CLOSE Academy President, Cheryl Boone Isaacs, and Gil Robertson, President of African American Film Critics Association react to this years Oscar nominations which included no black actors in any category. USA TODAY 
 
 Samuel L. Jackson is a former Union soldier turned bounty hunter in 'The Hateful Eight.' (Photo: Weinstein Company) 
 
 What this year's Academy Awards nominations boast in well-reviewed blockbusters and A-list stars, they lack in diversity across most major categories. 
 
 For the second year in a row, all 20 slots in the lead and supporting acting categories went to white actors. Last year's "whiteout" (the first since 1998) sparked social media outrage and inspired the Twitter hashtag #OscarsSoWhite, which was revived Thursday in response to this year's picks. 
 
 "I thought I was watching a sequel," says Gil Robertson, president of the African American Film Critics Association. "It’s almost the exact same scenario, but more offensive. ... There needs to be changes across the board. It's like beating an old horse every year." 
 
 "The Academy Awards need to do a better job at acknowledging the diversity in Hollywood right now," Fandango managing editor Erik Davis says. "There are some great performances and films out there that are just being underlooked." 
 
 Among them: Idris Elba's menacing turn as an African warlord in Beasts of No Nation. The British actor earned Golden Globe, BAFTA and Screen Actors Guild Award nominations for the role, and 21 out of 24 experts at awards prognisticator GoldDerby.com expected him to receive a supporting actor nomination. 
 
 Samuel L. Jackson (The Hateful Eight), Benicio del Toro (Sicario) and Jason Mitchell (Straight Outta Compton) also missed out, though their films earned nominations in other categories (including a supporting actress nomination for Hateful's Jennifer Jason Leigh). 
 
 Earlier this awards season, Will Smith picked up a Golden Globe acting nomination for football drama Concussion, and Creed breakout Michael B. Jordan won a National Society of Film Critics Award for best actor. Still, both actors were snubbed by Oscar. 
 
 No women of color were represented in the acting fields, either. Although considered a long-shot contender, Tessa Thompson earned some critics' prizes this season for her understated work in Creed. Tangerine's transgender black stars Kitana Kiki Rodriguez and Mya Taylor also received Independent Spirit Awards nominations for their performances, boosted by a history-making awards campaign from producers Mark and Jay Duplass. 
 
 Reaction to the lack of diversity came fast and furious on social media. 
 
 No love for Tangerine stars? Where's Will Smith? Why is the breakout star of 'Creed' a white dude? #Oscars still feel pretty....#Oscars2016 — Janet Mock (@janetmock) January 14, 2016 
 
 Why did the Oscars announce all the white nominees first? — Ricky Gervais (@rickygervais) January 14, 2016 
 
 All white Oscar nominations are another example of the lack of diversity in Hollywood. Like the Rocky Mts. The higher u climb the whiter. — Reverend Al Sharpton (@TheRevAl) January 14, 2016 
 
 When are the black oscars? — adam pally (@adampally) January 14, 2016 
 
 The oversights may not seem surprising, considering the membership of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences: 94% white and 77% male, according to a 2012 Los Angeles Times study. Since becoming the Academy's first African-American president in 2013, Cheryl Boone Isaacs has made strides in shifting those demographics; more than 300 new members were invited to join the group last summer, many of whom are of different races, ages and ethnic backgrounds. 
 
 Speaking with USA TODAY, Isaacs expressed her frustration with this year's picks, calling them a "missed opportunity." 
 
 “I was disappointed," Isaacs says. "A lot of great work was done this year. However, we are not stopping. We are not deterred. We are moving forward, and will continue to move forward with a conversation and action. That needs to happen not just within the Academy, but the entire motion picture industry: to nurture, grow (and) promote talent, in front of or behind the camera." 
 
 This year, black filmmakers Ryan Coogler (Creed) and F. Gary Gray (Straight Outta Compton) were both considered on-the-bubble contenders, but were left out of the best director race. The only minority among the five male nominees is Mexican director Alejandro González Iñárritu, who won last year for Birdman. 
 
 The sole nominations Creed and Compton did receive were given to white men and women: Globe winner Sylvester Stallone, a best supporting actor hopeful for Creed, and Compton writers Jonathan Herman and Andrea Berloff, for best original screenplay. 
 
 "These were worthy movies," says Deadline awards columnist and film critic Pete Hammond. "Straight Outta Compton was very popular with Academy voters, I don’t know what happened there. People are going to talk about this, there’s no question." 
 
 Herman found the lack of diversity disheartening. "There should have been more people of color represented in the nominees," he said. "There would be no script without N.W.A — without Ice Cube and Eazy-E and Dr. Dre. We were just bringing to life a story that was already happening. Hopefully, we can continue that conversation and change things." 
 
 The shutout of minorities in major categories is reminiscent of last year's Oscar race, when Martin Luther King Jr. drama Selma was nominated for best picture, but director Ava DuVernay and actor David Oyelowo were passed over. 
 
 It's a step back from the 2014 Oscar nominations, when Steve McQueen (12 Years a Slave) and Alfonso Cuaron (Gravity) earned nods for best director. Cuaron went on to win the prize, while McQueen shared in the best picture award for Slave. Chiwetel Ejiofor (Slave) and Barkhad Abdi (Captain Phillips) earned nods for actor and supporting actor, respectively, while Lupita Nyong'o won supporting actress for her breakout Slave performance. 
 
 The contenders were similarly more diverse in 2013, with acting nominations for Denzel Washington (Flight) and Quvenzhané Wallis (Beasts of the Southern Wild), and a director win for Ang Lee (Life of Pi). 
 
 Contributing: Bryan Alexander, Andrea Mandell andBrian Truitt 
 
 Read or Share this story: http://usat.ly/1Okg5tj ||||| The Oscars certainly knows how to keep us on our toes. 
 
 While movies like La La Land and Manchester by the Sea are up for awards in several categories, as expected, this year’s Academy Award nominations were full of many notable snubs and surprises. While actors Taraji P. Henson, Amy Adams and Hugh Grant were overlooked, Viggo Mortensen managed to snag a spot in the Best Actor category. And at yet another awards show, Finding Dory couldn’t make it despite its pledge to “just keep swimming.” 
 
 Keep reading for a breakdown of the biggest shocks from this morning’s announcement leading up to the biggest night in films. 
 
 Snub: Taraji P. Henson 
 
 The math just doesn’t add up. 
 
 Despite Hidden Figures receiving such positive reviews, lead actress Henson failed to score a nomination for her portrayal of Katherine Johnson, the African-American mathematician who helped send the first American astronauts into space. 
 
 Janelle Monáe was also sidelined despite a solid performance. 
 
 The musician and producer was nominated for a Golden Globe for best original score for Hidden Figures. However, his work was overlooked in the Oscars’ Original Score and Best Original Song categories. 
 
 The awards show wasn’t a total miss for Hidden Figures, though: After Henson’s snub, the film — which nabbed a nomination for outstanding performance by a cast in a motion picture at for Screen Actors Guild Awards — pulled through with a spot in the Best Picture category. 
 
 In addition, Octavia Spencer received a mention in the Best Supporting Actress category. 
 
 Snub: Amy Adams 
 
 Despite a critically acclaimed performance in Arrival, the five-time Oscar nominee won’t have another shot at taking home the statue this year. In a tight Best Actress category that included Meryl Streep, Natalie Portman and Emma Stone, Adams failed to make an appearance. 
 
 Emily Blunt, who received recognition for the SAG Awards, also didn’t make the cut — although that would have been a bigger shock. 
 
 Snub: Annette Bening 
 
 The four-time Oscar nominee was another overlooked contender in the packed Best Actress division. Her acclaimed film 20th Century Women also came up short across the board, failing to secure any Oscar nods. 
 
 It’s been 21 years since Gibson, who welcomed his ninth child last week, won Best Picture and Best Director for Braveheart. Despite a series of controversies in the early 2000s, nominations for Best Director and Best Picture for Hacksaw Ridge (Gibson’s first directorial effort since 2006’s Apocalypto) have solidified his comeback to Hollywood. 
 
 “What could be more exciting than listening to the nominations being announced while holding my newborn son! This is a truly wonderful honor,” Gibson said in a statement. 
 
 Snub: Hugh Grant 
 
 The Florence Foster Jenkins actor will have to wait a bit longer for his first Oscar nomination. 
 
 Despite SAG and BAFTA nominations for best supporting actor and a Golden Globes lead actor spot, Grant failed to secure a slot. Instead, Michael Shannon snagged the final opening in the best Best Supporting Actor category for his role in Nocturnal Animals. (Shannon’s costar in that film, Aaron Taylor-Johnson, won the category at the Golden Globes but did not make the cut for the Academy Awards.) 
 
 RELATED VIDEO: La La Land Leads! Ryan Gosling and Emma Stone Musical Nabs Record-Tying 14 Oscar Nominations 
 
 Surprise: Viggo Mortensen 
 
 Mortensen said it best himself: “It’s the little movie that could.” 
 
 After the Captain Fantastic actor scored a Golden Globe nomination for his role as the patriarch of a family who is forced to reintegrate into society after living in isolation for a decade, the Screen Actors Guild also honored Mortensen with a nod for outstanding performance by a male actor in a leading role for the summer comedy. Mortensen can now add “Oscar nominee” to his resume. 
 
 Snub: Finding Dory 
 
 The Pixar sequel fans waited 13 years for the sequel, but it just couldn’t swim its way into awards season. The forgetful yet lovable fish voiced by Ellen DeGeneres scored with reviewers and at the box office (it’s earned over $1 billion worldwide), but was edged out in a year full of strong contenders in the best animated feature film category, including Disney’s Moana and Zootopia. 
 
 Awards season gave no love for Sully. 
 
 After being left out of both the Golden Globes and the SAG Awards, fans hoped that the Miracle on the Hudson movie would be able to nab a couple nominations at the Oscars, but there was no such luck. Neither director (and Academy golden boy) Clint Eastwood nor Hanks, a two-time Best Actor winner, were recognized. ||||| Oscar Snubs: Straight Outta Compton, Johnny Depp Left Off 2016 Nominees List 
 
 Jaimie Trueblood 
 
 A24 
 
 Netflix 
 
 Disney / Pixar 
 
 RELATED: And the Award for Most Memorable Oscar Speech Goes To ... 
 
 The Weinstein Company 
 
 After some shocking oversights with last weekend's Golden Globes contenders and some surprising nods from the Screen Actors Guild , the big day has arrived: the Academy Award nominations are in!As usual, some of the year's frontrunners and favorites of critics and moviegoers alike didn't wake up to congratulatory messages. Most notably, no actors of color were tapped in the individual acting categories – the second year in a row From Johnny Depp to Straight Outta Compton, here's who and what was left out in the cold for the Oscars, which airs on Feb. 28.Straight Outta Compton was only recognized for Best Original Screenplay after surprise nominations at this season's other award derbies.The snub further exemplifies the lack of diversity among this year's top categories.The pint-size Room star scored a nomination from the Screen Actors Guild but was ignored at last weekend's Golden Globes and, now, by the Academy.At only 9, a nomination for Jacob Tremblay would have set him up to be the youngest person ever to win an Academy Award. Helen Mirren 's portrayal of gossip columnist Hedda Hopper in Trumbo earned her nods from the Hollywood Foreign Press Association and the Screen Actors Guild, but, unfortunately she won't face off against Rachel McAdams and Alicia Vikander.Mirren's costar Bryan Cranston , however, is nominated for his turn as the blacklisted screenwriter.Elba's portrayal of a West African battalion leader in Netflix's first feature film offering Beasts of No Nation seemed like a sure thing.Unfortunately, Cary Joji Fukunaga's gripping drama received no love from the Academy.While Sylvester Stallone has received an overwhelming amount of love for reprising his role as Rocky Balboa in Creed, the film's lead actor has been shut out of the award circuit. Jordan may be one of Hollywood's most promising rising stars, but this is the second time the 28-year-old actor has been overlooked by the Academy – he was snubbed for his breakout role in Fruitvale in 2013. Now, despite his impressive physical transformation in Creed – and the film's impressive $106 million domestic haul – he's been ignored again.Stewart received the French equivalent of the Oscar, the Cesar Award, in December 2014 for Clouds of Sils Maria. Her Best Supporting Actress trophy was the first time an American woman has ever been given the honor, so it's a surprise the Academy didn't follow suit.While 99 Homes was a sleeper hit when it was released this past September, Shannon's portrayal of a merciless real-estate broker was recognized by the Screen Actors Guild.Instead, Sylvester Stallone 's latest turn as the iconic Rocky Balboa nabbed the coveted fifth spot at the Oscars.Depp will not be up for an Academy Award, despite an eerie transformation into Boston crime boss Whitey Bulger in Black Mass and early raves for his menacing performance.While the beloved Inside Out – a big winner at the Golden Globes – scored a nod, Pixar's other 2015 offering, The Good Dinosaur, did not.The movie was Pixar and Disney's second offering of 2015 – up next is Finding Dory, the Finding Nemo spin-off, and then the third Cars installment. 2017's Coco will be the next completely new story from the studio.While Carol's stars Rooney Mara and Cate Blanchett scored individual nominations, the film – an assumed shoo-in for Best Picture – was left off the list of eight.Instead, Bridge of Spies – which wasn't recognized in the picture category by either the Hollywood Foreign Press Association or the Screen Actors Guild – nabbed a coveted spot.While Scott's The Martian was tapped with a Best Picture nomination and a Best Actor nod for Matt Damon, the director wasn't among the five names released on Thursday.Scott has been nominated three times in the category – for Thelma and Louise, Gladiator and Black Hawk Down, with no wins.Going Clear was something of a phenomenon when it debuted on HBO in 2015. The documentary, which examined life inside the Church of Scientology, garnered a ton of attention and even inspired an Saturday Night Live spoof – despite backlash from the church.While he's garnered lots of love from the Academy in years past, Tarantino went largely unnoticed for his latest effort, The Hateful Eight The auteur has been previously nominated five times, including two wins for Best Original Screenplay, but went largely overlooked this year. The Hateful Eight did receive nods for Best Supporting Actress ( Jennifer Jason Leigh ), Best Original Score and Best Cinematography, but was not nominated for Best Picture despite generating considerable buzz.Despite taking home the Golden Globe for Best Screenplay for Steve Jobs, Sorkin was not even nominated for the Academy's equivalent award.The wordsmith already has one gold statue under his belt for The Social Network in 2010, and was nominated again in 2012 for his adaptation of Moneyball. ||||| For the second year in a row, the Academy did not nominate any black actors to any of the 20 slots in the four acting categories. 
 
 If last year’s minority-free acting nominations led to the protest hashtag #OscarsSoWhite, this year’s all-white lineup is sure to trigger a fresh expression of outrage, #OscarsStillSoWhite. 
 
 Once again, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences did not nominate any black actors to any of the 20 slots in the four acting categories. 
 
 Further compounding the lack of diversity among the top categories, Straight Outta Compton, the drama about the rise of the rap group N.W.A, although it got an original screenwriting nomination, failed to earn a best picture nomination, even though the critically acclaimed movie has been recognized by other groups like SAG-AFTRA, which nominated its cast for a best ensemble award. 
 
 "It almost seems like a sequel to last year," commented Gil Robertson, president of the African American Film Critics Association. "Certainly, the people who were nominated gave performances that were deserving of noms. But one would have hoped that given the nominations a film like Straight Outta Compton has received from other guilds, it would have received a best picture nomination. That just leaves you scratching your head, because there is overlap between the Academy and the other groups. So where does the disconnect take place?" 
 
 The Academy has made a concerted effort to diversify its own membership, which traditionally has been heavily older, white and male, inviting 322 new members this past July that included Selma star David Oyelowo, British actress Gugu Mbatha-Raw, who appears in Concussion, and Compton director F. Gary Gray. And Academy president Cheryl Boone Isaacs has also announced a new initiative called A2020 to further diversify the Academy itself and also encourage the industry to open up more opportunities for women and minorities. It's also selected Chris Rock to make his second appearance as emcee of the Oscar broadcast, which this years airs Feb. 28. 
 
 When it comes to voting for its annual awards, the Academy is at the mercy of the industry itself and whatever films are produced and released in a given year. 
 
 This year, only a handful of awards-caliber films focused on black stories, like Compton or the Africa-set Beasts of No Nation, or featured black actors in prominent roles like Will Smith in Concussion, Michael B. Jordan in Creed, Idris Elba in Beasts and Samuel L. Jackson in The Hateful Eight. 
 
 Other minority performers — like the Puerto Rico-born Benicio Del Toro, who was touted as a possible best supporting actor nominee for his performance as a CIA operative with a private agenda in Sicario. Kitana Kiki Rodriguez and Mya Taylor, the transgender actresses were were nominated for Spirit Awards for Tangerine — were also overlooked. 
 
 Elba was nominated by BAFTA, SAG-AFTRA and the Golden Globes for his performance as an African warlord in Beasts, and Del Toro, a past Oscar winner for Traffic, was nominated by BAFTA for Sicario. 
 
 But though the Academy itself had opportunities to recognize performers of color, it didn’t take them. 
 
 "The Academy really must redouble its efforts to be more diverse in terms of its membership," Robertson said, "because its members are seeing things through a totally different lens that every other group around town." ||||| Coming soon: "Oscars: The Sequel." 
 
 A year after Alejandro Inarritu's "Birdman" swept top honors at last year's Academy Awards, Inarritu will again play a leading role at the Academy Awards with his 1820s revenge thriller "The Revenant," which landed a leading 12 nominations Thursday. 
 
 Other familiar faces are returning, as well, like last year's best actor winner, Eddie Redmayne ("The Danish Girl"), Jennifer Lawrence (a record fourth nomination for the 25 year-old for "Joy") and mainstay composer John Williams, who notched, staggeringly, his 50th nomination. 
 
 But absences were also stuck on repeat. A year after coming under withering criticism over a lack of diversity, the Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences again fielded an all-white group of 20 acting nominees, restoring the trending hashtag "OscarsSoWhite" to prominence. That story line should have a new twist this time, though, when Chris Rock — who famously labeled Hollywood "a white industry" — hosts the Feb. 28 ceremony. 
 
 Other showdowns await, too. 
 
 In a tumultuous and unpredictable awards season, "The Revenant" — which also landed nominations for best-actor favorite Leonardo DiCaprio, Tom Hardy and Inarritu's long-take maverick cinematographer, Emmanuel Lubezki — has emerged as a heavyweight, taking top honors at the Golden Globes and scoring a $38 million debut. 
 
 "Champagne and mezcal will run tonight!" said Inarritu in a statement from London. 
 
 But George Miller's post-apocalyptic sequel "Mad Max: Fury Road" followed with 10 nominations, including best picture and best director for Miller. And Ridley Scott's hit sci-fi epic "The Martian" landed seven nominations, including best picture and best actor for Matt Damon, but, surprisingly, no best director nod for Scott. 
 
 Eight out of a possible 10 films were nominated for best picture. The other five were: Tom McCarthy's investigative journalistic procedural "Spotlight," Steven Spielberg's Cold War thriller "Bridge of Spies," Adam McKay's Michael Lewis adaptation "The Big Short," the mother-son captive drama "Room" and the '50s Irish immigrant tale "Brooklyn." 
 
 Left on the outside were Todd Haynes' lesbian romance "Carol" (which fared better in acting nominations for Cate Blanchett and Rooney Mara) and the N.W.A biopic "Straight Outta Compton" (which still landed a nod for original screenplay). The miss for "Carol" meant one usual Oscar heavyweight — Harvey Weinstein — won't have a horse in the best picture race for the first time since 2008. 
 
 In front of and behind the camera, diversity remains a widely acknowledged problem for the movie industry, and few films starring and directed by minorities were seen as contenders. But many expected "Straight Outta Compton" to be nominated for best picture, and numerous handicappers had Idris Elba for "Beasts of No Nation" and Benicio Del Toro for "Sicario" as likely for best supporting actor. 
 
 Academy president Cheryl Boone Isaacs, who had led efforts to diversify the academy's memberships, acknowledged she was "disappointed." 
 
 "What is important is that this entire conversation of diversity is here and that we are talking about it," said Isaacs. "Talking gets to the doing, and we are going to do." 
 
 Ryan Coogler's acclaimed Rocky sequel "Creed," starring Michael B. Jordan, was also often cited as one of the year's best, but it drew only a nomination for Sylvester Stallone reprising his role as Rocky Balboa. 
 
 "I am incredibly humbled by this honor," Stallone, first nominated for the role in 1977 for "Rocky," wrote in an email. "I was not expecting it ... especially at this time in my life." 
 
 Alongside DiCaprio and Damon, the best actor nominees were: Michael Fassbender ("Steve Jobs"), Redmayne ("The Danish Girl") and Bryan Cranston ("Trumbo"). Two big names were left out: Johnny Depp for "Black Mass" and Will Smith for "Concussion." 
 
 The best actress field is led by favorite Brie Larson for "Room," along with Lawrence, Blanchett (her seventh nod), Saoirse Ronan ("Brooklyn") and Charlotte Rampling ("45 Years"). 
 
 After seemingly slipping in an unpredictable awards season, "Spotlight" rebounded Thursday, landing six nominations including best director for McCarthy, best screenplay for McCarthy and Josh Singer, best supporting actress for Rachel McAdams and best supporting actor for Mark Ruffalo. 
 
 Also nominated for best supporting actor were Mark Rylance, best known for his stage work, for "Bridge of Spies" and Christian Bale ("The Big Short"). 
 
 Nominees for best director shunned not just one filmmaking legend in Scott, but also Spielberg. Instead, Lenny Abrahamson for "Room" was the unexpected addition along with Adam McKay, known best for his broader Will Ferrell comedies, for "The Big Short." 
 
 "It was thrilling," said McKay, who made a pre-dawn party to watch the nominations. "We were screaming like idiots in the pitch black with the smell of waffles in the room." 
 
 Following a record $11 billion year at the box office, the academy still kept the year's biggest hit — J.J. Abrams' "Star Wars: The Force Awakens" — out of the major categories, instead nominating it for five technical awards. "Star Wars" may have set a domestic box office record with $822 million and counting, but "Room," with a minuscule $5.2 million to its name, was the bigger Oscar force. 
 
 Twentieth Century Fox ("The Revenant," ''The Martian") led a strong year for the major studios, though two indie upstarts — Open Road ("Spotlight") and A24 ("Room") — notched their first best picture nods. 
 
 Netflix's first original feature, Cary Fukunaga's "Beasts of No Nation," was shut out. (Netflix did, however, again break into the documentary category with three nods. 
 
 Along with Mara and McAdams, the best supporting actress nominees were Alicia Vikander ("The Danish Girl"), Jennifer Jason Leigh ("The Hateful Eight") and Kate Winslet ("Steve Jobs"), her seventh nod. 
 
 For the first time in years, as many as five films — "The Martian," ''Spotlight," ''The Revenant," ''Mad Max" and "The Big Short" — will have a legitimate shot at best picture. The odds of an Inarritu repeat, though, are against him. No filmmaker has ever directed back-to-back best picture winners. 
 
 ——— 
 
 Associated Press' Sandy Cohen, Lindsey Bahr and Michael Cidoni Lennox in Los Angeles contributed to this report. ||||| Marisa Tomei arrives at the 22nd annual Screen Actors Guild Awards at the Shrine Auditorium & Expo Hall on Saturday, Jan. 30, 2016, in Los Angeles. (Photo by Jordan Strauss/Invision/AP) (Associated Press) 
 
 In a flurry of wins at the Screen Actors Guild Awards and the Sundance Film Festival, diversity made a comeback. 
 
 Over just a few hours Saturday night, the SAG Awards and Sundance showered their honors on a parade of performers and films that presented a stark contrast to the crisis that has plagued the Oscars. Shortly after the screen actors handed out awards to Queen Latifah, Uzo Aduba, Viola Davis and Idris Elba (twice), Nate Parker's Sundance sensation "The Birth of a Nation," a drama about Nat Turner's slave rebellion, swept the festival's awards. 
 
 The two ceremonies, in Los Angeles and Park City, Utah, offered a night of reprieve from weeks of rancor over systemic inequality in the movie business and a second straight year of all-white Academy Award acting nominees. 
 
 "Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to diverse TV," said Elba in his third trip on stage as a presenter at the SAG Awards. His first two were to accept awards for his supporting performance in the Netflix child soldier drama "Beasts of No Nation" and for his lead performance in the BBC miniseries "Luther." 
 
 Soon thereafter, at Sundance, Parker took the festival's grand jury prize and its audience award. 
 
 "Thank you, Sundance, for creating a platform for us to grow, in spite of what the rest of Hollywood is doing," said Parker, whose directorial debut sold for a record sum to Fox Searchlight Pictures. 
 
 The SAG Awards top honor, best ensemble in a film, went to the newspaper drama "Spotlight," which came into Saturday badly in need of some momentum. The ensemble award had seemingly come down to "Spotlight" or Adam McKay's high finance tale "The Big Short," which last week took the Producers Guild's top award. The win assures a competitive and unpredictable Oscars finale, with "The Martian," ''The Revenant" and "Mad Max: Fury Road" also in the mix. 
 
 "No way," said Mark Ruffalo, one of the stars of "Spotlight." 
 
 He praised the writer-director Tom McCarthy and co-writer Josh Singer for their purposeful accuracy in penning the journalistic procedural about the Boston Globe's reporting on sexual abuse by Catholic priests. The two, he said, "took every single opportunity to tell the truth. They didn't take any cheap way. It was always the truth." 
 
 Elba made no direct reference to the uproar that has swept through Hollywood in the last two weeks, which might have been less severe had he been nominated by the Academy Awards, as many expected. But it was on the minds and tongues of seemingly everyone in Los Angeles' Shrine Auditorium. 
 
 Accepting the most outstanding ensemble award in a comedy series for Netflix's "Orange Is the New Black," co-star Laura Prepon gestured to the cast of the prison comedy standing behind her. 
 
 "Look at this stage," said Prepon. "This is what we talk about when we talk about diversity." 
 
 SAG winners for individual performances the last three years have corresponded with eventual Academy Award winners. Thus Leonardo DiCaprio ("The Revenant"), Brie Larson ("Room") and Alicia Vikander ("The Danish Girl") all cemented their status as Oscar favorites. Each won, as expected. 
 
 But supporting actor will differ this year. The category's perceived favorite is Sylvester Stallone for the Rocky sequel "Creed." Stallone, though, wasn't nominated by the screen actors. 
 
 Actors make up the largest branch of the Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences, which is why the SAG Awards are a closely watched harbinger of the Oscars. But the Screen Actors Guild is massive by comparison: some 160,000 members to the academy's 6,000-plus. Voting for the SAG Awards, which concluded Friday, also overlapped with the widespread debate over the industry's inclusiveness that followed Academy Awards nominations. 
 
 Latifah gave one of the evening's most stirring speeches while accepting the award for most outstanding female performance in a TV movie or miniseries for HBO's Bessie Smith tale "Bessie." 
 
 "I hope that anyone out there who does not come in the package that people say you should, keep fighting for it," said Latifah. Backstage, Latifah added: "Hopefully our business will continue to supply the demand that people are asking for. The people want it. Give it to the people." 
 
 Aduba, accepting her second straight SAG Award for best actress in a comedy in "Orange Is the New Black," praised creator Jenji Kohan for making "a show that reflects and represents so many people." 
 
 For the third time, "Downton Abbey" won best ensemble in a drama series. Best actor in a TV comedy went to Jeffery Tambor for the acclaimed Amazon series "Transparent." Kevin Spacey won his second SAG Award for "House of Cards." 
 
 The great comedian Carol Burnett accepted the SAG lifetime achievement award from presenters Tina Fey and Amy Poehler. Recalling the uphill battle she faced, Burnett remembered being warned that "comedy variety is a man's game." She then dramatically shook her head and mouthed: "No." 
 
 Davis, who in September became the first African American to win best actress at the Emmys, won again for her performance in "How to Get Away With Murder." She reminded that "diversity is not a trending topic." 
 
 "All of the actors of color I know don't place any limitations on themselves," said Davis. "So regardless what is going on with the academy, what is going on with Hollywood, they will find a way to be excellent. We always have and we always will." 
 
 ___ 
 
 AP's Sandy Cohen in Los Angeles contributed to this report.
– Once again, every single one of the 20 actors nominated for an Oscar this year is white. The Hollywood Reporter points out a number of minority actors who were overlooked, including Benicio Del Toro in Sicario and Idris Elba in Beasts of No Nation, both of whom were nominated for BAFTAs. Elba was also nominated for a Golden Globe and a SAG-AFTRA. Will Smith (Concussion) and Michael B. Jordan (Creed) were also snubbed by the Oscars despite being nominated by other groups, USA Today reports, and both Concussion and Beasts were completely shut out. Furthermore, Straight Outta Compton was nominated for Original Screenplay but not for Best Picture, despite being nominated for or winning similar awards from numerous other groups. As TMZ points out, the only people from the NWA biopic to get Oscar nods were the screenwriters, who are both white. And just eight movies were nominated for Best Picture, so there was still room for the film if the Academy wanted to include it. The Hollywood Reporter and People run down other snubs. Some of the biggest surprises: Carol, seen as a "shoo-in" for Best Picture, didn't get a nomination. The Martian did get a Best Picture nod, but director Ridley Scott wasn't nominated in his category. Going Clear: Scientology and the Prison of Belief was big news, but failed to get a Best Documentary nod. Steve Jobs got acting nominations, but screenwriter Aaron Sorkin wasn't nominated despite winning the Golden Globe in the category on Sunday. Quentin Tarantino's The Hateful Eight was nominated for a number of awards, but not Best Picture, Best Director, or Best Adapted Screenplay. The Paul Walker tribute song, "See You Again," from Furious 7 was not nominated in the Best Original Song category. Helen Mirren missed out on both a potential Best Actress nod (Woman in Gold) and Best Supporting Actress nod (Trumbo).