The official film and television awards season has finally begun, starting with the televised 81st Golden Globe Awards on January 7th. This event awarded film and television in the year of 2023. There were movies and shows taking home more than one award, but even those nominated for multiple categories left with little-to-no awards. Here’s a breakdown of the entire night: who won awards, those who lost out on awards, and unexpected outcomes.
Christopher Nolan’s Oppenheimer film was the biggest winner of the night with five wins from categories such as the Best Picture – Drama category, Christopher Nolan for Best Director, Ludwig Göransson for Best Original Score in a Motion Picture, Cillian Murphy for Best Performance by a Male Actor in a Motion Picture for a Drama, and Robert Downey Jr. for Best Performance by a Male Actor in a Supporting Role in any Motion Picture. The picture is a biopic about Robert J. Oppenheimer and the Manhattan Project in World War II. Oppenheimer had a very successful theatrical run, and earned nearly a billion dollars at the box office.
Yorgos Lanthimos’ Poor Things, starring Emma Stone, Willem Dafoe and Mark Ruffalo, won two awards, including Best Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy and Emma Stone for Best Performance by a Female Actor in a Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy, The film, based on the 1992 novel, is about Bella Baxter, a Victorian woman who was resurrected, and goes on a voyage of self-discovery and liberation.
Though the biggest theatrical competitor this summer, Greta Gerwig’s Barbie, only received two wins, with Billie Eilish’s “What Was I Made For?” for Best Original Song – Motion Picture, and the Globes’ newest category, Cinematic and Box Office Achievement.
Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse was nominated for three awards, but it lost all three to Barbie, Oppenheimer, and, surprisingly, Hayao Miyazaki’s The Boy and the Heron. It was an unexpected loss, as Spider-Verse was one of the most critically acclaimed films, transcending the animation category.
Martin Scorcese’s Killers of the Flower Moon only received the award for Best Performance by a Female Actor in a Motion Picture – Drama for Lily Gladstone, despite its critical acclaim and being nominated for seven awards. A majority of its awards were stolen by its biggest projected competitor of the season, Oppenheimer. Both films are historical dramas, each with greatly praised directors in the film industry. This year’s entire film and television award season was determined by this night’s winners, with the Oscars, Emmys, SAG Awards, and BAFTAS approaching soon after. Awards shows may find it difficult to make a final decision between these two films.
As for the television category, HBO’s Succession was the biggest TV winner of the night with four awards including Best Television Series – Drama, Kieran Culkin for Best Performance by an Actor in a Television Series – Drama, Sarah Snook for Best Performance by an Actress in a Television Series – Drama, and Matthew Macfadyen for Best Supporting Actor in a Television Series.
FX’s The Bear won three awards, Best Television Series – Musical or Comedy, Jeremy Allen White for Best Actor in a TV Series – Musical or Comedy, and Ayo Edebiri for Best Actress in a TV Series – Musical or Comedy. ABC’s cable television show Abbott Elementary was projected to win a few awards due to its stellar performance in last years’ award season. But all of the awards, in which Abbott Elementary was nominated for, were awarded to The Bear which, to those who watched, wasn’t a comedy at all, due to its dark tones and messages. Alternatively, Abbott Elementary contained some of the best comedic performances of 2023, with its star, Quinta Brunson, at the helm of starring, producing and writing. This show had the evident potential to win most of the awards for its categories at the Globes this year!
Beef, a limited series from Netflix, won all the awards for its category, including Best Limited Series, Anthology Series or a Motion Picture Made for Television, and Steven Yeun and Ali Wong for Best Performance by an Actor and Actress in a Limited Series, Anthology Series or Motion Picture Made for Television.
Additionally from Netflix, The Crown won a single award: Elizabeth Debicki for Best Supporting Actress in a Television Series for her role of Princess Diana. She was nominated for the same category last year but lost to Ozark‘s Julia Garner.
The Golden Globes this year served as a prelude to the 2024 awards season, and given the potential for shifts in nominees and winners, this year’s show will only be the start of an exciting season.
