The 2020 Golden Globes Nominations Are Even More Baffling and Frustrating Than Ususal

Justin Kirkland
Photo credit: Courtesy
Photo credit: Courtesy

From Esquire

The Golden Globes have a reputation for being absolutely bonkers. Tackling both television and film in one ceremony is a daunting task that the Golden Globes are never really equipped to pull off. The list of nominations is massive, and with so much territory to cover, the Hollywood Foreign Press Association is never able to really get it right. And the 2020 Golden Globes nominations are no different, with some baffling picks and some truly unforgivable snubs.

For the 77th annual Golden Globes, it seems the HFPA managed to reverse course from its strikingly diverse list of nominees in 2019. This year's nominations are led by Noah Baumbach's Marriage Story, with six nominations. Right behind is Once Upon a Time in Hollywood and The Irishman, with five each. And then there's the whole drama category, which seemed to overlook Waves, The Lighthouse, and Queen and Slim, to instead sneak Joker in there. Actually, Joker managed to pull out four nominations, with Todd Phillips nabbing a nod for directing, over the likes of Noah Baumbach and Taika Waititi.

Most glaringly though, in a year of extraordinary filmmaking from female directors, not one woman was nominated in the category. While Greta Gerwig was the assumed favorite for her upcoming Little Women, the nominating body also ignored Olivia Wilde's Booksmart debut and Lulu Wang's The Farewell. Lorene Scafaria's Hustlers was a masterful adaptation featuring a whole cast of incredible female performances. Alma Har’el gave us Honey Boy, and Marielle Heller helmed It's a Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood, but none of them managed to find a spot in the list of Best Directors. Actually, the HFPA hasn't nominated a woman for the award since Ava DuVernay in 2014, and a woman hasn't won since Barbra's Streisand's 1983 win for Yentl. Natalie Portman made it a point to call out the exclusion of women in the category last year, but the HFPA seemed to pay no mind. Those watching the nominations did though.



Among the other nominees, some nice surprises include Awkwafina's nomination for her powerful turn in The Farewell, as well as Jennifer Lopez and Taron Egerton's nominations. Dolemite is My Name also managed to sneak in two nominations. But with those wins also come big holes like the shut out of Waves, Queen and Slim, and The Lighthouse. After a recent strong run in critical circles, it was also expected that Lupita Nyong'o my find a nomination for Us, which didn't come to fruition. Most strikingly, Robert De Niro didn't get a nomination for The Irishman, and Adam Sandler's award seasons dream dulled a bit with his snub for Uncut Gems.

When it comes to television, the Globes managed to partially give credit where it's due: having missed the eligibility period for September's Emmys ceremony, Unbelievable is proving just how powerfully it resonated with audiences, locking in four major category nominations. But outside of that well-deserved recognition, the remainder of the list is dotted with confusing snubs and surprise nominations. Game of Thrones was nearly shut out entirely, with the exception of a strange Kit Harington nomination for Best Actor. Schitt's Creek, Ted Danson, and Veep also found no love, with the Globes seeming to prefer newcomer The Politician, which is... a choice.

Most surprisingly, the critically acclaimed When They See Us and the up and coming Watchmen received no praise either. In a year where stories about people of color thrived, the Golden Globe nominations managed to overlook powerful work from Ava DuVernay, Regina King, and Jharrel Jerome. It's beyond looking negligent—it's flagrantly out of touch. Titles like The Morning Show or Catch-22 taking spots from the aforementioned stories feels a bit like the HFPA was more interested in sparkly movie stars than actual storytelling.

With that, below is a rundown of this year's nominees. Pour one out for Adam Sandler, Zhao Shuzhen, and any female who wants to do anything behind a camera or writer's room.

Best Motion Picture – Drama

The Irishman

Marriage Story

1917

Joker

The Two Popes

Best Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy

Once Upon a Time in Hollywood

Jojo Rabbit

Knives Out

Rocketman

Dolemite is My Name

Best Motion Picture – Foreign Language

The Farewell

Pain and Glory

Portrait of a Lady on Fire

Parasite

Les Misérables

Best Director – Motion Picture

Bong Joon-ho, Parasite

Sam Mendes, 1917

Todd Phillips, Joker

Martin Scorsese, The Irishman

Quentin Tarantino, Once Upon a Time in Hollywood

Best Actor in a Motion Picture – Drama

Christian Bale, Ford v Ferrari

Antonio Banderas, Pain and Glory

Adam Driver, Marriage Story

Joaquin Phoenix, Joker

Jonathan Pryce, The Two Popes

Best Actress in a Motion Picture – Drama

Cynthia Erivo, Harriet

Scarlett Johansson, Marriage Story

Saoirse Ronan, Little Women

Charlize Theron, Bombshell

Renée Zellweger, Judy

Best Actor in a Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy

Daniel Craig, Knives Out

Roman Griffin Davis, Jojo Rabbit

Leonardo DiCaprio, Once Upon a Time in Hollywood

Taron Egerton, Rocketman

Eddie Murphy, Dolemite is My Name

Best Actress in a Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy

Awkwafina, The Farewell

Ana de Armas, Knives Out

Cate Blanchett, Where'd You Go, Bernadette?

Beanie Feldstein, Booksmart

Emma Thompson, Late Night

Best Actor in a Supporting Role in Any Motion Picture

Tom Hanks, A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood

Anthony Hopkins, The Two Popes

Al Pacino, The Irishman

Joe Pesci, The Irishman

Brad Pitt, Once Upon a Time in Hollywood

Best Actress in a Supporting Role in Any Motion Picture

Kathy Bates, Richard Jewell

Annette Bening, The Report

Laura Dern, Marriage Story

Jennifer Lopez, Hustlers

Margot Robbie, Bombshell

Best Motion Picture – Animated

Frozen II

How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World

Missing Link

Toy Story 4

The Lion King

Best Screenplay – Motion Picture

Noah Baumbach, Marriage Story

Bong Joon-ho and Han Jin-won, Parasite

Anthony McCarten, The Two Popes

Quentin Tarantino, Once Upon a Time in Hollywood

Steven Zaillian, The Irishman

Best Original Score – Motion Picture

Daniel Pemberton, Motherless Brooklyn

Alexandre Desplat, Little Women

Hildur Guðnadóttir, Joker

Thomas Newman, 1917

Randy Newman, Marriage Srtory

Best Original Song – Motion Picture

“Beautiful Ghosts” CATS

“(I’m Gonna) Love Me Again” Rocketman

“Into the Unknown” Frozen II

“Spirit” The Lion King

“Stand Up” Harriet

Best Television Series – Drama

Big Little Lies

The Crown

Killing Eve

The Morning Show

Succession

Best Performance by an Actor in a Television Series – Drama

Brian Cox, Succession

Kit Harington, Game of Thrones

Rami Malek, Mr. Robot

Tobias Menzies, The Crown

Billy Porter, Pose

Best Performance by an Actress in a Television Series – Drama

Jennifer Aniston, The Morning Show

Olivia Colman, The Crown

Jodie Comer, Killing Eve

Nicole Kidman, Big Little Lies

Reese Witherspoon, Big Little Lies

Best Television Series – Musical or Comedy

Barry

Fleabag

The Kominsky Method

The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel

The Politician

Best Performance by an Actor in a Television Series – Musical or Comedy

Michael Douglas, The Kominksy Method

Bill Hader, Barry

Ben Platt, The Politician

Paul Rudd, Living With Yourself

Ramy Youssef, Ramy

Best Performance by an Actress in a Television Series – Musical or Comedy

Christina Applegate, Dead to Me

Rachel Brosnahan, The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel

Kirsten Dunst, On Becoming a God in Central Florida

Natasha Lyonne, Russian Doll

Phoebe Waller-Bridge, Fleabag

Best Television Limited Series or Motion Picture Made for Television

Catch-22

Chernobyl

Fosse/Verdon

The Loudest Voice

Unbelievable

Best Performance by an Actor in a Limited Series or Motion Picture Made for Television

Christopher Abbott, Catch-22

Sacha Baron Cohen, The Spy

Russell Crowe, The Loudest Voice

Jared Harris, Chernobyl

Sam Rockwell, Fosse/Verdon

Best Performance by an Actress in a Limited Series or Motion Picture Made for Television

Kaitlyn Dever, Unbelievable

Joey King, The Act

Helen Mirren, Catherine the Great

Merritt Wever, Unbelievable

Michelle Williams, Fosse/Verdon

Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role in a Series, Limited Series or Motion Picture Made for Television

Alan Arkin, The Kominsky Method

Kieran Culkin, Succession

Andrew Scott, Fleabag

Stellan Skarsgård, Chernobyl

Henry Winkler, Barry

Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role in a Series, Limited Series or Motion Picture Made for Television

Patricia Arquette, The Act

Helena Bonham Carter, The Crown

Toni Collette, Unbelievable

Meryl Streep, Big Little LIes

Emily Watson, Chernobyl

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