‘I can’t quite believe it!’

By Brian Marks and Christine Rendon For Dailymail.com

05:35 25 Feb 2024, updated 06:58 25 Feb 2024

Barbra Streisand recalled ‘dreaming of being an actress as a teenager’ as she was honored with the Life Achievement Award at the Screen Actors Guild Awards on Saturday.

The 81-year-old entertainer brought several high-profile stars to tears in the audienc, even as she joked it was ‘wonderful’ to receive the accolade because she didn’t have to sit and ‘squirm’ while watching someone else accept a prize she’d been nominated for before reflecting on the early days of her career.

She looked as chic as ever at the event in a stunning gold sequined gown with a black velvet coat atop it. 

Her speech came as the Screen Actors Guild honored the best performers in film and television at its 30th annual ceremony at Los Angeles’ Shrine Auditorium following SAG-AFTRA’S taxing 118-day strike last year.

‘This is such a wonderful award to get because you know in advance you’re going to get it,’ Streisand gushed. ‘You don’t have to sit there in squirm… And if you don’t have to put on such a happy face. “I’m so happy to lose!” 

‘Anyway, you all know what I mean,’ she joked.

‘I can’t believe it. I remember dreaming of being an actress as a teenager, sitting in my bed in Brooklyn with a pint of coffee ice cream and a movie magazine,’ she continued.

The Yentl star went on to reflect on her lifelong love of movies, including watching ‘the most beautiful actor’ Marlon Brando — who was her ‘first crush’ — in 1954’s Guys And Dolls.

‘He was so real, so believable. And I wanted to be the one he fell in love with, not Jean Simmons,’ she admitted.

Barbra reflected on her six-decade career as she thanked the actors and directors she had worked with over the years, including Warner Bros., Samuel Goldwyn, Louis B. Mayer and William Eyler, before paying tribute to the stars in the room at LA’s Shrine Auditorium.

‘I want to thank you for giving me so much joy, just watching all of you on the screen,’ she sweetly concluded. ‘Thank you for that.’

She left numerous audience members looking emotional on the Netflix broadcast, including a tear-streaked Anne Hathaway.

Emma Stone, one of the nominees, looked moved by Barbra’s speech, while her Poor Things costar Willem Dafoe beamed while clapping.

Barbra’s husband James Brolin looked as proud as could be from his prime spot in the auditorium.

Reese Witherspoon appeared to be misty-eyed, even as she grinned with delight at the touching speech, and Ted Lasso star Juno Temple seemed emotional as well. 

Pedro Pascal, who won an award earlier in the evening — and joked that he was drunk — looked over the moon as he joined in on a standing ovation for the legendary actress and filmmaker.

Jodie Foster and Brie Larson sat together at the same table, and both had reverent looks on their faces. 

Abbott Elementary star Quintessa Brunson looked delighted while she clapped on her feet. 

Kenneth Branagh — who is also an acclaimed director, like Streisand — showed some genuine joy as he applauded his fellow screen legend.

Ted Lasso’s Hannah Waddingham — who, like Streisand, made a name for herself on the stage before breaking out on screen — looked overcome by emotion. 

Jennifer Aniston previously paid tribute to her legendary friend, even joking about how they had once shared a kiss on New Year’s Eve.

‘Barbara, that’s all you have to say and you know,’ she said playfully.

‘That face, that voice, that talent. It is a once-in-a-lifetime talent and how lucky that it is in our lifetime,’ Aniston added.

Following her lengthy tribute, Bradley Cooper — who played Jackson Maine in the 2018 remake of A Star Is Born — made a surprise appearance to give a second tribute to the iconic star, hailing her a ‘true auteur.’

Streisand previously starred in the 1976 version of A Star Is Born, which was produced by her then-partner Jon Peters. Kris Kristofferson appeared as the self-destructive romantic lead in that film, which Bradley took on in the latest version, which he also directed.

Streisand’s film, which was a box-office hit despite receiving middling reviews, was the second remake of A Star Is Born, following the 1937 original directed by William Wellman and the George Cukor’s 1954 remake — the most acclaimed of all the adaptations — which starred Judy Garland and James Mason. (Cukor also directed 1932’s What Price Hollywood?, which is sometimes considered the earliest version of the story, as the 1937 film bares numerous similarities to it.)

Cooper also meant that Streisand was an ‘auteur,’ as she went on to become a successful director of the hit films Yentl, The Prince Of Tides and The Mirror Has Two Faces, all of which she also starred in.

Lily Gladstone upset A-listers Emma Stone and Margot Robbie, while Oppenheimer triumphed in most of the major film categories at the 30th annual SAG Awards, which took place Saturday at the iconic Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles.

The 37-year-old Native American actress Gladstone earned the coveted Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Leading Role for her incredible work in Killers Of The Flower Moon.

Oppenheimer star Cillian Murphy earned the Male Actor in a Leading Role gong, while his costar Robert Downey Jr. took home Male Actor in a Supporting Role, and the entire ensemble earned the top honor Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture at the end of the night.

Meanwhile, the critically acclaimed Succession was upset several times in the television categories, including by Elizabeth Debicki, who beat out Sarah Snook for The Crown, while The Last Of Us star Pedro Pascal triumphed over Kieran Culkin, Brian Cox and Matthew Macfadyen.

However, the HBO series ultimately take home the top honor Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series.

Elsewhere in television, The Bear earned Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Comedy Series, in addition to Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor and Male Actor in a Drama Series for Ayo Edebiri and Jeremy Allen White, respectively.

They were not the only dynamic duo to triumph, as Beef’s Ali Wong and Steven Yeun took home Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor and Male Actor in a Television Movie or Limited Series.

This gathering may not have been able to be a reality months ago, as SAG-AFRA was going through a taxing strike that ultimately lasted 118 days.

Winners were determined by SAG-AFTRA members, who vote for their favorites across a number of categories.

The awards come just months after SAG-AFTRA struck a deal with film studios following a months-long strike in which pay in the streaming era and artificial intelligence were top issues of concern.   

The strike began on July 25, 2023, and a tentative deal was struck on November 8. It formally ended on December 5, 2023, with 78 percent of union members voting yes. 

Despite disagreements over the final deal, the outcome was a huge relief for union leaders and the entertainment industry following a grueling few months of strikes.

The boycott coincided with the WGA strike, which lasted from May 2 to September 27 of last year.