Golden Globes include twists, turns, a local winner, and host
Jan 8, 2024, 10:37 AM | Updated: 12:40 pm
BEVERLY HILLS, CALIFORNIA - Lily Gladstone, winner of the Best Performance by a Female Actor in a Motion Picture – Drama award for "Killers of the Flower Moon," poses in the press room during the 81st Annual Golden Globe Awards at The Beverly Hilton. (Photo by Amy Sussman/Getty Images)
(Photo by Amy Sussman/Getty Images)
A former Mountlake Terrace resident became the first Indigenous person to win a Golden Globe for best actress and a Tacoma-raised comedian hosted the show.
A historic win
Lily Gladstone was the choice for best actress. She won for her role in Martin Scorsese’s “Killers of the Flower Moon” as Mollie Burkhart, a member of the Osage Nation in Oklahoma.
She opened her speech in the Blackfeet language, explaining backstage that “it was one of the more natural things I could do in the moment.” In her speech, Gladstone, who played Osage community member Mollie Burkhart, pronounced her win historic and said: “This is for every little rez kid, every little urban kid, every little Native kid out there who has a dream, who is seeing themselves represented and our stories told — by ourselves, in our own words — with tremendous allies and tremendous trust from and with each other.”
She explained that there are still significant advances to be celebrated.
Gladstone was raised in Montana on the Blackfeet Nation reservation before moving to Seattle for middle school.
Jo Koy gets off script, appears to fall flat
Comedian Jo Koy Koy brought the Globes a local touch explaining his love of watching past shows with his mom in Tacoma. However, much of his attempts at humor appeared to fall flat including a joke about anatomy and one about the abundance of NFL cutaways to Taylor Swift in stadium stands.
Koy got a few laughs with a joke about the lengthy “Oppenheimer,” saying, “I needed another hour.” But as the monologue went on, it was clear that the comic needed something else: sharper jokes from the writers. Cameras caught negative reactions from celebs like Harrison Ford and Selena Gomez, and the “Barbie” team did not appear amused when he noted that “Oppenheimer” was based on serious material but their own film was based on “a plastic doll with big boobies.”
“Barbenheimer” showdown
In the great “Barbenheimer” showdown of awards season 2024, round one went to the “heimer” part. Christopher Nolan’s sweeping biopic “Oppenheimer” dominated the evening, among its wins the prize for best drama, best director for Nolan, and best actor (Cillian Murphy) and supporting actor (Robert Downey Jr.). Greta Gerwig’s candy-colored “Barbie,” meanwhile, lost to upset victor “Poor Things” in the comedy/musical category, but won the new cinematic and box office achievement award, as well as best song for Billie Eilish’s wistful “What Was I Made For.”
It was a disappointing night for “Barbie” fans, and also for another fearsome force: Swifties. The pop superstar, who spent 2023 smashing all records in sight, lost out on her fifth Globe nomination. But she stunned on the carpet in shimmering Gucci green.
Will Ferrell and Kristen Wiig made an amusing bit of pretending — insisting — that the ceremony was “a serious night.” The joke was that few took the ceremony seriously. Noted presenter Mark Hamill: “It’s the only awards show with an open bar.”
2024 GOLDEN GLOBES
- Winners: “Oppenheimer” swept for movies. “Succession” led the pack for television. Here’s a full list of tonight’s winners.
- Red carpet: Margot Robbie channeled Barbie, Nicolas Cage celebrated his birthday and Taylor Swift wore green sequins.
- Host: Comedian Jo Koy ribbed on “Barbenheimer” in his opening monologue. Not every joke landed.
When Da’Vine Joy Randolph won for her acclaimed supporting actress performance in “The Holdovers,” she duly thanked the Hollywood Foreign Press Association. Only problem: The HFPA is now defunct, and many in the audience responded audibly: “They’re not called that.” After several years of turmoil that followed the revelation that the HFPA had no Black members, the Golden Globes were acquired last year by Eldridge Industries and Dick Clark Productions and turned into a for-profit venture. Some 300 entertainment journalists now vote for the awards. Later, Randolph spoke about the vibe of the evening. “It’s a party in there,” she said. “It’s a good time. We got through the pandemic. We stuck through our two strikes. There’s a sense of buzz in there.”
Succession succeeds
To nobody’s surprise, “Succession,” the HBO drama about the Roy family dynasty, had lots of success, winning best drama as well as major acting awards for Kieran Culkin, Matthew Macfadyen and Sarah Snook. Macfadyen said he’d enjoyed every second of playing the “weird and wonderful human grease stain” that was Tom Wambsgans. Culkin, who played troubled son Roman Roy, told the crowd how he’d been nominated for a Golden Globe 20 years ago and never thought he’d be back, and playfully taunted his co-nominee, Pedro Pascal of “The Last of Us,” quipping: “Suck it, Pedro. Mine!” And Snook, who played Shiv Roy, ascended the stage and said: “Oh, wow. I was kind of hoping I didn’t have to get up. Kieran’s usually better at these speeches, right? Don’t you want to get up instead?”
Also on the TV side, Hulu’s kitchen-based “The Bear” won big – taking best comedy series. Jeremy Allen White won for the second time, and Ayo Edebiri won her first Globe for her own lead performance, charming the ballroom crowd when she thanked the assistants of her agents and managers. “To the people who answer my emails, you’re the real ones,” she said, She added: “If I forgot to thank you, I’m sorry. Unless you were mean or something. Okay, bye!”
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AP Entertainment Writers Maria Sherman and Jonathan Landrum Jr. contributed to this report.
