Golden Globes Predictions: Best TV Movie/Limited Series – ‘The Queen’s Gambit’ Could Pull Off a Checkmate

Michael Schneider
·6 min read

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2021 GOLDEN GLOBE PREDICTIONS:
BEST TV MOVIE/LIMITED SERIES

UPDATED: Jan. 11, 2021

AWARDS COMMENTARY:
Last year, the HFPA somehow completely missed out on honoring HBO’s “Watchmen,” the critically acclaimed limited series that went on to dominate the Emmys. (“Chernobyl” won best limited series, but “Watchmen” failed to even get a nomination.) This year, the limited series race is stacked with contenders — too many worthy programs to all make the cut. But don’t keep your eye on any TV movies — in comparison to limited series, there aren’t any stand-alone made-for TV movies expected to break through.

AND THE PREDICTED NOMINEES ARE:

  1. "The Queen's Gambit" (Netflix)

    THE QUEEN'S GAMBIT (L to R) ANYA TAYLOR-JOY as BETH HARMON in THE QUEEN'S GAMBIT Cr. CHARLIE GRAY/NETFLIX © 2020
    THE QUEEN'S GAMBIT (L to R) ANYA TAYLOR-JOY as BETH HARMON in THE QUEEN'S GAMBIT Cr. CHARLIE GRAY/NETFLIX © 2020

    –
    EXECUTIVE PRODUCERS: William Horberg, Allan Scott, Scott Frank
    SYNOPSIS: Beth Harmon (played by Anya Taylor-Joy) is an orphan who becomes a chess prodigy, but alcoholism may prevent her from becoming the world champion.
    STARRING: Anya Taylor-Joy, Bill Camp, Moses Ingram, Isla Johnston, Christiane Seidel, Rebecca Root, Chloe Pirrie, Akemnji Ndifornyen, Marielle Heller, Harry Melling, Patrick Kennedy, Jacob Fortune-Lloyd, Thomas Brodie-Sangster, Marcin Dorociński

  2. "The Undoing" (HBO)

    The Undoing
    The Undoing

    –
    EXECUTIVE PRODUCERS: Celia Costas, Stephen Garrett, Bruna Papandrea, Per Saari, Nicole Kidman, David E. Kelley, Susanne Bier
    SYNOPSIS: Nicole Kidman and Hugh Grant star as Grace and Jonathan Fraser, a couple whose lives are shattered after a violent death and a chain of terrible revelations.
    STARRING: Nicole Kidman, Hugh Grant, Édgar Ramírez, Noah Jupe, Lily Rabe, Matilda De Angelis, Ismael Cruz Córdova, Edan Alexander, Michael Devine, Donald Sutherland

  3. "Mrs. America" (FX on Hulu)

    Mrs. America
    Mrs. America

    –
    EXECUTIVE PRODUCERS: Stacey Sher, Cate Blanchett, Ryan Fleck, Anna Boden, Coco Francini, Dahvi Waller, Micah Schraft
    SYNOPSIS: Based on the story of the movement to ratify the Equal Rights Amendment, and the backlash led by conservative activist Phyllis Schlafly.
    STARRING: Cate Blanchett, Rose Byrne, Uzo Aduba, Elizabeth Banks, Kayli Carter, Ari Graynor, Melanie Lynskey, Margo Martindale, John Slattery, Jeanne Tripplehorn, Tracey Ullman, Sarah Paulson

  4. "Unorthodox" (Netflix)

    UNORTHODOX
    UNORTHODOX

    –
    EXECUTIVE PRODUCERS: Anna Winger, Henning Kamm
    SYNOPSIS: Esty (Shira Haas) lives by the strict rules of the Hasidic community until one day, she breaks away from her arranged marriage and travels to Berlin to find herself.
    STARRING: Shira Haas, Amit Rahav, Jeff Wilbusch

  5. "Small Axe" (Amazon Prime Video)

    Small Axe
    Small Axe

    –
    EXECUTIVE PRODUCERS: Steve McQueen, Tracey Scoffield, David Tanner, Lucy Richer, Rose Garnett
    SYNOPSIS: An anthology consisting of five films that tell distinct stories about the lives of West Indian immigrants in London during the late 1960s to mid 1980s.
    STARRING: Letitia Wright, John Boyega, Malachi Kirby, Shaun Parkes, Rochenda Sandall, Alex Jennings, Jack Lowden, Micheal Ward, Amarah Jae St. Aubyn.

NEXT IN LINE:

  1. "Normal People" (Hulu)

    Normal People
    Normal People

    –
    EXECUTIVE PRODUCERS: Ed Guiney, Andrew Lowe, Emma Norton, Anna Ferguson, Sally Rooney, Lenny Abrahamson
    SYNOPSIS: The tender but complicated relationship of Marianne and Connell from the end of their school days in a. small-town west of Ireland to their undergraduate years at Trinity College.
    STARRING: Daisy Edgar-Jones, Paul Mescal

  2. "I May Destroy You" (HBO)

    Michaela Cole I May Destroy You
    Michaela Cole I May Destroy You

    –
    EXECUTIVE PRODUCERS: Michaela Coel, Phil Clarke, Roberto Troni, Sam Miller, Jo McLellan
    SYNOPSIS: Coel stars in this series, which explores the question of sexual consent in contemporary life and how, in the new landscape of dating and relationships, we make the distinction between liberation and exploitation.
    STARRING: Michaela Coel, Weruche Opia, Paapa Essiedu

  3. "Little Fires Everywhere" (Hulu)

    Little Fires Everywhere
    Little Fires Everywhere

    –
    EXECUTIVE PRODUCERS: Lynn Shelton, Liz Tigelaar, Kerry Washington, Pilar Savone, Reese Witherspoon, Lauren Neustadter
    SYNOPSIS: The intertwined fates of the picture-perfect Richardson family and an enigmatic mother and daughter who upend their lives.
    STARRING: Reese Witherspoon, Kerry Washington, Joshua Jackson, Rosemarie DeWitt, Jade Pettyjohn, Lexi Underwood, Megan Stott, Gavin Lewis, Jordan Elsass

  4. "The Good Lord Bird" (Showtime)

    (L-R): Joshua Caleb Johnson as Onion and Ethan Hawke as John Brown in THE GOOD LORD BIRD, "Smells Like Bear". Photo Credit: William Gray/SHOWTIME.
    (L-R): Joshua Caleb Johnson as Onion and Ethan Hawke as John Brown in THE GOOD LORD BIRD, "Smells Like Bear". Photo Credit: William Gray/SHOWTIME.

    –
    EXECUTIVE PRODUCERS: Jason Blum, Ethan Hawke, Mark Richard, Padraic McKinley, Albert Hughes, Jeremy Gold, Marci Wiseman, James McBride, Brian Taylor, Ryan Hawke, David Schiff, Marshall Persinger
    SYNOPSIS: Based on the novel by James McBride about abolitionist John Brown (Ethan Hawke), leading to his 1859 raid on the U.S. Army depot at Harpers Ferry.
    STARRING: Ethan Hawke, Hubert Point-Du Jour, Beau Knapp, Nick Eversman, Ellar Coltrane, Jack Alcott, Mo Brings Plenty, Daveed Diggs, Joshua Caleb Johnson

  5. "Fargo" (FX)

    Fargo
    Fargo

    –
    EXECUTIVE PRODUCERS: Noah Hawley, Warren Littlefield, Joel Coen, Ethan Coen, Adam Bernstein, Geyer Kosinsk, John Cameron, Leslie Cowan
    SYNOPSIS: In 1950 Kansas City, two crime syndicates vie for control, including a crime syndicate of Black migrants led by Loy Cannon (Chris Rock).
    STARRING: Chris Rock, Jessie Buckley, Jason Schwartzman, Ben Whishaw, Jack Huston

ALSO IN CONTENTION:

    • "Bad Education" (HBO)

    • "The Comey Rule" (Showtime)

    • "Defending Jacob" (Apple TV Plus)

    • "Devs"(FX on Hulu)

    • "Hollywood" (Netflix)

    • "I Know This Much is True" (HBO)

    • "The Plot Against America" (HBO)

    • "A Teacher" (FX on Hulu)

    • "Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt" (NBC)

    • "Your Honor" (Showtime)

2021 Golden Globes Predictions (Film)

2020-2021 Golden Globes Awards Timeline

  • Deadline for submission of Golden Globe Motion Picture and Television entry forms – Nov. 30, 2020

  • Deadline for Television nomination ballots to be mailed to all HFPA members by Ernst & Young – Dec. 30, 2020

  • Deadline for receipt of Television nomination ballots by Ernst & Young at 8:00 p.m. ET / 5:00 p.m. PT – Jan. 12, 2021

  • Deadline for Motion Picture nomination ballots to be mailed to all HFPA members by Ernst & Young at 8:00 p.m. ET / 5:00 p.m. PT – Jan. 13, 2021

  • The final screening date for Motion Pictures – Jan. 26, 2021

  • The final date for Motion Picture press conferences – Jan. 27, 2021

  • Deadline for receipt of Motion Picture nomination ballots by Ernst & Young at 3:00 p.m. ET / 12:00 p.m. PT – Jan. 30, 2021

  • Nominations for the 78th Annual Golden Globe Awards announced at 8:00 a.m. ET / 5:00 a.m. PT – Feb. 3, 2021

  • Final ballots mailed to all HFPA members by Ernst & Young – Feb. 23, 2021

  • 78th Annual Golden Globe Awards will air live coast to coast at 8:00 p.m. ET / 5:00 p.m. PT on NBC from The Beverly Hilton in Beverly Hills, California – Feb. 28, 2021

2021 Academy Awards Predictions

About the Golden Globes

The Golden Globes Awards, hosted by the Hollywood Foreign Press Association, is held annually with 93 members since 1944. The group recognizes excellence in film and television, across drama and comedy or musical categories. “Mad Men” and “The X-Files” hold the record for most wins as best drama, at three each, while “All in the Family” has won the most awards for best comedy/musical, with four wins. Carol Burnett has the record for most TV nominations, at 13 (she won five), while Alan Alda has the most TV wins, with 6 (out of 12 nominations).

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