Daniel Day-Lewis, Julie Christie 2008 Oscar award favorites

Daniel Day-Lewis and British veteran Julie Christie underscored their status as Oscars front-runners by winning the top prizes at the 14th Screen Actors Guild (SAG) awards. Daniel Day-Lewis and Julie Christie had won the Golden Globe awards as well in January 2008.

British-born star Daniel Day-Lewis was crowned best actor for his performance as a tyrannical oil prospector in There Will Be Blood, while Christie won the best actress laurel for her stunning performance of an Alzheimer's sufferer in Away From Her. These two prizes are seen as helping Day-Lewis and Christie close to the Oscar crowning, which will take place on February 25, 2008.

As has always been the case, observers believe that the SAG Awards are a reliable indicator of likely Oscar success. For the past three years, the best actor and actress winners have gone on to win Academy Awards.

At the 14th Screen Actors Guild (SAG) awards, Daniel Day-Lewis made the acceptance speech memorable by dedicating his award to Heath Ledger, who died in New York in January 2008. He paid tribute to Ledger saying that the Australian actor was someone whose performances inspired him to keep working. According to Lewis, there are many actors in this room tonight including my fellow nominees who have given me that sense of regeneration. Heath Ledger gave it to me.

In her acceptance speech, 66-year-old Julie Christie paid tribute to the cast and crew of her drama about a woman slowly descending into dementia, saying that," If I've forgotten anybody it's just that I'm still in character."

Among the other winners was Javier Bardem, who also reiterated his claim to the Oscar statuette by picking the best supporting actor award for his portrayal of a psychopathic hit man in No Country for Old Men. The film is considered a favorite to dominate at the Oscars after earning eight nominations. While the best supporting actress prize went to 83-year-old Ruby Dee for her performance in the Ridley Scott-directed crime drama American Gangster, the television acting awards were dominated by long-running The Soprano.