It’s a new year and the Golden Globes are back! That’s right, after a year off following the HFPA’s promise to overhaul their 100 percent white organization, they’re back. Jerrod Carmichael is who they tapped to host, and he’s no fool, declaring the reason he got hired was because “he’s black.” Similar to Carmichael, I also assume the HFPA hasn’t really changed all that much, but evidently it was enough for all the big names in Hollywood to show up.
Just like previous Golden Globes ceremonies, this one was pretty loose. Everyone looked gorgeous, but everyone was definitely drunk, but that just made it fun. Something else I noticed during the night was that there were a ton of long acceptance speeches. Yes, there was a piano track to help ease people off the stage, but it never rose to a volume to drown out the likes of Michelle Yeoh or Guillermo del Toro from saying what they wanted to say. I’m here for it! And with so many categories being presented, they only went over time about half an hour. The freaking Oscars can barely say that and they don’t even present half their categories live! With the show being a little less stuffy than others, it was really fun seeing everyone interact and react both between breaks and even during the presentations!
As far as winners go, there was not too much I was surprised by here. In the end, the Oscars will still end up being just different enough in their nominations that I think it’s too hard to tell if certain categories will flip or not. What will be difficult is when they have to combine the drama and comedy into one singular acting pool. There were just too many good performances this year! For instance, I think both Austin Butler and Colin Farrell totally deserve to win the big one, but I’m glad they were both recognized here. Same goes for Michelle Yeoh and Cate Blanchett! I do think supporting actor is a lock with Key Huy Quan, which is totally deserved, but supporting actress has so many good options that I don’t know where the award will land by the end of the season. Last night though, it went to Angela Bassett. I was happy for her win, but as a huge fan of Triangle of Sadness, I was bummed Dolly De Leon lost out. The Fabelmans might have been the biggest surprise for me as Best Drama Film, but The Banshees of Inisherin was an obvious win.
I wish the television side of things could be a bit more exciting. Yes, it was awesome to see newcomer Abbott Elementary take home Best Comedy and an acting win, but I just don’t think that Julia Garner in Ozark was the best performance of the year for supporting actresses. Same for Zendaya in Euphoria, although the nominee pool was pretty weak there. Sounds like the HFPA didn’t watch that many shows this year. I was thrilled to see Paul Walter Hauser win for Black Bird (even though I have yet to watch the show), Jeremy Allen White for The Bear, as well as Evan Peters for Dahmer (same story there). At least there was some variety there from prior years! The White Lotus was also a lock win, and what a night for Jennifer Coolidge! She had the audience in fits with a rambling presentation opener and then got to redeem herself from the Emmys cutting her so short on her acceptance speech time. Similarly, Mike White accepting for the show’s win was hysterical – go find a clip of it somewhere, it’s totally worth your time.
Overall, it was a very fun evening. Of course, it’s an awards show, so there are always going to be a handful of cringe moments, but no one got slapped across the face! Progress! With the Golden Globes kicking things off, I’m reminded of how happy awards shows make me. I know my sister probably heard me talking and giggling to myself for the full three and a half hour runtime.