Last night saw the biggest stars of film and television gather together as a number of gongs were handed out during the Screen Actors Guild Awards ceremony.

With the Oscar nominations due to be unveiled tomorrow, the comedic drama Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri bolstered its chances with three key wins.

The film, which centres on a scornful woman and her decision to challenge the authorities of her town over their failure to solve her murdered daughter’s case, picked up the coveted Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Motion Picture prize ahead of The Big Sick, Get Out, Lady Bird and Mudbound.

Recent Golden Globe winner Frances McDormand saw off competition from the likes of Sally Hawkins (The Shape of Water), Margot Robbie (I, Tonya) and Saoirse Ronan (Lady Bird) to clinch Leading Female Actor for her performance as Mildred Hayes.

Furthermore, fellow cast member Sam Rockwell edged out co-star Woody Harrelson to land the Supporting Male Actor prize for his turn as alcoholic police officer Jason Dixon.

Those three wins came at a crucial time for Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missori after it lost out on the Best Theatrical Motion Picture prize at the Producers Guild Awards the night before.

Elsewhere, British veteran Gary Oldman continued his dominant run in awards season as he clinched the Leading Male Actor gong for his portrayal of prime minister Winston Churchill in the war drama Darkest Hour.

Like Oldman, Allison Janney bolstered her chances of Oscar success as she took home Supporting Female Actor for her performance as LaVona Golden, the abusive mother of disgraced ice skater Tonya Harding in the sports biopic I, Tonya.

Meanwhile, the DC Comics blockbuster Wonder Woman prevailed in the Outstanding Stunt Ensemble category, with victory coming over the likes of Baby Driver, Dunkirk and Logan.

Finally, Oscar-winning legend Morgan Freeman was the recipient of the Lifetime Achievement award for a sublime film career spanning thirty years with memorable roles including Driving Miss Daisy (1989), The Shawshank Redemption (1994), Se7en (1997), Million Dollar Baby (2004), Invictus (2009) and The Dark Knight trilogy (2005-12).

With all said and done, the Oscar race will officially begin tomorrow when the Academy unveils their nominations for 2018!

In the meantime, the full list of SAG (film) winners are…

OUTSTANDING PERFORMANCE BY AN ENSEMBLE IN A MOTION PICTURE
THREE BILLBOARDS OUTSIDE EBBING, MISSOURI

OUTSTANDING PERFORMANCE BY A FEMALE ACTOR IN A LEADING ROLE
Frances McDormand, THREE BILLBOARDS OUTSIDE EBBING, MISSOURI

OUTSTANDING PERFORMANCE BY A MALE ACTOR IN A LEADING ROLE
Gary Oldman, DARKEST HOUR

OUTSTANDING PERFORMANCE BY A FEMALE ACTOR IN A SUPPORTING ROLE
Allison Janney, I, TONYA

OUTSTANDING PERFORMANCE BY A MALE ACTOR IN A SUPPORTING ROLE
Sam Rockwell, THREE BILLBOARDS OUTSIDE EBBING, MISSOURI

OUTSTANDING ACTION PERFORMANCE BY A STUNT ENSEMBLE IN A MOTION PICTURE
WONDER WOMAN

Meanwhile, absent British star Claire Foy was awarded the Female Actor (Drama) prize for the second year in a row for her returning role as royal monarch Queen Elizabeth II in Netflix’s The Crown.

Her victory came at the expense of recent Emmy and Golden Globe-winning actress Elisabeth Moss (The Handmaid’s Tale).

For the seventh time in eight years, the Outstanding Stunt Ensemble prize was given to HBO’s Game of Thrones, with Stranger Things and The Walking Dead among the losing series.

On the funny side of things, Veep finally ended its long wait for a first win in the Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Comedy Series category, ahead of fellow HBO programme Curb Your Enthusiasm and Netflix duo GLOW and Orange is the New Black.

The political sitcom also brought leading lady Julia Louis-Dreyfus another Female Actor (Comedy) prize for her lauded performance as scorned politician Selena Meyer. However, the multi-Emmy winner was unable to pick up the award owing to her current cancer treatment.

Once again, seasoned performer William H. Macy took home Male Actor (Comedy) for the third time in four years for his role as dysfunctional family patriarch Frank Gallagher in Showtime’s adaptation of the hit British series Shameless.

His victory came at the expense of five other nominees, including recent Emmy winner Aziz Ansari (Master of None) and the experienced Larry David (Curb Your Enthusiasm).

Finally, the HBO series Big Little Lies added two more awards to its trophy cabinet as stars Nicole Kidman and Alexander Skarsgård both earned further recognition.

Having already won an Emmy and Golden Globe in recent months, Kidman overcame co-stars Laura Dern and Reese Witherspoon to win the Female Actor (Television Movie or Limited Series) gong for her performance as vulnerable housewife Celeste Wright.

Meanwhile, Skarsgård defeated big names like Benedict Cumberbatch (Sherlock: The Lying Detective) and Robert De Niro (The Wizard of Lies) to clinch Male Actor (TV Movie/Limited Series) for playing Celeste’s violent husband Perry.

The full list of SAG (television) winners are…

OUTSTANDING PERFORMANCE BY AN ENSEMBLE IN A DRAMA SERIES
THIS IS US

OUTSTANDING PERFORMANCE BY A FEMALE ACTOR IN A DRAMA SERIES
Claire Foy, THE CROWN

OUTSTANDING PERFORMANCE BY A MALE ACTOR IN A DRAMA SERIES
Sterling K. Brown, THIS IS US

OUTSTANDING PERFORMANCE BY AN ENSEMBLE IN A COMEDY SERIES
VEEP

OUTSTANDING PERFORMANCE BY A FEMALE ACTOR IN A COMEDY SERIES
Julia Louis-Dreyfus, VEEP

OUTSTANDING PERFORMANCE BY A MALE ACTOR IN A COMEDY SERIES
William H. Macy, SHAMELESS

OUTSTANDING PERFORMANCE BY A FEMALE ACTOR IN A TELEVISION MOVIE OR LIMITED SERIES
Nicole Kidman, BIG LITTLE LIES

OUTSTANDING PERFORMANCE BY A MALE ACTOR IN A TELEVISION MOVIE OR LIMITED SERIES
Alexander Skarsgård, BIG LITTLE LIES

OUTSTANDING PERFORMANCE BY A STUNT ENSEMBLE IN A TELEVISION SERIES
GAME OF THRONES