LOS ANGELES (Reuters)

The 81st Golden Globes, the kickoff to the Hollywood film and TV awards season, will take place on Sunday (January 7), under new ownership, an expanded voting membership, and a new broadcast network and host after years of criticism for ethical lapses and lack of diversity.

Where to watch the show

The Golden Globes will be broadcast live from the Beverly Hilton starting at 8:00 pm Eastern Time (ET) on CBS, a new network after years airing on NBC. The awards will also be streamed live on Paramount+ for subscribers who pay for the Showtime add-on. Other Paramount+ customers can stream the show the next day.

Who is the host?

American stand-up comedian Jo Koy will host the Globes, his first hosting role for a major awards show. Koy, who is of Filipino heritage, has had stand-up specials on Comedy Central and Netflix and recently took his act on the ‘Funny Is Funny World Tour‘.

Which films and tv shows lead nominations?

Pink-drenched movie phenomenon ‘Barbie‘ topped the list of nominees, outpacing the eight for historical drama ‘Oppenheimer‘. But the two films – which featured in a summer box office clash dubbed “Barbenheimer” – will compete in different categories at the Globes. ‘Barbie‘ vies for best comedy or musical, while ‘Oppenheimer‘ competes for best drama.

In television categories, media dynasty drama ‘Succession‘ led all series with nine nominations, followed by the restaurant comedy ‘The Bear‘ with five.

Who is favoured to win?

‘Oppenheimer‘, directed by Christopher Nolan, is heavily favoured to win best film drama, according to experts on prediction website Gold Derby, edging out ‘Killers of the Flower Moon‘, directed by Martin Scorsese.

‘Barbie‘, directed by Greta Gerwig, is also the clear frontrunner in best film comedy or musical, followed by gothic comedy ‘Poor Things‘.

In acting awards, Native American star Lily Gladstone is favoured to win best drama actress for her role in ‘Killers of the Flower Moon‘ and Bradley Cooper is the frontrunner to win best film drama actor for his role as Conductor Leonard Bernstein in ‘Maestro‘, which he also directed.

Emma Stone is the favourite for best film comedy/musical actress for her role in ‘Poor Things‘, while Paul Giamatti leads the field for best film comedy/musical actor for ‘The Holdovers‘.

Christopher Nolan is heavily favoured to win best director for ‘Oppenheimer‘.

In TV series, ‘Succession‘ is expected to win drama series as is ‘The Bear‘ in comedy series.

More diverse slate of nominees

After criticism for a lack of diversity in past years, an expanded group of Globe voters nominated two female directors: Gerwig and ‘Past Lives‘ director Celine Song. Acting nominees included Gladstone in ‘Flower Moon‘, gay Black American ‘Rustin‘ actor Colman Domingo and Black American lead Jeffrey Wright in ‘American Fiction‘.

Fantasia Barrino and Danielle Brooks were nominated for their roles in ‘The Color Purple‘, but the story of Black Americans living in the early 1900s was left out of the race for best movie musical or comedy.

There are 27 first-time nominees.

New awards categories

The Globes introduced two new categories this year: TV stand-up comedy performance and cinematic and box office achievement.

Expanded voting membership

After a 2021 Los Angeles Times investigation revealed that the Hollywood Foreign Press Association (HFPA) lacked diversity and some members engaged in ethical lapses, voting membership this year has expanded to 300 journalists from 75 countries around the world and 60 per cent racial and ethnic diversity.

Who are the new owners?

In June 2023, Eldridge Industries purchased the Golden Globe assets with Dick Clark Productions (DCP), which will continue to manage the awards telecast and focus on expanding the Globes’ viewership around the world. DCP is co-owned by Eldridge and Penske Media. The Golden Globes are now a for-profit venture.

The Hollywood Foreign Press Association was shut down as a consequence.