The Golden Globes – Nominees, Predictions, and who Will and Should Win

With another year drawing to a close, it means award season is looming and with the nominations for the 77th Golden Globes being announced recently, it is time for the age of tradition: predicting who will win the awards and more rightly who should win. 

Let’s start with the acting categories. The first one: Actor in a Motion Picture – Drama, is one of this year’s most decisive categories. If you looked at this a couple of months ago it was a sure lock for Joaquin Phoenix in “Joker,” but then “Marriage Story” was released on Netflix and audiences were moved by Adam Driver’s stunning and heartbreaking performance, making the category a two-way race. However, Phoenix delivers one of the greatest roles of not only the year but the decade. His haunting performance of Arthur Fleck can’t be matched and no matter how the film was hailed by critics for its controversial themes, the one thing that united everyone who watched it was the brilliance of Phoenix’s performance. A sure to win. 

Now on to Actress in a Motion picture – Drama, for which there is no competition, and is likely a sure thing for Renée Zellweger in “Judy.” She is miles ahead of her category and it is hers to lose. The Hollywood Foreign Press Association (HFPA) always supports a good comeback story, and [Zellweger] not acting for ten years and then coming back and delivering a stellar performance will amount in her favour. They also like to side with old favourites in their categories, which is why the likes of Scarlett Johansson, Charlize Theron, and Saiorise Ronan all feature here as they have had previous nominations. 

The Golden Globes is the only award show that separate genres in the acting categories, so now lets move on to Best actor in a Motion Picture – Comedy/Musical, which actually features a musical this year. Taron Egerton steals the show as Elton John in “Rocketman,” and is this year’s Rami Malek, although people might argue he deserves it more than Malek due to him singing every note in the biopic. However, will the Golden Globes be able to resist another knockout performance from their favourite Leonardo Dicaprio? The HFPA have always supported him where The Oscars haven’t, neglecting to celebrate performances such as “The Aviator” and “The Wolf of Wall Street.” With this separation of genres, it allows DiCaprio to have more of a chance to collect the coveted award, which will surely come January 5th.

Now to Actress in a Motion Picture – Comedy/Musical, which is the often the category with the most surprise nominations; and this year is no different with films such as “Where did you go Bernadette” and “Late Night” – featured in this category but nowhere else. However, this is comedienne Awkafina’s opportunity to shine in indie hit “The Farewell,” which has been notably snubbed in the screenplay and directing categories. Although, if this was down to popularity Beanie Feldstein in “Booksmart,” who be sweeping The Globes due to the film being on everyone’s Top 10 of the year, and her comedic timing is paramount to none. 

This year’s Golden Globes is proving to be a competitive show with only a handful of the categories being sure locks, and the rest is subject to change. The HFPA usually gives viewers a good indication of who will win at The Oscars in February – let’s hope they chose wisely.

Check out the full list of the Golden Globes Nominations below:

Best Motion Picture – Drama
“The Irishman”
“Marriage Story”
“1917”
“Joker”
“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 – Drama
Christian Bale (“Ford v Ferrari”)
Antonio Banderas (“Pain and Glory”)
Adam Driver (“Marriage Story”)
Joaquin Phoenix (“Joker”)
Jonathan Pryce (“The Two Popes”)

Best Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy
“Dolemite Is My Name”
“Jojo Rabbit”
“Knives Out”
“Once Upon a Time in Hollywood”
“Rocketman”

Best Actress in a Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy
Ana de Armas (“Knives Out”)
Awkwafina (“The Farewell”)
Cate Blanchett (“Where’d You Go, Bernadette”)
Beanie Feldstein (“Booksmart”)
Emma Thompson (“Late Night”)

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 Motion Picture – Animated
“Frozen 2”
“How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World”
“The Lion King”
“Missing Link”
“Toy Story 4”

Best Motion Picture – Foreign Language
“The Farewell”
“Les Misérables”
“Pain and Glory”
“Parasite”
“Portrait of a Lady on Fire”

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 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 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 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
Alexandre Desplat (“Little Women”)
Hildur Guðnadóttir (“Joker”)
Randy Newman (“Marriage Story”)
Thomas Newman (“1917”)
Daniel Pemberton (“Motherless Brooklyn”)

Best Original Song – Motion Picture
“Beautiful Ghosts” (“Cats”)
“I’m Gonna Love Me Again” (“Rocketman”)
“Into the Unknown” (“Frozen 2”)
“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 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 (“The Morning Show”)

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 Television Series – Musical or Comedy
“Barry”
“Fleabag”
“The Kominsky Method”
“The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel”
“The Politician”

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 Performance by an Actor in a Television Series – Musical or Comedy
Michael Douglas (“The Kominsky Method”)
Bill Hader (“Barry”)
Ben Platt (“The Politician”)
Paul Rudd (“Living with Yourself”)
Ramy Youssef (“Ramy”)

Best Television Limited Series or Motion Picture Made for Television
“Catch-22″
“Chernobyl”
“Fosse/Verdon”
“The Loudest Voice”
“Unbelievable”

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 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 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”)

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”)

* Tune in to watch the 77th Golden Globe awards live, January 5, 2020, 8:00 PM EST.