Golden Globes 2021: ‘Nomadland’ wins big and ‘Mank’ is left empty handed

The 78th annual Golden Globe awards took place Feb. 28 to honor the best in TV and film in the last year. The coronavirus pandemic had more people than ever glued to their screens as entertainment lifelines and some truly great media came out of an otherwise rough year.

Although the Globes aims to recognize the best of U.S. film and TV, the evening was clouded by the result of a recent Los Angeles Times investigation which showed that none of the Hollywood Foreign Press Association’s 87 members are Black. This was referenced throughout the evening as the hosts’ opening monologue playfully slammed the HFPA and ended the bit with a straightforward “you gotta change that.”

When Sacha Baron Cohen accepted his award for Best Comedy or Musical with “Borat Subsequent Moviefilm,” he started his speech with, “Thank you to the all-white Hollywood Foreign Press.” 

In lieu of a ballroom packed with celebrities, the event was held virtually with its nominees calling in via Zoom. Hosts Tina Fey and Amy Poehler did appear in person at the Rainbow Room in New York and the Beverly Hilton in Los Angeles, respectively. The small audiences in both audiences were made up of first responders and frontline workers as a way to honor and thank them for their service.

The ceremony kicked off with Daniel Kaluuya winning Best Supporting Actor in any motion picture for his portrayal of Black Panther Chairman Fred Hampton in “Judas and the Black Messiah.” In typical virtual event fashion, there was a mic or muting error during his acceptance speech resulting in almost 20 seconds of dead air and his speech getting cut off. However, it was fixed in time for him to proclaim “You’re doing me dirty!” He went on to thank Hampton and to say how much he gave to the role.

“Like the great Nipsey Hussle said, ‘We’re here to give until we’re empty,’ and I gave everything.” Kaluuya said.

Chloé Zhao, writer, director and editor of “Nomadland,” won big on Sunday. She is the second woman ever to win Best Director, the last being Barbra Streisand for “Yentl” 37 years ago, and the first woman of color. “Nomadland” also took home the award for Best Motion Picture – Drama. 

With the Golden Globes being seen as an early indicator of how Academy members may vote for the Oscars, Chloé Zhao may have her eye on the prestigious Best Picture and Best Director categories, both of which are notorious boys’ clubs.

The most emotional moment of the night was when Chadwick Boseman posthumously won Best Actor in a Motion Picture Drama for his performance in “Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom.” His wife, Taylor Simone Ledward, accepted the award on his behalf and gave a teary speech.

“He would say something beautiful, something inspiring, something that would amplify that little voice inside all of that tells you that you can,” Ledward said. 

Other major winners include Andra Day winning Best Actress in a Motion Picture Drama for “The United States vs Billie Holiday,” Aaron Sorkin winning Best Screenplay for “The Trial of the Chicago 7,” “Soul” winning Best Animated Motion Picture and Best Original Score and “Lee Isaac Chung’s “Minari” winning best Foreign Language Picture.

David Fincher’s “Mank” had six nominations, the most of any movie or TV series this year, yet it did not win a single award.

Jane Fonda received the Cecil B. DeMille Award, and Norman Lear became the third ever recipient of the Carol Burnett Award, both honors to celebrate their entire careers and overall contributions to the industry.

Many Black creators, women creators and artists of color got the recognition they rightfully deserve. But through all the jabs, jokes and HFPA’s empty promises to do better, addressing the racial inequality isn’t enough without correcting it. Audiences will continue to  look at the HFPA this time next year to see if any real action is taken.