The bob is back and so is sexism (sadly). That’s pretty much all there is to say about this year’s Golden Globes (besides the well-deserved Ayo win). The show contained poorly and frankly sexist jokes about Greta Gerwig’s Barbie, a Succession sweep, and jumbo-size ads of Jeremy Allen White (Boy of the Month)’s Calvin Klein shoot. In typical fashion, the Globes over-promised and underperformed. Until recent years, award shows were the pinnacle of a career, but recent buy-outs have left them a merely middle-of-the-row entertaining show of wealth.
Last year, the Globes went through a transformation. The Hollywood Foreign Press Association (HFPA) as a non-profit was dissolved (even though half the winners this year thanked them), and all rights/assets were sold to a Production company and a billionaire business investor. In years prior, the Globes and HFPA went under fire for having nearly zero black members, which resulted in NBC pulling the show from the air. This new deal promises inclusion and to keep this group’s philanthropic outreach alive while losing its non-profit status.
So what does all this business talk even mean? Well essentially this award show is nothing but a veil of integrity (can anything funded by a billionaire ever have integrity?) Earlier this year, word got out that you could allegedly buy your way to Forbes 30 under 30 (why would you even want to?) Another stab in the awarding sector. More and more awards and accomplishments have become nothing but a show of wealth. The nepo babies win and an (one) underdog gets the spotlight to keep the crowds happy. We saw this last year with Jamie Lee Curtis and Brendan Fraiser. Both deserve their Oscars, but not more than the other candidates. One was long overdue and the latter was trying to make up for years of blacklisting.
In such a social, and political climate as ours, has one of television’s biggest nights outstayed its welcome, and what even makes an “honest” or “deserved” win (cause I think we can all agree it isn’t money)? Hollywood has always gauged the greatness of a career on how close you were to EGOT status. But these awards have become exactly that, status. Status for the celebrity that wins them, and the status that the award shows are “aware” of their whitewashed and favoritism pasts.
For these awards to matter, we need to move the voting pool out of the LA conference room. We (you and me) are the ones consuming this endless amount of media, so why are the same, unseen, un-named, businessmen (and hopefully women) choosing who to honor? It’s a very American way of honoring someone, a la the Electoral College. At the end of the day, no matter if you wanted Sarah Snook or Bella Ramsey to take the award, your voice sadly, didn’t matter.
Without your opinions, do these awards that come from critics and “associations” mean anything? Are they foundationless? Once again, I’m not here to decide for you, just to raise the big questions. And next time your TV fav gets their first Emmy or Globe or whatever, remember who got them there, money and connections.
Words and Graphic by Evan Skovronsky.