Jordan Straus via Associated Press
The 81st Golden Globe Awards aired Sunday night on CBS and Paramount+, and was a star-studded affair celebrating TV and film.
Greta Gerwig’s “Barbie” had the most nominations for film categories, with nine nods, and Christopher Nolan’s “Oppenheimer” followed closely with eight. HBO’s “Succession” topped the number of nods for TV. “Oppenheimer,” “The Bear,” “Beef,” “Succession,” “Poor Things” and “Anatomy of a Fall” all won at least two awards. (You can see the full list of winners here.)
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The show included a few historic wins: Lily Gladstone became the first Native actor to win Best Performance by an Actress in a Motion Picture — Drama, for her role as Mollie Burkhart in “Killers of a Flower Moon.” Ali Wong’s win made her the first actor of Asian descent to win in her category for Netflix’s “Beef.” Steven Yeun became the second person of Asian descent to win his award, after Darren Criss won in the category in 2019. Comedian Jo Koy hosted the ceremony, making him only the second person of Asian descent to host the show. (Sandra Oh was the first in 2019.)
There were a handful of changes to the award show this year. The Globes introduced two new categories: Cinematic and Box Office Achievement, and Best Performance by a Stand-Up Comic. (“Barbie” and Ricky Gervais won those categories, respectively.) CBS is also hosting the ceremony for the first time in 40 years, after NBC ended its longtime partnership.
This marks the first Globes ceremony since the Hollywood Foreign Press Association was shut down in June, following a 2021 Los Angeles Times report that the organization had zero Black members and several ethical breaches. Dick Clark Productions and Eldridge bought the rights to the Golden Globes in June. In October, the voting body expanded to 300 members.
HuffPost reporters and editors covered the ceremony. Take a look at all our updates from the night.
CORRECTION: An earlier version of this article identified Steven Yeun as the first actor of Asian descent to win a Golden Globe in his category. Actor Darren Criss, who is Filipino American, won in 2019 for his portrayal of Andrew Cunanan in “The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story.”
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AP
The Golden Globes Could Have Spread The Wealth More
Just a handful of shows and movies mostly dominated tonight: “Oppenheimer,” “Succession,” “The Bear,” “Beef,” “Poor Things,” “The Holdovers” and “Anatomy of a Fall” all won at least two awards. I love a large majority of these, but I also wish the Globes had spread the wealth a bit more tonight.
For example, my personal favorite movie of 2023, “Past Lives,” won nothing, which is a shame, though it had some stiff competition in the categories it was in. — Marina
Yeah, some of those are really good, with the exception of “The Holdovers.” But I also love a good unexpected win. I would have loved to see the great “Past Lives” get an award. — Candice
On the TV side, “Abbott Elementary,” which has week after week singlehandedly revitalized network TV, got nothing, as did the hilarious and wonderful “Jury Duty.” — Marina
“Abbott Elementary” has received a number of awards in the past, but it is the funniest actual sitcom in recent years. I’m kinda surprised to see it get shut out here.
I have a lot of quibbles with “The Color Purple,” but I know folks hated that it wasn’t nominated for Best Musical tonight and that neither Danielle Brooks nor Fantasia Barrino won for Best Supporting and Lead Actress, respectively. I was kind of surprised to see it not win anything, but I also feel … quite indifferent about it and that. — Candice
For example, my personal favorite movie of 2023, “Past Lives,” won nothing, which is a shame, though it had some stiff competition in the categories it was in. — Marina
Yeah, some of those are really good, with the exception of “The Holdovers.” But I also love a good unexpected win. I would have loved to see the great “Past Lives” get an award. — Candice
On the TV side, “Abbott Elementary,” which has week after week singlehandedly revitalized network TV, got nothing, as did the hilarious and wonderful “Jury Duty.” — Marina
“Abbott Elementary” has received a number of awards in the past, but it is the funniest actual sitcom in recent years. I’m kinda surprised to see it get shut out here.
I have a lot of quibbles with “The Color Purple,” but I know folks hated that it wasn’t nominated for Best Musical tonight and that neither Danielle Brooks nor Fantasia Barrino won for Best Supporting and Lead Actress, respectively. I was kind of surprised to see it not win anything, but I also feel … quite indifferent about it and that. — Candice
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'Oppenheimer' Wins Best Film—- Drama
This probably solidifies it as the current Best Picture front-runner in the Oscar race. Pretty big night for them, with four Golden Globes total. — Marina
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Lily Gladstone Wins Best Actress — Drama For 'Killers Of The Flower Moon'
She makes history as the first Native actor to win this award. Something I keep trying to emphasize any time she comes up: I really hope all of her awards attention means people check out some of her other work over the years, from guest-starring on “Reservation Dogs” to her wonderful breakout role in Kelly Reichardt’s “Certain Women” from all the way back in 2016. It’s a good reminder that whenever someone gets their “big break,” it’s actually because they’ve been working hard for a very long time. — Marina
Gladstone is a fantastic actress, and I hope that “Fancy Dance,” a movie that I watched nearly a year ago at Sundance, actually comes out at some point so that more people can get to see her in a role in which she is centered and that is written so well and complexly and helmed by a Native filmmaker (Erica Tremblay). — Candice
Yes! It’s absurd that it hasn’t gotten distribution. — Marina
Gladstone is a fantastic actress, and I hope that “Fancy Dance,” a movie that I watched nearly a year ago at Sundance, actually comes out at some point so that more people can get to see her in a role in which she is centered and that is written so well and complexly and helmed by a Native filmmaker (Erica Tremblay). — Candice
Yes! It’s absurd that it hasn’t gotten distribution. — Marina
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'Poor Things' Wins Best Film — Musical Or Comedy
I think this is the one big surprise we’ve had tonight? I assumed “Barbie” was the front-runner here. — Marina
I think “Poor Things” is absolutely hilarious and actually smart and unhindered. So much of what “Barbie” could not be. I’m happy it won. — Candice
Every trade magazine I’d perused while preparing for tonight seemed to put “Barbie” here. But hey, I’m not mad at them being wrong! — Erin
I think “Poor Things” is absolutely hilarious and actually smart and unhindered. So much of what “Barbie” could not be. I’m happy it won. — Candice
Every trade magazine I’d perused while preparing for tonight seemed to put “Barbie” here. But hey, I’m not mad at them being wrong! — Erin
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'Succession' Wins Best Drama Series
Of course.
I appreciate that everyone on the show is finally getting to take their victory lap for that spectacular final season, between this and presumably next week’s Emmys. They deserve it. — Marina
Yeah, we’ll probably see this next week as well. — Candice
I appreciate that everyone on the show is finally getting to take their victory lap for that spectacular final season, between this and presumably next week’s Emmys. They deserve it. — Marina
Yeah, we’ll probably see this next week as well. — Candice
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Sarah Snook Wins For 'Succession'
SHIV! Honestly, far and away the best person in this category. She killed it, especially this season. I’m surprised she thought she wasn’t going to have to get up there on stage because all season on “Succession,” we all said: “Give Sarah Snook all the awards.” The Shiv-Tom fight: TV perfection. — Marina
Happy to see her win too! And I will forever think of her for that extremely embarrassing scene in the boardroom in the final episode when the three siblings are physically fighting and she just walks out — because they’re all so goddamn embarrassing. — Candice
Happy to see her win too! And I will forever think of her for that extremely embarrassing scene in the boardroom in the final episode when the three siblings are physically fighting and she just walks out — because they’re all so goddamn embarrassing. — Candice
'The Bear' Wins Best Comedy Series
“The Bear,” a lot of laughs. I love, love, love this show. (I just realized I am currently wearing my “Original Berf” shirt.) But also, “Jury Duty” and “Abbott Elementary” are, uh, actually comedies. — Marina
Lionel Boyce is my boo in my head, so it was so nice to see him get to accept the award. He did an incredible job remembering so many names and THEN thanking the restaurant community for all they do — just a pitch-perfect gesture. — Erin
That standalone Marcus episode, when he explores the culinary scene of Copenhagen (and trains with Will Poulter), is one of my favorites. I hope he gets more moments to shine in Season 3. — Marina
Yes, to all of this. And I’m ready for awards committees to acknowledge other performances on this show. — Candice
Lionel Boyce is my boo in my head, so it was so nice to see him get to accept the award. He did an incredible job remembering so many names and THEN thanking the restaurant community for all they do — just a pitch-perfect gesture. — Erin
That standalone Marcus episode, when he explores the culinary scene of Copenhagen (and trains with Will Poulter), is one of my favorites. I hope he gets more moments to shine in Season 3. — Marina
Yes, to all of this. And I’m ready for awards committees to acknowledge other performances on this show. — Candice
Lee Sung Jin on the left (Photo by Getty Images)
'Beef' Sweeps The Globes
“Beef” has now won every limited series award tonight, with Ali Wong and Steven Yeun winning earlier in the night for their respective performances, and now the show winning Best Limited Series.
Lol at creator Lee Sung Jin for thanking the other driver in the real-life road rage incident that inspired the show. — Marina
Lol at creator Lee Sung Jin for thanking the other driver in the real-life road rage incident that inspired the show. — Marina
AP
Did 'Barbie' Just Get Thrown A Pity Golden Globe?
"Barbie" wins the box office achievement award. It is the first time this category was added to the ceremony.
A weird award to include in this new iteration of the Globes because 1. The Oscars tried it a few years ago, and very quickly walked it back because absolutely no one liked it! 2. As many people have already pointed out on social media: “That’s what the money is for!!!!!” (said in Don Draper’s voice) 3. This year, of all years, is an especially strange year to introduce this award because of the dominance of Barbenheimer. — Marina
This is such an obvious case of let’s give “Barbie” something because we have no intention of actually giving it any other award. Which is fine to me, because I think better movies happened last year. But it’s also weird to nominate some of the same movies that were nominated for their actual merit in other categories. This just seems indulgent. — Candice
Yep. And also, “let’s find a reason to nominate Taylor Swift so that she’ll show up.” Also, Margot Robbie shouting out “the bravery” of Warner Brothers and Mattel, two major corporations, for “taking a risk” in greenlighting the movie. *shrug* — Marina
LOL don’t get me back on my bandwagon of this “this is very obviously a Mattel-sponsored movie and it needs the movie perhaps more than the movie needs it.” But I will.
And yes, this is very clearly a “we need Swifties to watch the show, so let’s cut away to Taylor Swift every five minutes and nominate her in a BS category.” So desperate. — Candice
LMAO. I agree with all of this. And still stand by our decision of NOT including “Barbie” in our best films of the year list for 2023. It was fine. Aggressively fine! Also, more America Ferrera all the time. — Erin
I had a great time seeing it in the theater, and I liked a lot of it. But ultimately, it’s a movie made by two huge corporations and essentially a two-hour advertisement for a toy. I think Greta Gerwig made the best film she could, given those constraints, and it was a healthy sign for the movie industry that it made a lot of money. But as we’ve discussed throughout the night, there was a wealth of great films in 2023. — Marina
A weird award to include in this new iteration of the Globes because 1. The Oscars tried it a few years ago, and very quickly walked it back because absolutely no one liked it! 2. As many people have already pointed out on social media: “That’s what the money is for!!!!!” (said in Don Draper’s voice) 3. This year, of all years, is an especially strange year to introduce this award because of the dominance of Barbenheimer. — Marina
This is such an obvious case of let’s give “Barbie” something because we have no intention of actually giving it any other award. Which is fine to me, because I think better movies happened last year. But it’s also weird to nominate some of the same movies that were nominated for their actual merit in other categories. This just seems indulgent. — Candice
Yep. And also, “let’s find a reason to nominate Taylor Swift so that she’ll show up.” Also, Margot Robbie shouting out “the bravery” of Warner Brothers and Mattel, two major corporations, for “taking a risk” in greenlighting the movie. *shrug* — Marina
LOL don’t get me back on my bandwagon of this “this is very obviously a Mattel-sponsored movie and it needs the movie perhaps more than the movie needs it.” But I will.
And yes, this is very clearly a “we need Swifties to watch the show, so let’s cut away to Taylor Swift every five minutes and nominate her in a BS category.” So desperate. — Candice
LMAO. I agree with all of this. And still stand by our decision of NOT including “Barbie” in our best films of the year list for 2023. It was fine. Aggressively fine! Also, more America Ferrera all the time. — Erin
I had a great time seeing it in the theater, and I liked a lot of it. But ultimately, it’s a movie made by two huge corporations and essentially a two-hour advertisement for a toy. I think Greta Gerwig made the best film she could, given those constraints, and it was a healthy sign for the movie industry that it made a lot of money. But as we’ve discussed throughout the night, there was a wealth of great films in 2023. — Marina
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Cillian Murphy Wins For “Oppenheimer”
A solid performance and gracious speech, acknowledging his long association with Christopher Nolan.
An aside: I love that Murphy’s fellow Irish man Andrew Scott (aka Hot Priest) was so thrilled for him. It also reminds me that I so wish Andrew Scott was actually a front-runner for all of the Best Actor awards this season because for me, he’s far and away the best nominee in that category. His performance in “All of Us Strangers” is one I haven’t stopped thinking about for months. — Marina
Agreed, Marina! Murphy was extraordinary in “Oppenheimer,” and Scott is also so so good in the equally great “All of Us Strangers.” — Candice
I’ll have to move up “All of Us Strangers” on my watch list.” — Erin
An aside: I love that Murphy’s fellow Irish man Andrew Scott (aka Hot Priest) was so thrilled for him. It also reminds me that I so wish Andrew Scott was actually a front-runner for all of the Best Actor awards this season because for me, he’s far and away the best nominee in that category. His performance in “All of Us Strangers” is one I haven’t stopped thinking about for months. — Marina
Agreed, Marina! Murphy was extraordinary in “Oppenheimer,” and Scott is also so so good in the equally great “All of Us Strangers.” — Candice
I’ll have to move up “All of Us Strangers” on my watch list.” — Erin
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Emma Stone Wins For “Poor Things”
The level of difficulty in her performance is so, so impressive. If you haven’t seen “Poor Things,” just know that she has to quite literally build this character from the ground up, changing her physicality and speech bit by bit, as her character progresses in her development into a fully fledged woman coming up against society’s expectations of her. — Marina
I’m looking forward to finally seeing this. I’m going to try to see it in theaters this week. — Erin
This is the best performance I’ve ever seen Stone do, and I think she has a bevy of really good ones. As you said, Marina, this is an extremely technical and difficult performance, and she pulls it off so well. — Candice
I’m looking forward to finally seeing this. I’m going to try to see it in theaters this week. — Erin
This is the best performance I’ve ever seen Stone do, and I think she has a bevy of really good ones. As you said, Marina, this is an extremely technical and difficult performance, and she pulls it off so well. — Candice
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Kieran Culkin Finally Gets His Due
Again, every single actor in “Succession” is unbelievably good. But I’m so glad to see Kieran Culkin get his due, both for his career — as he references in his speech, he was nominated for “Igby Goes Down” 20 years ago — and for having a hell of a run on “Succession.” Roman had a pretty big arc this season, so it feels right to give this award to him, over his castmates Jeremy Strong and Brian Cox. — Marina
I knew this was the “Succession” category with so many actors nominated from it in this category. And all of these potential wins would have been well deserved. But I am happy Culkin won. The Culkin fam has been great for so very long. — Candice
Remember he was the cousin who would always pee in the bed in “Home Alone”? Fuller! I love that movie. What a great win for Kieran tonight. — Erin
I knew this was the “Succession” category with so many actors nominated from it in this category. And all of these potential wins would have been well deserved. But I am happy Culkin won. The Culkin fam has been great for so very long. — Candice
Remember he was the cousin who would always pee in the bed in “Home Alone”? Fuller! I love that movie. What a great win for Kieran tonight. — Erin
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Ayo Edebiri Gives Perfect Acceptance Speech, Thanking Everyone Including The People Who Answer Her Emails
I love “The Bear,” and I LOOOVE Ayo Edebiri. This win is so well-deserved. I love how she thanked her team, especially her assistants and the folks who answer her emails. It’s so important to thank all the people who help you get where you are — and this was such a kind moment. — Erin
Ayo! Just when we couldn’t love her more. — Marina
Ayo! Just when we couldn’t love her more. — Marina
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'Anatomy Of A Fall' Wins Best Film Not In The English Language
Another win for Justine Triet and “Anatomy of a Fall.” I love Triet shouting out every member of the cast, from Milo Machado Graner, the phenomenal child actor whose character is having to process the film’s revelations just as we are; to Snoop, the dog who plays a pivotal role: "Thank you for being yourself, just a dog."
One quibble I have with this category: while I appreciate the attempt to reconfigure the category (it was formerly “foreign film,” which was really not great when they were essentially saying Asian American films like “Minari” and “The Farewell” were “foreign”), it’s still an imperfect solution, given that several of these nominees, including “Past Lives” and “Anatomy of a Fall,” are actually primarily in English. Not to sound like a cliché, but maybe great film is global and shouldn’t have arbitrary borders? — Marina
Agreed. I thought of that too, Marina! But mostly for “Past Lives” this year, which is primarily in English and is also set primarily in the U.S. and centers on an Asian American, like you said. It’s…awkward. — Candice
One quibble I have with this category: while I appreciate the attempt to reconfigure the category (it was formerly “foreign film,” which was really not great when they were essentially saying Asian American films like “Minari” and “The Farewell” were “foreign”), it’s still an imperfect solution, given that several of these nominees, including “Past Lives” and “Anatomy of a Fall,” are actually primarily in English. Not to sound like a cliché, but maybe great film is global and shouldn’t have arbitrary borders? — Marina
Agreed. I thought of that too, Marina! But mostly for “Past Lives” this year, which is primarily in English and is also set primarily in the U.S. and centers on an Asian American, like you said. It’s…awkward. — Candice
Ricky Gervais Wins For 'Armageddon'
Like Jim Gaffigan, I appreciate that this awards show is finally acknowledging stand-up specials — especially when they seem to hate stand-up comics and stand-up comedy. I haven’t seen “Armageddon” yet, but I do plan to watch it. I’ve seen all the other nominated stand-ups and it’s weird that the only actually great and smart clip they showed was from Wanda Sykes’ special “I’m An Entertainer” — and it doesn’t even win! Like, I know there are better segments from all the others that were somehow just… not chosen. The whole presentation seemed like “look how unfunny these professionally funny people are.” Ugh, come on. — Candice