Jeremy Renner in The Hurt Locker (top); Anna Kendrick, George Clooney in Up in the Air (bottom)
The Writers Guild of America came up with some pretty shocking choices at their 2010 awards held this evening: Mark Boal's The Hurt Locker (directed by Kathryn Bigelow) for best original screenplay, Jason Reitman and Sheldon Turner's Up in the Air (directed by Reitman) for best adapted screenplay, and Mark Monroe's The Cove (directed by Louie Psihoyos) for best documentary screenplay. Okay, so maybe those weren't exactly shocking choices — unless you see them as shocking in their utter predictability.
According to one tweet by Thompson on Hollywood's Anne Thompson, Mark Boal, a journalist who spent time with the US military's Explosive Ordnance Disposal team in Baghdad in 2004, thanked The Hurt Locker's Kathryn Bigelow "for believing in an unpopular project about an unpopular war." The WGA win marked the third major guild victory for the Iraq War drama, following Bigelow's historic Directors Guild win (first woman to get the award) and the film's unexpected Producers Guild victory over James Cameron's blockbuster Avatar.
Other WGA winners included Modern Family in the new series category, Georgia O'Keefe for the longform television (adapted) and Taking Chance for longform television (original). Saturday Night Live and The Daily Show with Jon Stewart tied in the comedy-variety category. Honorary awards went to Barry Levinson, Larry David, Stan Berkowitz, Anthony Peckham, and Carl Gottlieb.
Expect Reitman and Turner to win the best adapted screenplay Oscar as well, especially since their movie has little chance of getting the Best Picture award — or any other major or minor award on March 7, for that matter. Mark Boal's fate at the Oscars is iffier, for he'll be competing against Quentin Tarantino for Inglourious Basterds. Since Tarantino isn't a WGA member, his World War II revenge fantasy couldn't be considered for the award.
Photos: The Hurt Locker (Jonathan Olley / Summit Entertainment); Up in the Air (Dale Robinette / Paramount)