‘Emilia Perez’ and ‘Shogun’ dominate night of international triumphs

The Golden Globes ceremony on Sunday, January 5, at the Beverly Hilton marked another chapter in both the awards show’s quest for redemption and Hollywood’s rocky path to post-pandemic normalcy.

Hosted joyfully by Nikki Glaser – who replaced last year’s criticized Jo Koy – the ceremony reflected the entertainment industry’s broader struggles in a year shaped by strike aftershocks and shifting audience habits. The comedian brought her trademark precision to the Beverly Hilton stage, deftly balancing sharp industry critique with strategic moments of self-effacement. Opening with a pointed reference to Hollywood’s casting-couch history (“This time all of my clothes are on”), she deployed the same calculated timing and fearless delivery that has made her a standout on Netflix specials, while carefully calibrating her material for broadcast television’s broader audience.

In a year that signaled Hollywood’s appetite for ambitious filmmaking, Brady Corbet’s architectural epic The Brutalist emerged as the drama winner, with Adrian Brody claiming best actor and Corbet taking directing honors.

Jacques Audiard's Emilia Perez proved the evening’s other major force, collecting an unusual combination of accolades including Best Musical or Comedy, Foreign Language Film, and Supporting Actress for Zoe Saldana, while its original song “El Mal” added to its haul. The French director’s Spanish-language exploration of identity marks a significant shift in how Hollywood categorizes international productions.

The acting categories reflected the industry’s expanding horizons, with Brazil’s Fernanda Torres winning Best Actress in Drama for I‘m Still Here and Demi Moore staging a career comeback in Coralie Fargeat’s The Substance. Sebastian Stan’s transformation in A Different Man and Kieran Culkin’s post-Succession triumph in A Real Pain rounded out the performance awards.

‘Shogun’ triumphs

FX’s ambitious adaptation of Shogun emerged as the night’s biggest winner, sweeping the drama categories with four wins including Best Television Series. The Japanese-American epic’s triumph, powered by winning performances from Hiroyuki Sanada, Anna Sawai, and Tadanobu Asano, marks a watershed moment for Asian representation in premium television.

The comedy categories split their honors between old and new guard, with HBO’s “Hacks” claiming best series and a victory for Jean Smart, while The Bear‘s Jeremy Allen White continued his awards streak. In the limited series field, the raw intimacy of Baby Reindeer resonated with voters, earning both the top prize and a supporting actress win for Jessica Gunning, while established stars Jodie Foster (True Detective: Night Country) and Colin Farrell (The Penguin) claimed leading performance awards.

Box office numbers tell a story of resilience and lingering challenges. After a troubling first half with receipts down 27.5%, the industry rallied behind franchise releases like Vice-versa 2 and Deadpool & Wolverineending 2024 at $8.75 billion, just 3% below 2023. Yet this figure remains well short of pre-pandemic peaks when the industry regularly crossed $11 billion.

The ceremony itself is at a crossroads. After being acquired by a billionaire investor in 2022 following scandals that toppled the Hollywood Foreign Press Association, last year’s show drew 9.4 million viewers – an improvement from 2023’s 6.3 million but far below its pre-pandemic audience of 18 million. With 334 journalists from 85 countries participating in this year’s voting, the rebranded Golden Globes Foundation seeks to establish new credibility.

The next step for Sunday’s losers and winners is the voting by members of the Motion Picture Academy for Oscar nominations, which begins on Wednesday, January 8, followed by the announcement of the nominees on January 17. And the cards are very largely reshuffled, as Hollywood trade magazine Variety warns: “A friendly reminder: A Golden Globes win doesn’t necessarily secure Oscar glory. History has plenty of cautionary tales. Just ask the teams behind 1917 (2019), Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri (2017), The Revenant (2015), The Social Network (2010), and Babel (2006). They all snagged Globes for best picture (drama) only to lose the Oscar to Parasite, The Shape of Water, Spotlight, The King’s Speechand The Departedrespectively.”