by Eric Blume
Let's take a look at the Golden Globe nominations announced yesterday, in the major categories.
BEST MOTION PICTURE, DRAMA
- THE BRUTALIST, A24
- A COMPLETE UNKNOWN, Searchlight Pictures
- CONCLAVE, Focus Features
- DUNE: PART TWO, Warner Bros. Pictures
- NICKEL BOYS, Orion Pictures / Amazon MGM Studios
- SEPTEMBER 5 Paramount Pictures
It's very "Globe-y" that both NICKEL BOYS and SEPTEMBER 5 received a nomination for the Big Award and for absolutely nothing else. They're both solid films, tricky to single out actors in. The Globes went in big for both THE BRUTALIST and CONCLAVE, so it seems like the race is between those two at this point...
BEST MOTION PICTURE, COMEDY/MUSICAL
- ANORA, NEON
- CHALLENGERS, Amazon MGM Studios
- EMILIA PÉREZ, Netflix
- A REAL PAIN, Searchlight Pictures
- THE SUBSTANCE, MUBI
- WICKED, Universal Pictures
The Globes also went all in, more surprisingly, on THE SUBSTANCE, a movie I found incredibly funny and I think is shockingly in the right category. This is a strong list of six here, each film wildly different from each other, and the winner could go any number of ways. I'm still not convinced that either ANORA or EMILIA PÉREZ is as well loved outside Film Twitter, and I could see it easily going to WICKED.
BEST ACTOR, DRAMA
- Adrien Brody, THE BRUTALIST
- Timothée Chalamet, A COMPLETE UNKNOWN
- Daniel Craig, QUEER
- Colman Domingo, SING SING
- Ralph Fiennes, CONCLAVE
- Sebastian Stan, THE APPRENTICE
These six actors are the most often mentioned for our final Oscar roster, with one of them sadly left out at the end. Brody, Chalamet, and Fiennes seem like semi-locks at this point. The Globes were soft on SING SING (Domingo is the film's only nominee), but that film is likely to resurge in the coming weeks.
BEST ACTRESS, DRAMA
- Pamela Anderson, THE LAST SHOWGIRL
- Angelina Jolie, MARIA
- Nicole Kidman, BABYGIRL
- Tilda Swinton, THE ROOM NEXT DOOR
- Fernanda Torres, I’M STILL HERE
- Kate Winslet, LEE
Anderson and Winslet were semi-surprises in slots many thought might go to Marianne Jean-Baptiste and Saoirse Ronan. Baptiste and Ronan (and their films) seem more Academy-friendly, so they're still in the running for Oscar nominations. This was a great get for both Swinton and Torres, whose films haven't hit viewers yet. The race here though might come down to Jolie vs. Kidman? The Globes love both actresses, having rewarded each several times. Will they want to embrace Jolie for coming back to "serious actressing" or acknowledge Nicole's risk-taking?
BEST ACTOR, COMEDY/MUSICAL
- Jesse Eisenberg, A REAL PAIN
- Hugh Grant, HERETIC
- Gabriel LaBelle, SATURDAY NIGHT
- Jesse Plemons, KINDS OF KINDNESS
- Glen Powell, HIT MAN
- Sebastian Stan, A DIFFERENT MAN
Great to see Sebastian Stan score two Best Actor nominations...he's incredibly underrated with awards bodies, and he's doing wonderful work in both films. For Oscars, Stan's "team" will need to decide which film is the priority. This race could possibly go to any of these six gents, which is always very fun. Does Eisenberg have the best shot of all of them to crack into Oscar's top five?
BEST ACTRESS, COMEDY/MUSICAL
- Amy Adams, NIGHTBITCH
- Cynthia Erivo, WICKED
- Karla Sofía Gáscon, EMILIA PÉREZ
- Mikey Madison, ANORA
- Demi Moore, THE SUBSTANCE
- Zendaya, CHALLENGERS
Six strong performances here. It'll be interesting to see if Oscar goes more for the women in this category or the drama category, and this is another real race that could go to almost anybody outside of Adams or Zendaya. I don't think the Globes will be able to resist giving this one to Demi Moore, a huge Hollywood star having her moment...but it'll be fun to see which way they go.
BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR
- Yura Borisov, ANORA
- Kieran Culkin, A REAL PAIN
- Edward Norton, A COMPLETE UNKNOWN
- Guy Pearce, THE BRUTALIST
- Jeremy Strong, THE APPRENTICE
- Denzel Washington, GLADIATOR II
Strong and Borisov were fairly surprising nominees, and this was a huge boost for them. We've got a long way to go to see how this category shapes up...hopefully we won't have anyone who steamrolls across the entire season. Culkin and Pearce both dazzingly flesh-out two gorgeously-written roles...they seem above the rest of the competition to me, but we shall see.
BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS
- Selena Gomez, EMILIA PÉREZ
- Ariana Grande, WICKED
- Felicity Jones, THE BRUTALIST
- Margaret Qualley, THE SUBSTANCE
- Isabela Rossellini, CONCLAVE
- Zoë Saldaña, EMILIA PÉREZ
This category has been all over the place in early precursor awards (Carol Kane? Elle Fanning?). There's still plenty of time for it to keep evolving and changing over the next month. Globes really liked EMILIA PÉREZ, so this may be an easy win for Zoë Saldaña, who is breathtaking in the first 45 minutes of the film. Or they might go Grande if they're loving WICKED, or Rossellini if they're feeling international. It's a good race.
BEST DIRECTOR
- Jacques Audiard, EMILIA PÉREZ
- Sean Baker, ANORA
- Edward Berger, CONCLAVE
- Brady Corbet, THE BRUTALIST
- Coralie Fargeat, THE SUBSTANCE
- Payal Kapadia, ALL WE IMAGINE AS LIGHT
While you may want to swap out a personal favorite or two of your own from this list, it's tough to argue that these six directors aren't incredibly talented filmmakers, and they've each delivered a film that feels uniquely from their worldview and aesthetic. The Globes did good on this category. Much like the Picture race being between CONCLAVE and THE BRUTALIST, I think this one is between Berger and Corbet based on overall Globe love for both pictures.
What are your thoughts on the Golden Globe nominations? What omissions are upsetting you? Who are you really rooting for?