On this week’s “Screen Talk,” co-hosts Anne Thompson and Ryan Lattanzio preview the upcoming Golden Globes, which will broadcast live at 5 p.m. PT/8 p.m. ET on Sunday, January 5 on CBS, streaming on Paramount+.
The Golden Globes have evolved since the old cabal of 80 or so Los Angeles-based foreign correspondents (AKA the Hollywood Foreign Press Association), who drove movie stars and publicists crazy with their dreaded press conferences, weathered a scandal over their lack of diverse membership and a 2022 show cancellation on NBC, and then turned for-profit under new owners (including IndieWire parent PMC, in a joint venture with Eldridge).
The new Golden Globes consist of one-time HFPA members numbering about 70, still based in LA, who get paid $75,000 a year, and the balance of the diversified total of 300 Globes voters from 76 countries around the world, who don’t get paid. There are no more press conferences. And this combo of voters yielded nominations that included not only “The Substance” star Demi Moore and director Coralie Fargeat, but “All We Imagine as Light” for Best International Film as well as its director Payal Kapadia.
On the other hand, while the organization now claims to hold a membership of 60 percent racially and ethnically diverse participants, the voters shockingly did not include Marianne Jean-Baptiste (Mike Leigh’s “Hard Truths”) and Danielle Deadwyler (Malcom Washington’s “The Piano Lesson”).
The new event host is Comedy Central comedian Nikki Glaser, who has nowhere to go but up after last year’s disastrously tone-deaf Jo Koy. While we miss hosts Ricky Gervais, Amy Poehle,r and Tina Fey, we still enjoy watching the uninhibited awards show as Hollywood stars sit cheek-by-jowl with drinks in hand. As always, the real fun begins at the after-parties.
The ultimate goal is to win a Globe and use that moment to push forward the momentum, complete with something new to advertise going into the Oscar race. (Which is why so many Hollywood players want the Globes to still exist.)
One movie competing for Globes that looks strong is Jacques Audiard’s French Oscar submission “Emilia Pérez” (Netflix), which is a dramatic Spanish-language film in the Musical or Comedy category, leading the pack of Globe contenders with ten nominations. The movie could take both Original Song and International Film. And Zoe Saldaña could take Supporting Actress, as she is likely to do at the Oscars. Karla Sofia Gascón is also a contender for Best Actress, Musical or Comedy.
In the Globes’ other Best Actress category (for Drama films), the win will most likely go to established movie star Angelina Jolie as an aging Maria Callas wandering around Paris in Pablo Larraín’s “Maria” (Netflix).
But “Wicked” (Universal) is coming on strong at the worldwide box office and could take Best Musical or Comedy, Cinematic and Box Office Achievement, as well as Best Actress in a Musical or Comedy (Cynthia Erivo). The original musical is a global musical phenomenon, so “Wicked” could have support overseas. Can Ariana Grande beat Saldaña? The momentum is with “Wicked.”
Blockbuster sequel “Inside Out 2” (Pixar) is more likely to win the Cinematic and Box Office Achievement Globe than Best Animated Feature, which could go to “The Wild Robot” (Universal).
“A Real Pain” (Searchlight) could win Best Supporting Actor for Kieran Culkin at both the Globes and the Oscars. And it’s in the running for the Best Motion Picture, Comedy or Musical award as well.
Popular American Palme d’Or winner “Anora” (Neon) is in the running for Best Comedy or Musical, Screenplay, Director (Sean Baker), and possibly Best Musical or Comedy Actress (Mikey Madison).
Could Comedy or Musical entry “The Substance” (MUBI) take some wins for Demi Moore or its screenplay? The Globes could make a statement of support for Coralie Fargeat‘s brainy feminist body-horror crowdpleaser.
“Conclave” (Focus) is a very European film, directed by Germany’s Edward Berger, and starring a rich international cast led by Best Actor contender Ralph Fiennes. The film could win Best Drama, Actor in a Drama, or Director.
But the race for Best Actor in a Drama is close: Adrien Brody for Brady Corbet’s holocaust survivor drama “The Brutalist” vs. Timothée Chalamet for James Mangold’s Bob Dylan origin myth “A Complete Unknown.” We could see Chalamet stepping up on that Globes stage. But “The Brutalist,” with seven nominations, is obviously a strong contender for Best Drama, Actor, Screenplay, and Director. These races are competitive.
Source: IndieWire
