Golden Globes Producers on Finding a Host, Landing at CBS and Where Nominee Taylor Swift Might Be Seated
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Golden Globes exec producers Glenn Weiss and Ricky Kirshner (of White Cherry Entertainment) don’t appear to be sweating the fact that with less than a month to go, there’s still no announced host for this year’s ceremony.
“Or is there?” Weiss quipped, a bit mysteriously. “We have to leave some room for some interesting announcements along the way.” Added Kirshner: “You said, ‘announced host,’ and we still have four weeks to go. We’ll be there on January 7.”
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Globes president Helen Hoehne is similarly cryptic: “To be determined,” she told Variety on Monday morning, as the org announced this year’s nominations at the Beverly Hilton. Insiders believe the Globes, Dick Clark Prods. and now CBS have sent out several feelers, but the timing is tough. With productions finally ramping up after a six-month work stoppage due to the Hollywood strikes, almost everyone is busy on a set — including CBS talent that might otherwise have taken a break to host the Globes.
Of course, this year’s Golden Globes, the first under new ownership, has been a bit of a nail-biter on several fronts — starting, of course, with the org’s ownership change. Then came the strikes, which limited how much prep could be done until recently.
“Right after two strikes with a very quick timeline on top of that,” Weiss said. “I don’t think anything is easy. We definitely were facing some challenges on this one.” Said Kirshner: “The positive is we’re the first out of the gate after the strikes. And now we’ve got major stars nominated. So, it’s all good.”
Meanwhile, the show didn’t have a broadcast partner until a few weeks ago, when CBS and Paramount+ signed on. And until this weekend, when the Beverly Hilton sealed a new contract with its workers’ union United Here Local 11, there was a chance the Globes would be picketed.
“We always thought that the Globes needed a new home,” Hoehne said. “We loved working with NBC, but at the same time, we’re obviously aware of things are changing. We thought about, are the Globes going streaming, or are we going to another network? There were lots of negotiations going on, and we’re thrilled to be with CBS. And being back on a Sunday, which was so important to us to be the first major awards body coming out the first Sunday of the year… We always were very firm that we’d be on January 7. We announced this a long time ago. We never deviated from that spot. There wasn’t even talk about going on a Tuesday or Monday. We always want it to be the first Sunday in the new year.”
Said Kirshner: “We do a lot of shows with CBS, we’ve done the Tonys and others. We have two football games that day, which is great promotion leading into us. I think CBS and Paramount+ are committed to promoting the show in the next month on football and other shows.”
This is a landmark year for the Globes, as it marks the first ceremony since Dick Clark Prods. and Eldridge Industries acquired the awards show’s assets, rights and properties from the now-defunct Hollywood Foreign Press Association. (Variety parent PMC owns Dick Clark Prods. in a joint venture with Eldridge.)
It also comes following a major overhaul of the Globes’ management team and its membership body, including those who vote on the awards. Golden Globes president Helen Hoehne was joined in August by former Variety editor Tim Gray, who now serves as executive vice president at the organization. Together, the two have been charged with evolving the entity — and in time for this year’s voting.
“There was a lot going on,” Hoehne said. “The last two years, it was a change. And not always easy. But I think overall, we’re very excited about all the changes. A lot of structural changes, more accountability, which I think it’s only a positive. We all feel really comfortable in the space where we’re at. I think everyone is adapting, but it was all for the better.”
The Globes recently boosted its voting body to 300 people, and the org boasts that its makeup is now 47% female and 60% racially and ethnically diverse. As part of the overhaul, three members were expelled for conduct violations, while 15 more voters departed. The Globes had recently installed a new membership board of directors to select, ratify and accredit those new journalist members.
“I think this year’s nominees are a reflection of the International voting body, because as you’ve seen, there’s a lot of international film that was nominated,” she said. “And I think that speaks for our global awards body now. We have 300 voters from 75 countries representing 60% diversity. You see a lot of these films popping up in Best Picture nominations that maybe you didn’t see before, because there’s a more global perspective.”
All of the Globes changes continue to come as the result of reform efforts that began in 2021, after the Los Angeles Times detailed allegations of questionable financial practices inside the HFPA, as well as a paltry record of diversity and representation (including no Black members). After that, the HFPA instituted a new membership drive, DEI training, a chief diversity officer, new independent advisors and consultants and new conflict of interest policies — until eventually the HFPA shut down and transferred ownership of the Globes to Eldridge.
Meanwhile, with those issues addressed, the Globes can focus on finding that host — and also taking advantage of a wide variety of nominees.
This year’s categories include two new races: “Cinematic and Box Office Achievement” will award boffo box office films that might otherwise be overlooked in awards competitions. Films must gross at least $150 million internationally (including $100 million domestically) to be considered, or reach a commensurate viewership if they were also released in streaming. And “Best Performance in Stand-Up Comedy on Television” will award comedians with specials on broadcast, cable, streaming or pay-per-view.
“It was a way to reinvent the show, to bring a little bit of fresh air to an awards body that has been around for 80 years,” Hoehne said. “We just felt like it needed a little bit more excitement.”
The so-called “blockbuster” award could make some noise thanks to the sheer star power of its nominees — starting, of course, with “Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour.” Besides “Barbie” and “Oppenheimer,” other nods include “Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3,” “John Wick: Chapter 4,” “Mission Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part 1,” “Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse” and “The Super Mario Bros. Movie.”
“That category really scored as it should have, and it got us some interesting nominations,” Weiss said. “Hopefully we’ll get some great people in the room.” Added Kirshner: “Tom Cruise, Keanu Reeves, I mean, there are some good names in that category. And good names in the new standup category too.”
Among the comedians nominated in that field: Trevor Noah, Chris Rock, Amy Schumer, Sarah Silverman, Wanda Sykes and former Globes host Ricky Gervais.
As the first major awards show of 2024, the Globes has an opportunity to reclaim its perch as TV’s second-most watched ceremony (behind the Oscars) and, depending on who winds up as host, also bring back its unpredictability as a looser, wilder affair.
“In the last 15 minutes since these were announced, all the wheels started turning,” Weiss said. “It’s not a standard awards show. Everyone’s having a good time – dinner, drinking. It will be a great coming out in January.”
Taylor Swift in the front table? “Or wherever she wants to be,” Weiss said.
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