78th Golden Globe Awards

The 78th Golden Globe Awards honored the best in American television of 2020, as well as film in 2020 and early 2021, as chosen by the Hollywood Foreign Press Association (HFPA). The ceremony took place on February 28, 2021, nearly two months later than normal, due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on cinema and on television. Produced by Dick Clark Productions and the HFPA, and aired live on NBC in the United States, this was the first bi-coastal Golden Globes ceremony, with Tina Fey co-hosting from The Rainbow Room in New York City, and Amy Poehler co-hosting from The Beverly Hilton in Beverly Hills, California.

The nominees were announced on February 3, 2021. Jane Fonda and Norman Lear were announced as the recipients of the Cecil B. DeMille Award and the Carol Burnett Award, respectively.

With four wins, The Crown won the most awards at the ceremony, including Best Television Series – Drama. Schitt's Creek and The Queen's Gambit won two awards each, with Schitt's Creek winning Best Television Series – Musical or Comedy and The Queen's Gambit winning Best Miniseries or Television Film. In film, Borat Subsequent Moviefilm, Nomadland, and Soul won two awards each, with Nomadland winning Best Motion Picture – Drama and Borat Subsequent Moviefilm winning Best Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy.

Production
Tina Fey and Amy Poehler were announced as the hosts of the ceremony, for the fourth time, in January 2020, but for the very first time to co-host the Golden Globes bicoastally, both from Manhattan and from Beverly Hills, California. By June 2020, the HFPA decided to postpone the ceremony from its normal date in early January to February 28 due to both the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on cinema and on television production. On February 2, 2021, it was reported that the ceremony would be held from both the Rainbow Room in New York City and the Golden Globes' usual home at The Beverly Hilton in Beverly Hills, California, allowing those on the East Coast to participate without having to make the cross-country trip. The nominees were announced on February 3, 2021.

Timetable

 * The eligibility period for motion pictures was extended to February 28, 2021.

Films with multiple nominations
The following films received multiple nominations:

Films with multiple wins
The following films received multiple wins:

Series with multiple nominations
The following television series received multiple nominations:

Series with multiple wins
The following series received multiple wins:

Cecil B. DeMille Award
The Cecil B. DeMille Award is an honorary award bestowed to honorees who have made a significant mark in the film industry. It is named after its first recipient, director Cecil B. DeMille.


 * Jane Fonda

Carol Burnett Award
The Carol Burnett Award is an honorary award given for outstanding and lasting contributions to television on or off the screen. It is named in honor of its first recipient, actress Carol Burnett.


 * Norman Lear

Golden Globe Ambassadors
The Golden Globe Ambassadors are Jackson Lee and Satchel Lee, the son and daughter of Spike Lee and Tonya Lewis Lee.

Presenters
The following individuals presented awards at the ceremony:


 * Laura Dern with Best Supporting Actor – Motion Picture
 * Angela Bassett with Best Supporting Actor – Series, Miniseries or Television Film
 * Colin Farrell introduced The Father
 * Christian Slater (in New York City) with Best Actress – Television Series Musical or Comedy
 * Tiffany Haddish with Best Animated Feature Film
 * Yahya Abdul-Mateen II introduced The Trial of the Chicago 7
 * Amanda Seyfried introduced Mank
 * Justin Theroux (in New York City) with Best Actor – Miniseries or Television Film
 * Cynthia Erivo with Best Screenplay
 * Sarah Paulson introduced The Prom
 * Tina Fey and Amy Poehler with the Carol Burnett Award and the Cecil B. DeMille Award
 * Salma Hayek introduced Nomadland
 * Kevin Bacon and Kyra Sedgwick with Best Actress – Television Series Drama
 * Tracy Morgan (in New York City) with Best Original Song and Best Original Score
 * Kate Hudson introduced Music
 * Sterling K. Brown and Susan Kelechi Watson with Best Actor – Television Series Musical or Comedy and Best Television Series – Musical or Comedy
 * Ben Stiller (in New York City) with Best Actress – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy
 * Margot Robbie introduced Promising Young Woman
 * Anthony Anderson with Best Actor – Television Series Drama
 * Gal Gadot with Best Foreign Language Film
 * Kenan Thompson with Best Television Series – Drama
 * Ava DuVernay introduced Hamilton
 * Jamie Lee Curtis with Best Supporting Actress – Motion Picture
 * Christopher Meloni (in New York City) with Best Supporting Actress – Series, Miniseries or Television Film
 * Jeanise Jones introduced Borat Subsequent Moviefilm
 * Rosie Perez (in New York City) with Best Actress – Miniseries or Television Film and Best Miniseries or Television Film
 * Renée Zellweger with Best Actor – Motion Picture Drama
 * Bryce Dallas Howard (in New York City) with Best Director
 * Sandra Oh introduced Palm Springs
 * Annie Mumolo and Kristen Wiig with Best Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy
 * Awkwafina with Best Actor – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy
 * Joaquin Phoenix with Best Actress – Motion Picture Drama
 * Michael Douglas and Catherine Zeta-Jones (in New York City) with Best Motion Picture – Drama

Critical response
According to the review aggregator website Metacritic, which sampled 15 critic reviews and calculated a weighted average score of 35 out of 100, the ceremony received "generally unfavorable reviews". On Rotten Tomatoes, 10% of 21 critics have given the ceremony a positive review, with an average rating of 3.52/10. The critics consensus on the website reads: "Disappointingly dull and disturbingly lacking in self-awareness, The 78th Golden Globes ceremony wastes its menagerie of celebrities—and some well-deserved wins—on a stilted ceremony overshadowed by HFPA's questionable behind-the-scenes behavior."

Controversies
The ceremony received criticism regarding certain nominations. James Corden's nomination for Best Actor – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy (for his performance in The Prom) and the two nominations for Emily in Paris have faced controversy. The HFPA also drew criticism for the placement of Minari in the Best Foreign Language Film category, despite being an American film about a Korean-American family; it ultimately won. The determination that the film would be eligible for this category rather than Best Motion Picture – Drama, based on the Globes' rule that any film with over 50% of its dialogue not in English would be considered a Foreign Language Film, invited controversy. Lulu Wang, whose film The Farewell was subject to the same rule the previous year, wrote that "I have not seen a more American film than #Minari this year. It's a story about an immigrant family, IN America, pursuing the American dream. We really need to change these antiquated rules that characterize American as only English-speaking". Author Viet Thanh Nguyen wrote that the "decision speaks powerfully to the issue of what makes something — a language or a person or a culture — foreign". Many other filmmakers, actors, and authors, including Nia DaCosta, Daniel Dae Kim, Min Jin Lee, Franklin Leonard, Simu Liu, Phil Lord, Celeste Ng, Harry Shum Jr., and Phillipa Soo criticized the decision on similar grounds.

The nominations for the film Music also faced criticism for the casting of Maddie Ziegler as an autistic person, and concerns over what impact the film could have on the perception and handling of autistic people, with co-host Tina Fey joking that "Twitter is saying it's the most offensive casting since Kate Hudson was the Weightwatchers spokesperson". Hosts Fey and Amy Poehler also acknowledged the recent revelation that the HFPA has not had a single Black member for over twenty years.

Viewership
The ceremony received 6.9 million viewers in the United States, with a 1.5 Nielsen rating among adults 18 to 49, representing a 68% drop in viewership from the previous year's ceremony. It is the least viewed Golden Globe Awards telecast since the 65th Golden Globe Awards in 2008, which was solely a press conference due to the 2007–08 Writers Guild of America strike.