The 82nd Annual Golden Globes got off to a smooth, running start, with host Nikki Glaser finding just the right sweet spot between gentle ribbing and showbiz fandom. After a too-predictable Ozempic opener, Glaser (the first woman to host the Globes on her own) set the tone for her monologue by telling the crowd, “I am not here to roast you tonight … you’re all so famous, so talented, so powerful, you could tell the country anything, except who to vote for.”
Yes, the truth hurts. But it can be mildly funny as well.
A salacious joke about Ben Affleck missed the mark, but Glaser scored with light jabs at Martin Short, Timothée Chalamet and “Joker: Folie à Deux.” When she noted that Peacock’s Eddie Redmayne vehicle “The Day of the Jackal” is “about a top-secret elite sniper that no one can find because he’s on Peacock,” even Eddie Redmayne laughed. About the edgiest Glaser got was when she said, “Oh look, it’s two-time Holocaust survivor Adrien Brody!”
Then it was on with the show, as the Globes feature one topline category after another. They started out 1-for-1, with Zoe Saldaña winning for “Emilia Pérez,” besting an incredibly talented field that included her co-star Selena Gomez, Margaret Qualley for “The Substance,” Isabella Rosellini (“Conclave”), Ariane Grande (“Wicked”) and Felicity Jones (“The Brutalist.”) Saldaña has been in so many blockbuster franchises that entail motion-capture acting that we lose sight of her pure talents as an actor. She was transcendent in role that was part musical, part dark comedy and part heartfelt drama.
Other early winners:
- Jean Smart for “Hacks.” I love Jean Smart and “Hacks” is a superb show, but I would have liked to see Selena Gomez get recognized for her fantastic work opposite the legends Steve Martin and Martin Short, or Kristen Bell for “Nobody Wants This,” one of the most likable new series in recent years.
- Kieran Culkin was in Kieran Culkin mode after his well-deserved supporting actor win for Jesse Eisenberg’s razor-sharp feature film “A Real Pain,” revealing, “My wife and I did a shot of tequila with Mario Lopez. Definitely feeling that. Whole speech is gone. Rip it, Kieran!”
- Hiroyuki Sanada won for best actor on a TV drama for his transcendent work on “Shōgun,” and “Shōgun’s” Tadanobu Asano won for best supporting actor, while Jessica Gunning took home supporting female actor for “Baby Reindeer.” All great choices. Asano has been in some big American productions, including the “Thor” franchise, but acknowledged with room-winning charm that he’s not exactly a household name. “Maybe you don’t know me,” he said, “I’m an actor from Japan, my name is Tadanobu Asano,” noting this was a “very big present.” The joy was infectious.”
For a moment, it felt as if Glaser was about to bring the show to a screeching halt with a musical mashup of “Conclave” and “Wicked” called “Pope-ular.” But it turned out to be a meta joke, with Glaser acknowledging the number sucked and moving things along. Phew!
There was a time when the Golden Globes were accorded more prestige than they deserved, and a couple of times when they hardly mattered at all and were on life support — and now they’re back with just about the right amount of respect. They’ll never have the clout and cache of the Oscars for movies or the Emmys for TV, but it’s once again a pretty big deal for a show or a film or an actor to win a Golden Globe.
Remember when Tom Cruise said he was returning his three Golden Globes over the Hollywood Foreign Press Association membership scandal? The HFPA is no more, and who knows where that trio of Globes wound up, but I don’t think anyone who wins on Sunday night is heading to FedEx come Monday morning.