet: The ladies of Orange Is the New Black killed PEOPLE’s pop culture quiz!

//platform.instagram.com/en_US/embeds.js2:50 p.m. PT, outside the Shrine Auditorium: Orange Is the New Black star Lea DeLaria took selfies with fans standing outside the Shrine Auditorium before heading onto the red carpet. She complimented the police officers in the area on their “crisp” uniforms and said, “Did they make you dress up for this, too? I’d rather be in a T-shirt and jeans!” (One of us. One of us.)

2:34 p.m. PT, Shrine Auditorium red carpet: It was approximately 5 billion degrees in Los Angeles on Sunday, but our own Blaine Zuckerman seemed to be dealing with the heat just fine.

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Luckily, there is a solitary box fan keeping everyone cool.

//platform.instagram.com/en_US/embeds.jsEntertainment Weekly Pre-SAG Party at the Chateau Marmont, Saturday:

-Who knew they were BFF? Harry Hamlin and New Kid on the Block Joey McIntyre greeted each other with bro-hugs as Hamlin’s wife, Real Housewives of Beverly Hills star Lisa Rinna, looked on. They chatted at length.

-Speaking of Joey McIntyre, he enjoyed the Reese’s Pieces at the treats table so much that he even took some for the road! (Same, Joey. Same.)

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-We spotted
Chicago P.D.
star Sophia Bush chatting with
Game of Thrones
stars Sophie Turner and Maisie Williams.

-Later, Bush and Williams hit the dance floor, shaking it to Taio Cruz’s “Dynamite,” before Williams and Turner started a dance party to Whitney Houston’s “I Wanna Dance with Somebody (Who Loves Me).” (No wonder Turner was in a happy mood — she’s got a lot to celebrate! X-Men: Apocalypse director Bryan Singer just announced that she’ll star as a young Jean Grey in the next installment of the franchise.)

-Selfies among the three girls abounded before they danced in a circle to Beyoncé’s “Drunk in Love.” Um, how do we apply to join that friend group, though?

— Amanda Michelle Steiner and Rennie Dyball, with reporting by Reagan Alexander, Gabrielle Olya, JD Heyman, Lynette Rice, Reagan Alexander, Andrea Lavinthal, Abby Stern and Lizz Leonard