Comedian Nikki Glaser kicked off what she called 鈥淥zempic's biggest night,鈥 the 82nd Golden Globes, with a promise: 鈥淚'm not here to roast you.鈥
But in a withering roast of Tom Brady, made her way around the ballroom of the Beverly Hilton in Beverly Hills, California, picking out plenty of targets in an opening monologue she had worked out extensively in comedy clubs beforehand.
Glaser, hosting the Globes two weeks before the inauguration of Donald Trump, reserved perhaps her most cutting line for the whole room of Hollywood stars.
鈥淵ou could really do anything ... except tell the country who to vote for,鈥 said Glaser. 鈥淏ut it鈥檚 OK, you鈥檒l get 鈥檈m next time ... if there is one. I鈥檓 scared."
She then turned toward 鈥淲icked鈥 star Ariana Grande with a request: "Ariana, hold my finger.鈥
Glaser complimented nominated for his performance as Bob Dylan in 鈥淎 Complete Unknown,鈥 for having 鈥渢he most gorgeous eye-lashes on your upper lip.鈥
While Glaser might not have reached Tina Fey and Amy Poehler levels of laughs, the monologue was mostly a winner, and a dramatic improvement over last year's host, Jo Koy. Glaser assured the crowd that, win or lose, 鈥渢he point of making art is to start a tequila brand so popular that you never have to make art again.鈥
The night's first winner was Zoe Salda帽a for best supporting actress. Salda帽a won for her performance in Jacques Audiard's 鈥淓milia Perez,鈥 the trans musical that came in with a leading 10 nods, followed by Brady Corbet鈥檚 postwar epic with seven, and Edward Berger鈥檚 papal thriller with six. Among the top-nominated series were 鈥淭he Bear,鈥 鈥淪hogun鈥 and 鈥淥nly Murders in the Building.鈥
After a rocky few years and the disbanding of the Hollywood Foreign Press Association, the have seemingly stabilized. The question heading into Sunday was: But can they still put on a good show?
Last year鈥檚 comeback edition, hosted by , was widely panned, but it delivered where it counted: to about 10 million viewers, according to Nielsen. CBS, who waded in after NBC dumped the Globes, signed up for five more years.
The Globes are now owned by Todd Boehly鈥檚 Eldridge Industries and Dick Clark Productions, which acquired the award show from the now defunct Hollywood Foreign Press Association. After diversity and ethics scandals, the HFPA sold off the Globes and dissolved. However, more than a dozen former HFPA members are seeking to have the sale to Eldridge Industries and Dick Clark Productions rescinded.
Either way, the Globes鈥 primary reason for being, from studios鈥 perspectives, is to serve as one big marketing event for its awards contenders. It鈥檚 still almost two months until the Academy Awards on March 2.
But unlike last year, where 鈥淥ppenheimer鈥 steamrolled and the billion-dollar-grossing 鈥淏arbie鈥 juiced the race, this year鈥檚 top contenders are more arthouse, and no clear favorite has yet emerged.
The Globes are taking place about two weeks before the . So far in Hollywood鈥檚 awards season, most nominees have tried to stay out of the political fray, with the major exception of 鈥淭he Apprentice,鈥 . Both actors were nominated by the Globes, with Stan picking up a second nod for his performance in
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