Actress Judy Greer (R) reacts as she and Regina King (L) announce George Clooney as outstanding performance by a male actor in a leading role nominee for his work in “The Descendants” for 18th Annual Screen Actors Guild Awards in West Hollywood, California December 14, 2011. - Reuters Photo

LOS ANGELES: George Clooney's portrayal of a single father in “The Descendants” and Meryl Streep's turn as “The Iron Lady” Margaret Thatcher topped nominations Wednesday for the Screen Actors Guild awards.

Brad Pitt, Leonardo DiCaprio, Glenn Close and Tilda Swinton are also among stars tipped for prizes from the Guild, whose nominations traditionally kick off Hollywood's annual awards season.

“The Descendants,” “The Artist,” “The Help,” “Bridesmaids” and “Midnight in Paris” were nominated for outstanding cast performance, which has sometimes proved an indicator of best picture winner at the all-important Oscars.

The SAGs announcement – winners will be announced on January 29 – came a day ahead of the nominations for the Golden Globes, also seen as a key indicator of hopes for the Oscars, the climax of Hollywood's annual gong-fest.

In the individual SAGs nominations, Clooney faces competition from DiCaprio, for his portrayal of legendary FBI director J. Edgar Hoover in “J.Edgar” and Pitt in baseball movie “Moneyball.”

Also in the running for the male prize are Demian Bichir for his role as an immigrant in a “A Better Life” and Jean Dujardin, who made a big splash with the homage to silent movies, “The Artist.”

In the female category, Streep is joined by Close in “Albert Nobbs,” Viola Davis from “The Help,” Swinton in “We Need To Talk About Kevin,” and Michelle Williams who plays Marilyn Monroe in “My Week With Marilyn.”

Here are the nominees in other key categories:

Best supporting actor: Nick Nolte in “Warrior,” Kenneth Branagh in “My Week With Marilyn,” Armie Hammer in “J. Edgar,” Jonah Hill in “Moneyball” and Christopher Plummer in “Beginners.”- best supporting actress: Octavia Spencer in “The Help,” Berenice Bejo in “The Artist,” Jessica Chastain in “The Help,” Melissa McCarthy in “Bridesmaids,” Janet McTeer in “Albert Nobbs.”– outstanding stunt ensemble: “The Adjustment Bureau,” “Cowboys & Aliens,”' “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part II,” “Transformers: Dark of the Moon,” and “X-Men: First Class.”SAG awards are also given for television movies and mini-series. The main nominees are:

Best actor in TV movie or mini-series: Laurence Fishburne in “Thurgood,”Paul Giamatti in “Too Big to Fail,” Greg Kinnear in “The Kennedys,” Guy Pearce in “Mildred Pierce,” and James Woods in “Too Big to Fail.”- best actress in a TV movie or mini-series: Diane Lane in “Cinema Verite,”Maggie Smith in “Downton Abbey,” Emily Watson in “Appropriate Adult,” Betty White in “The Lost Valentine,” and Kate Winslet in “Mildred Pierce.”