Golden Globes mystery: How did Jim Carrey win for ‘The Truman Show’ anyway?

Tariq Khan
·4 min read
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January 1999. One quarter of a century ago. I attended the Golden Globe Awards for the first time (as an accredited member of the press) — and it was a night that I’ll never forget.

Interestingly enough, the most memorable moment of the night for me wasn’t having Best TV Supporting Actress co-winner Camryn Manheim (“The Practice”) quiz me on lines from 1997’s hit comedy “Romy and Michele’s High School Reunion.” (She had brilliantly played a small role in it, and I tried to convince her that I knew every line in the film by heart.)

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Rather, it was when I was practically escorted out of the backstage press room for expressing my shock when Lauren Bacall announced Jim Carrey as the year’s Best Drama Actor for “The Truman Show,” beating out the likes of Tom Hanks in “Saving Private Ryan,” Ian McKellen in “Gods and Monsters” and Nick Nolte in “Affliction.” (My money had been on McKellen.)

Even Carrey himself was in a state of disbelief, wisecracking that the Globe made him a “shoo-in for the Blockbuster Entertainment Award” — watch his acceptance speech above. He wasn’t far off, as his victory failed to secure him a spot in the Oscar lineup for Best Actor.

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So how did Carrey do it? Now that I’ve had ample time to process it, I can finally present my five reasons why.

1. It was his first highly acclaimed dramatic performance.
He became a breakout star in 1994 for appearing in the smash comedies “Ace Ventura: Pet Detective” and “The Mask,” the latter of which earned him a Golden Globe nomination for Best Comedy Actor. He continued to generate big laughs (and big box office) in films such as 1996’s “The Cable Guy” and 1997’s “Liar, Liar” (with “Liar” resulting in a second invite to the Globes). But his role as Truman Burbank in 1998’s “The Truman Show” truly showed that he wasn’t just a guy full of gags. He could actually act. The Globes wanted to acknowledge that. And so they did.

2. “The Truman Show” had over-performed at the Golden Globes.
It received six nominations, including for Best Film Drama. That was one more than eventual winner “Saving Private Ryan” and on par with the night’s Best Comedy or Musical (and eventual Oscar champ) “Shakespeare in Love.” The Globes loved “Truman” enough to also reward it with Best Supporting Actor for Ed Harris and Best Score. All of that support for “Truman” allowed Carrey to score, as well.

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3. He had advantages over the competition.
Hanks had previously won the category for 1993’s “Philadelphia” and 1994’s “Forrest Gump,” so was there little desire to reward him again for “Ryan.” McKellen and Nolte were seen as the Oscar favorites going into the Globes. Vote-splitting might have afflicted them both. The fifth contender was Stephen Fry in “Wilde” and even he knew that he was strictly along for the ride. So the Globes went wild and went with Carrey.

4. Globe voters really wanted to see him give an acceptance speech.
Imagine if the Globes had gone with the mellow McKellen or the no-nonsense Nolte. They would have been fine on stage, but nowhere nearly as entertaining as the charismatic Carrey. The voters wanted to enjoy a great show. That was enough to help “The Truman Show” carry Carrey to victory.

5. The Globe voters wanted to get Carrey into the Oscar race.
The members of the Hollywood Foreign Press Association (who cast ballots for the awards) knew that the Golden Globes could influence the Oscar derby. They could have provided McKellen or Nolte with the nudge that they needed to advance towards the Oscar. Instead, the Globes settled on Carrey in hopes of helping him secure at least a nom. Unfortunately, the Globe failed to make a difference. Carrey was overlooked by the academy and Roberto Benigni would end up rejoicing as Best Actor for “Life is Beautiful.” Oscar or not, at least Carrey had a moment to shine for his beautiful performance in “The Truman Show.”

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