As the countdown to the 80th anniversary of the Golden Globe Awards continues, and the celebrity-filled list of attendees grows by the day, there are a few Hollywood A-listers yet to send through an RSVP.
After a two-year boycott following a Los Angeles Times expose on the Hollywood Foreign Press Association’s lack of diversity among its membership and complaints of unethical business practices, the Globes is repositioning itself as one of Hollywood’s premiere awards ceremonies when it kicks off on January 10 (local time).
“We want the Globes to succeed,” one publicist told Variety this week.
“I think you’re going to see a robust attendance at the show this year.”
However, there will be a few no-shows.
Brendan Fraser, nominated for a best actor award for The Whale, is the only nominee publicly confirming he will not attend after allegations an HFPA member groped him in 2003 and no action was taken.
“No, I will not participate … It’s because of the history that I have with them,” Fraser told GQ, who received a standing ovation after the film aired at the Venice Film Festival in September.
“And my mother didn’t raise a hypocrite. You can call me a lot of things, but not that.”
Up for best picture, it is unlikely Tom Cruise will walk the red carpet for his mega box-office hit Top Gun: Maverick after the actor returned his three Globes to the HFPA amid the controversy.
Variety reports there’s still no confirmation on whether Babylon stars Brad Pitt and Margot Robbie will attend.
The three-hour epic about the early days of Hollywood is up for best picture (Musical or comedy), Robbie is up for best actress and Pitt for best supporting actor in the motion picture category.
Julia Roberts is also not a confirmed attendee, nominated for a best actress performance in the limited series category for Gaslit.
There will be other no-shows, but not because of issues surrounding the HFPA.
According to Variety, Hugh Jackman (The Son) will be in New York, where he is starring on Broadway in The Music Man, John Lithgow (The Old Man) is shooting in Europe and Diego Luna (Andor) is most likely going to sit this one out because he’s in production for Season 2 of the Star Wars series.
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So who’s coming, who’s hosting and who’s presenting?
Despite a few Hollywood royalty not being part of the anniversary ceremony, the majority of the nominees will be in attendance at The Beverly Hilton in Los Angeles, including a stack of Aussies.
Nominations were announced on December 12 by Mayan Lopez and Selenis Leyva of the new NBC comedy series Lopez vs Lopez, and Helen Hoehne, president of the Hollywood Foreign Press Association (HFPA).
They presented the five nominees for each of the 27 award categories.
Besides Robbie and Jackman, Cate Blanchett (Tár), Baz Luhrmann (Elvis) and Elizabeth Debicki (The Crown) are all in the running for a golden statuette.
The nominees were voted by 96 members and, for the first time, 103 international voters, with new voters recruited from international industry organisations, well-known foreign film festivals and journalism professionals.
According to a statement from the Golden Globes, the “diverse voting group represents 62 different countries around the world”.
“Combined with the current membership, the total Golden Globe Awards voting body is now 52 per cent female, 51.8 per cent racially and ethnically diverse, with 19.6 per cent Latinx, 12.1 per cent Asian, 10.1 per cent Black and 10.1 per cent Middle Eastern.”
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This year, hosting duties will fall on the shoulders of Emmy winner and stand-up comedian and actor Jerrod Carmichael for the three-hour telecast, following in the footsteps of Ricky Gervais in 2020 and Tina Fey and Amy Poehler in 2021.
On January 4, the HFPA announced director Quentin Tarantino, Ana De Armas (Blonde), Ana Gasteyer, Billy Porter, Colman Domingo, Jamie Lee Curtis, Michaela Jaé Rodriguez, Natasha Lyonne, Nicole Byer, Niecy Nash-Betts and Tracy Morgan will present category awards.
Belatedly, streaming service Stan announced it had acquired the exclusive rights in Australia to broadcast the event.
“Stan Exclusives” celebrated seven nominations including best actress in a musical/comedy series for Jean Smart in Hacks, alongside Hannah Einbinder for best supporting actress.
Better Call Saul is nominated for two awards, including best drama series and best actor in a drama series for Bob Odenkirk.
Kevin Costner is nominated for best actor in drama series for Yellowstone, Julia Roberts for Gaslit, and finally, Hacks is a contender for best musical or comedy series.
Six-time nominee Eddie Murphy will be honoured with the coveted Cecil B deMille Award.
The star of 48 Hours, Trading Places, Beverly Hills Cop, Coming to America, The Nutty Professor and Dreamgirls, his body of work in front of and behind the camera over the decades will be celebrated.
And five-time Golden Globe nominee and one-time winner, screenwriter, producer and director, Ryan Murphy, will receive its counterpart, the fourth Carol Burnett Award.
He created the cult-favourite series Popular, Nip/Tuck, Glee and Golden Globe Award-winner anthology series American Horror Story and American Crime Story.
The People v OJ Simpson earned Murphy 10 Emmy Awards, The Assassination of Gianni Versace won two Golden Globes and more recently he’s written a stack of series for Netflix including Dahmer – Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story, starring Evan Peters and Niecey Nash-Betts, which received four Golden Globes nominations.
What’s next on the road to the Oscars in March
On January 15, there’s the Critics Choice Awards followed by the Grammys ceremony on February 5, the Directors Guild of America ceremony on February 18, the BAFTAs on February 19, and the Screen Actors Guild awards on February 26.
The Film Independent Spirit Awards ceremony is on March 4, with the
95th Academy Awards ceremony on March 12.
The 2023 Golden Globe Awards will be broadcast on Stan from 11am (AEDT), January 11.
