Golden Globes in Review: From Upsets to Obvious Winners

The 80th Annual Golden Globes were held earlier this week, on January 10th. While some of the outcomes were unsurprising, there were also a few major upsets, though it was a good show overall. Here are our two cents on our six favorite awards: [/vc_column_text][nectar_animated_title heading_tag=”h5″ style=”color-strip-reveal” color=”Accent-Color” text=”Best Performance by an Actress in a Television Series – Drama”][vc_column_text]This award undoubtedly belonged to Zendaya because of her haunting performance in Euphoria. She has already won two Emmys for Euphoria, in which she plays 17-year-old Rue Bennett, who grapples with addiction and various mental illnesses. In season two of Euphoria, Zendaya portrays Rue’s struggles with substance abuse with such raw emotion that it’s hard to believe she’s acting. She also narrates the entire show, analyzing each character from Rue’s perspective. This convincing performance allows many viewers to connect to Rue as she navigates love, drugs, and high school. Zendaya’s realistic and genuine performance in Euphoria gave the show a large following and she absolutely deserved the win. [/vc_column_text][nectar_animated_title heading_tag=”h5″ style=”color-strip-reveal” color=”Accent-Color” text=”Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role in a Limited Series, Anthology Series, or Motion Picture Made for Television”][vc_column_text]Jennifer Coolidge won Best Actress in a Supporting Role for her performance in The White Lotus, beating out her co-star Aubrey Plaza. Coolidge plays the lavish and selfish Tanya McQuoid, the only original character left in season two. She perfectly embodies Tanya’s out-of-touch personality as a lonely and gullible trust fund baby who is no stranger to being taken advantage of. Coolidge won over fans with her unique voice and amusing one-liners. Plaza, who played intellectual snob Harper Spiller, also flawlessly represents Harper’s dry humor and stick-in-the-mud personality. While Plaza’s performance was impeccable, as was Niecy Nash’s incredible job as Glenda Cleaveland (in Dahmer—Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story), Coolidge truly earned her first Golden Globe with this performance. [vc_column column_padding=”no-extra-padding” column_padding_position=”all” background_color_opacity=”1″ background_hover_color_opacity=”1″ column_link_target=”_self” column_shadow=”none” column_border_radius=”none” width=”1/1″ tablet_width_inherit=”default” tablet_text_alignment=”default” phone_text_alignment=”default” column_border_width=”none” column_border_style=”solid” bg_image_animation=”none”][nectar_animated_title heading_tag=”h5″ style=”color-strip-reveal” color=”Accent-Color” text=”​​Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role in Any Motion Picture”][vc_column_text]Angela Bassett won Best Actress for her supporting role in Black Panther: Wakanda Forever. The Marvel sequel, a beautiful tribute to the late Chadwick Boseman, features amazing performances from Bassett, Lupira Nyong’o, and Letitia Wright. Bassett plays Ramonda, the fierce and loyal Queen of Wakanda. Her emotional performance brought audiences to tears. Fellow nominee Kerry Condon (The Banshees of Inisherin) was nominated for her role as the witty and ambitious Siobhán Súilleabháin who takes care of her lonely brother in 1920s Ireland. Condon’s performance showed raw emotion and should be greatly celebrated. Still, Angela Bassett stood out among the other nominees with her flawless, unforgettable portrayal of the iconic Queen Ramonda. [/vc_column_text][nectar_animated_title heading_tag=”h5″ style=”color-strip-reveal” color=”Accent-Color” text=”Best Actor in a Motion Picture – Drama”][vc_column_text]Unsurprisingly, the award for Best Actor in a Drama Movie went to Austin Butler for playing Elvis Presely in Elvis. While all the nominees were strong, none of the others could compare to Austin Butler’s performance. He embraced Elvis wholeheartedly, even choosing not to see his family for three years so he could be completely focused for the role. His focus paid off and it showed in his performance. This is one of many movies that tell the tale of the Rock-N-Roll King, but Butler’s portrayal takes it to the next level. His commitment to the role showed throughout his performance and sealed his win. [vc_column column_padding=”no-extra-padding” column_padding_position=”all” background_color_opacity=”1″ background_hover_color_opacity=”1″ column_link_target=”_self” column_shadow=”none” column_border_radius=”none” width=”1/1″ tablet_width_inherit=”default” tablet_text_alignment=”default” phone_text_alignment=”default” column_border_width=”none” column_border_style=”solid” bg_image_animation=”none”][nectar_animated_title heading_tag=”h5″ style=”color-strip-reveal” color=”Accent-Color” text=”Best Actor – Limited Series, Anthology Series, or Television Motion Picture”][vc_column_text]In my eyes, there was only ever one person competing with Evan Peters for this award, and that was Evan Peters. Every actor nominated did an amazing job, from Taron Egerton to Colin Firth, but to portray Jeffrey Dahmer requires another level of acting. Evan Peters is known for his dark role in American Horror Story, but his portrayal of Dahmer truly showed the world what he was capable of. Everything from his tone and facial expression to the way he carried himself was almost identical to Dahmer. Watching the show gave me chills and made me sympathize with Peters. I could not begin to imagine what he had to sacrifice to portray such a dark role so well. These awards are meant to highlight the best performance and honor those who go to great lengths to perform—this one was made for Evan Peters. [/vc_column_text][nectar_animated_title heading_tag=”h5″ style=”color-strip-reveal” color=”Accent-Color” text=”Best Limited Series, Anthology Series, or Television Motion Picture”][vc_column_text]The White Lotus came out victorious, beating out four other very qualified shows. All of the shows nominated were amazing in their own ways, but my three favorites were Dahmer, The White Lotus, and Black Bird. Black Bird was a great combination of crime and romance, and kept the audience engaged through constant intrigue. Taron Egerton used his natural charisma to portray Jimmy Keene amazingly. However, personally, nothing could top Evan Peters performance of Dahmer. I find this award quite baffling because I don’t understand why shows as dark as Black Bird and Dahmer can be compared to shows like The White Lotus—they are completely different genres. I watched The White Lotus and, don’t get me wrong, was thoroughly amused by the wit and plot, but if these awards are meant to highlight “masterpieces,” I do not think we can fairly compare The White Lotus and Dahmer. While I might not agree with the Hollywood Foreign Press Association’s decision, all of these series were well done and entertaining, including The White Lotus

Ella Ahn was a senior at M-A. She enjoyed writing about sports and her community. Ella enjoyed spending time with friends and traveling to new places. She was an officer on M-A Dance Team and was a competitive dancer outside of school.

Ishy Mishra was a senior at Menlo-Atherton High School and in her first year in journalism. She enjoyed writing opinion pieces on a variety of things and about M-A sports teams. She enjoyed spending time with her friends, family, and her dog, Monty. She also played lacrosse, was part of leadership and loved going to all the M-A sports games to support her community.