Starting back in 1944, the Golden Globes have hosted their annual award ceremony for over 80 years. This year, on Jan. 3, the Golden Globes hosted their 82nd annual ceremony, featuring many well known actors, directors and films.
The Golden Globes was started by two journalists who were wanting to find a way to start recognizing those for their directing, producing and acting talents. From then on, the company expanded into entertainment awards, recognizing the best films and television.
“Our voters represent 76 countries, bringing a unique international perspective on nominating the best in motion picture and television this year.” Golden Globes President Helen Hoehne said in a 2024 interview with New York Daily News.
Now, as of 2025, the Golden Globes are made up of 334 experienced international journalists representing 85 countries. After the nominees were announced on Dec. 9, 2024, the journalists, who are also the voting members, were sent a voting ballot, in which each member got one vote per category.
The Beverly Hilton Hotel hosted the Golden Globes, which aired on CBS and Paramount+, both starting at 8 in the evening. Actress and comedian Nikki Glaser, the first female solo host, delivered her comedic opening speech.
After finishing her opening statement, Glaser handed off the floor to actor Dwayne Johnson and actress Auli’i Cravalho, who presented the award for Best Female Supporting Actor. With the six nominees being presented, the award was presented to Zoe Saldaña for her role as Rita Mora Castro in “Emilia Pérez,” a film about a lawyer who is hired to help a cartel leader retire and live a normal life.
Although the film won Best Motion Picture, it was criticized for its portrayal of Mexican culture, leading the director of the film, Jacques Audiard, to apologize for his view on the culture.
“If there are things that seem scandalous to Mexicans in ‘Emilia,’ I apologize,” Audiard said in an interview with CNN en Español.
“Emilia Pérez” is a great film that deserved its award, but also deserved its criticism. When directing a film in a different place, it is important to discover more about the place, not to only make the film better, but to have respect for its culture, people and lifestyle.
Aside from being awarded Best Female Supporting Actor, the film was also recognized for Best Non-English Language Motion Pictures and Best Original Song in a Motion Picture.
Throughout the middle of the show, actors Anthony Mackie and Harrison Ford presented the award for Best Animated Motion Pictures. With six nominations, including “Inside Out 2” and “Moana 2,” the award went to “Flow,” a story about a cat who loses its home in a massive flood, finds refuge on a boat and teams up with other species to search for dry land.
“Thank you so much, and thank you for embracing our little cat film,” “Flow” director Gints Zilbalodis said.
“Flow” is a great film that deserves its award. The story is of a cute, sad cat that found friends and, together, found a new home. The film has great graphics as well as a storyline that left many people with an increased level of happiness.
To end the Golden Globes, actress Glenn Close presented the award for Best Drama Motion Pictures. Among the six nominees, the award went to “The Brutalist,” an adventure movie about a European architect who moves to the U.S. to rebuild his life, ultimately crossing paths with a wealthy individual who recognizes his remarkable talent.
Although The Brutalist was called “monumental,” there were big problems with the creation of the film. Recently, the editor of the film, Dávid Jancsó, admitted to using AI to fix actor Adrien Borady’s voice into making him sound more Hungarian.
“We were very careful about keeping their performances. It’s mainly just replacing letters here and there … ,” Jancsó said in an interview with RedShark News. “We really needed to speed up the process. Otherwise, we’d still be in post.”
For the film, the use of AI could be considered as a new, innovative technique that people will use. While this film only used AI to get better voice quality, it would not be okay for an entire film to be completed with AI.
With the show coverage coming to an end, Glaser went back on stage to deliver her final lines and some jokes, finalizing the event by wishing them all a good night.
Overall, the event was great. The host had a fun and good opening and closing speech, and with the many films that were selected, the winners deserve their awards. Their talents are recognized by people, not only in the U.S., but from all over the world. As the event continues over the years, it will not only get better, but might turn into an event that all countries have.
