Golden Globes Highlights: ‘The Brutalist’ and ‘Emilia Pérez’ Win Top Film Awards (2025)

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Brooks Barnes

Golden Globes takeaways: ‘Emilia Pérez’ and ‘The Brutalist’ win big.

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Golden Globe voters did little to clear up a blurry awards picture in Hollywood on Sunday, giving little-seen films like “The Brutalist” and “Emilia Pérez” roughly equal treatment and snubbing some perceived Oscar front-runners, including “Anora.”

“The Brutalist,” an immigrant epic from A24 that has yet to open in wide release, received three Globes, winning best drama, best actor (Adrien Brody) and best director (Brady Corbet). “Emilia Pérez,” the Spanish-language Netflix musical exploring trans identity, was victorious in four categories, taking best comedy or musical, best supporting actress (Zoe Saldaña), best song (“El Mal”) and best non-English-language film.

The other film prizes were scattered far and wide, with “Wicked,” “The Substance,” “A Different Man,” “Flow,” “I’m Still Here,” “Conclave,” “Challengers” and “A Real Pain” winning one Globe each.

“Anora,” which went into the night with five nominations, left with nothing, as did “The Wild Robot,” which had four nods, and the Bob Dylan biopic “A Complete Unknown,” which had three. Awards handicappers have expected this trio — especially “Anora,” about a young sex worker — to be strong Oscar contenders.

On the television side of the ledger, “Shogun,” the FX drama, had a big night, winning best TV drama, best actor, best actress and best supporting actor. Other TV victories went to “Hacks,” “Baby Reindeer,” “The Bear,” “True Detective: Night Country” and “The Penguin.”

Here’s what to know about the show:

  • Here are all the winners:

  • Globes voters veered toward movies that few Americans have seen. “Flow,” about a cat on a survival journey, won best animated film. It collected $2.6 million at the box office. (To compare, the nominated “Inside Out 2” had $653 million in domestic ticket sales.) Fernanda Torres was named best actress for her performance in the Brazilian film “I’m Still Here.” One exception: The blockbuster “Wicked” won for cinematic and box office achievement, an award in its second year.

  • In the past, Globe voters have been eager to put new television shows on the awards map. But not this time. The trophies on Sunday night largely went to time-tested series, with newcomers like “Black Doves,” “The Day of the Jackal,” “Disclaimer” and “Nobody Wants This” sent home empty-handed. “The Penguin,” the HBO comic-book series, won for its star (Colin Farrell) but lost best limited series to “Baby Reindeer,” which was already thoroughly feted by the Emmys. Jessica Gunning collected the trophy for supporting actress in a TV series for Netflix’s “Baby Reindeer.”

  • Demi Moore won her first Globe. “I’m just in shock right now,” she said, picking up the trophy for best actress in a comedy for “The Substance.” “I’ve been doing this a long time, like over 45 years, and this is the first time I’ve ever won anything as an actor.” In her speech, she recalled once being dismissed by a producer as a “popcorn actress.”

  • Jodie Foster won her fifth Globe for the latest season of “True Detective.”

  • The show started with a light and breezy monologue by Nikki Glaser that marked a dramatic turnaround from last year’s train wreck of an opener by Jo Koy. “Welcome to Ozempic’s biggest night,” she said. Glaser had said in interviews ahead of the ceremony that she planned to keep her monologue playful, and she did, skipping past the Blake Lively-Justin Baldoni smear scandal that has consumed Hollywood. (As a first-time host, she had explained, she wanted to be invited back.)

Jan. 5, 2025, 11:15 p.m. ET

Margaret Lyons

Television critic

And we’re done! A few teleprompter hiccups, a couple of cut-aways for curse words, but overall a pretty seamless ceremony that comes in 13 minutes overtime.

Jan. 5, 2025, 11:15 p.m. ET

Melena Ryzik

Culture reporter

The filmmaker Brady Corbet uses his stage time to argue, vehemently, for giving final cut to directors. He says he was told his now multiple-Globe-winning film “The Brutalist” wouldn’t sell, wouldn’t even work — that nobody would see it (which does remain to be seen, as it’s not opened wide yet). He says he doesn’t mind those comments, but that filmmakers should be given their shot. “Nobody was asking for a three-and-a-half-hour film about a midcentury designer, in 70-millimeter.” And yet, his is now going home with top awards.

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Jan. 5, 2025, 11:14 p.m. ET

Kyle Buchanan

The Projectionist, at the Golden Globes

It’s been a big night for “Emilia Pérez” and “The Brutalist,” which took the biggest film awards. And it’s a shutout for “Anora,” which couldn’t find purchase anywhere, including the screenplay category. Those three films still feel like the strongest positioned movies in a very fluid Oscar race, and it’ll be exciting to see what happens next.

Best Motion Picture, Musical or Comedy

“Emilia Pérez”

Wins for best motion picture, musical or comedy.

Jan. 5, 2025, 11:10 p.m. ET

Derrick Bryson Taylor

‘Emilia Pérez,’ the nominations leader, wins the Globe for best musical.

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“Emilia Pérez,” which went into the night with the most nominations, at 10, won the Globe for best movie musical or comedy.

The Spanish-language musical melodrama from Netflix follows the story of Emilia, played by the trans actress Karla Sofía Gascón, a Mexico City cartel kingpin who fakes death in order to transition abroad in secret. Years after her surgery, the newly rechristened Emilia contacts the lawyer who helped arrange it (Zoe Saldaña) and has one more request: a reunion with the unsuspecting wife (Selena Gomez) and children she left behind, even though returning to the scene of her old crimes could have dire consequences.

The film, directed by Jacques Audiard and released in November, won an ensemble best actress award at the Cannes Film Festival in May.

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Jan. 5, 2025, 11:08 p.m. ET

Alissa Wilkinson

Movie critic

“The Brutalist” wins best motion picture drama, and the announcer talks about the film’s intermission as everyone walks up. (It runs 3 hours and 35 minutes, but there’s a 15-minute intermission baked into it.)

Jan. 5, 2025, 11:08 p.m. ET

Annie Aguiar and Derrick Bryson Taylor

‘The Brutalist’ wins best drama in a tight race.

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The Brutalist,” the epic starring Adrien Brody as a Holocaust survivor and architect, took home the top drama prize at the Golden Globes on Sunday, triumphing in a field that included the journalism ethics thriller “September 5” and the Bob Dylan biopic “A Complete Unknown.”

In the weighty film, directed by Brady Corbet (“Vox Lux”), Brody is the fictional László Tóth, who tries to realize his grand vision in postwar America. Though some viewers have come away from the film thinking that László is based on a historical figure, he is in fact the creation of Corbet and Mona Fastvold, his co-writer and partner, who told The New York Times they consulted experts to make sure there was no resemblance to a real person.

“We wanted to talk about these bigger concepts,” Fastvold said, “and if you’re locked into a real person, then it’s harder to do so because you’re married to what happened to them vs. just looking at this period in time and the relationship between postwar psychology and postwar architecture.”

The film was the second-most-nominated film of the night (after “Emilia Pérez”) with nods for Brody, who won best actor in a drama; Corbet, who won best director; Felicity Jones (who played the architect’s wife); Guy Pearce (as his wealthy patron); and the screenplay and score.

The Brutalist” has earned much praise this awards season, taking first-place honors from members of the New York Film Critics Circle and the runner-up prize from their Los Angeles brethren. And it’s considered a likely best picture contender when the Oscar nominations are announced on Jan. 17.

On Sunday, Corbet told the audience, “No one was asking for a three-and-a-half-hour film about a midcentury designer on 70-millimeter. But it works.”

Best Motion Picture, Drama

“The Brutalist”

Wins for best motion picture, drama.

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Jan. 5, 2025, 11:04 p.m. ET

Kyle Buchanan

The Projectionist, at the Golden Globes

It’s notable that the Globes flipped the order of the final two awards, presenting best drama before best comedy or musical when it’s often the other way around. But it’s an acknowledgment that the bigger contenders are in the comedy-musical race, which is much more competitive.

Jan. 5, 2025, 11:04 p.m. ET

Margaret Lyons

Television critic

It really does seem like they’re letting speeches run long; we had about two minutes left, and two awards to go — on other shows, Adrien Brody would have been cut off way sooner. I am pro speeches! That’s what I’m here for! But it’s an interesting shift.

Jan. 5, 2025, 11:03 p.m. ET

Annie Aguiar

Viola Davis and Ted Danson received honorary awards on Friday.

The actress Viola Davis and the actor Ted Danson received honorary Golden Globes for lifetime achievement. Davis accepted the Cecil B. DeMille Award for achievement in film, while Danson received the Carol Burnett Award for his work in television.

Davis and Danson accepted their awards at a gala dinner on Friday, and their wins were featured only briefly during the ceremony.

In 2017, Davis won the Golden Globe and Academy Award for best supporting actress for her performance in the August Wilson adaptation “Fences.” In 2023, she won a Grammy for best audiobook for the recording of her memoir, which made her a member of a select club: artists who have achieved EGOT status with at least one Emmy, Grammy, Oscar and Tony to their names. (The honorary Globe is a nice bonus.)

Davis has also been nominated for Golden Globes for her performances in the films “Doubt,” “The Help,” “Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom” and “The Woman King,” in addition to two nominations for her lead role in the television series “How to Get Away With Murder.”

Davis is the second Black woman to win the Cecil B. DeMille Award, which was first awarded in 1952 to the producer-director DeMille himself. Awardees in recent years have included Oprah Winfrey, Eddie Murphy, Jane Fonda, Tom Hanks and Jeff Bridges.

Danson started his career in soap operas before finding stardom in 1982 on the NBC sitcom “Cheers.” He played the former baseball player turned bartender Sam Malone, leading a cast that over 11 seasons included the likes of Shelley Long, Kirstie Alley, Woody Harrelson and Kelsey Grammer. It became one of the most popular series of its time; the show’s finale in 1993 drew more than 90 million viewers, making it one of the most-watched episodes of television ever.

He won Golden Globes in 1990 and 1991 for “Cheers,” as well as one in 1985 for the television movie “Something About Amelia.” He has 12 nominations, including one this year for “A Man on the Inside.”

Though Danson has worked in movies, like the box office hit “Three Men and a Baby,” he is mainly known for TV, especially sitcoms. His credits include long-running series like “Becker” (CBS) and “Curb Your Enthusiasm” (HBO), where he played a version of himself, as well as more recent shows like “The Good Place” (NBC).

The Carol Burnett Award is a recent addition to the Globes, and was first awarded to Burnett herself in 2019. Other honorees include the comedian Ellen DeGeneres, the screenwriter and producer Norman Lear and the showrunner Ryan Murphy.

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Jan. 5, 2025, 11:02 p.m. ET

Sinna Nasseri

Photographer at the Golden Globes

Viola Davis, Nicole Kidman, Michelle Yeoh and Tilda Swinton at the Golden Globes.

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In Case You Missed It

Jan. 5, 2025, 10:59 p.m. ET

Brooks Barnes

Adrien Brody was honored as best actor in a motion picture drama for “The Brutalist,” while Fernanda Torres received the corresponding best actress Globe for her performance in “I’m Still Here.” “Hacks” and “Shogun” repeated their Emmy victories with Globes for best TV comedy and drama. Another Emmy winner, Anna Sawai (“Shogun”), won the Globe for best actress in a drama.

Jan. 5, 2025, 10:56 p.m. ET

Kyle Buchanan

The Projectionist, at the Golden Globes

Adrien Brody feels like the front-runner for the best actor Oscar, and this Golden Globe victory certainly strengthens his case. And it’s another big win for “The Brutalist,” which also picked up the directing trophy.

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Best Performance by an Actor in a Motion Picture, Drama

Adrien Brody

Wins best performance by an actor in a motion picture, drama for "The Brutalist."

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Jan. 5, 2025, 10:55 p.m. ET

Esther Zuckerman

Adrien Brody Wins His First Golden Globe, for ‘The Brutalist’

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Adrien Brody’s performance as a Hungarian architect in “The Brutalist” has won him his first Golden Globe. In the three-and-a-half hour film directed by Brady Corbet, the actor plays László Tóth, a Holocaust survivor trying to rebuild his life in America following the war.

The performance and film are so detailed that some viewers have come away thinking that László is a real historical figure. He is not. Rather, he’s an invention of Corbet and his co-writer and partner, Mona Fastvold, in order to explore the connections between postwar architecture and postwar psychology.

While Brody, who had never won a Golden Globe until now, has been in the awards conversation before, it was more than 20 years ago that he received the best actor Academy Award — for “The Pianist” (2002). In his acceptance speech on Sunday, he said, “There was a time, not too long ago, that I felt that this may never be a moment afforded to me again.”

He also thanked Corbet and the director’s co-writer, Mona Fastvold, and addressed his fellow nominees — Timothée Chalamet (“A Complete Unknown”), Daniel Craig (“Queer”), Colman Domingo (“Sing Sing”), Ralph Fiennes (“Conclave”) and Sebastian Stan (“The Apprentice”) — saying, “You reached such heights with your work, and you are such inspirations to me.”

He went on to acknowledge his family, particularly his photographer mother, who he has said fled Hungary during the 1956 revolution:

“The character’s journey is very reminiscent of my mother’s and my ancestors’ journey of fleeing war and coming to this great country. I owe so much to my mother and my grandparents for their sacrifice, and although I do not know fully how to express all of the challenges that you have faced and experienced, and the many people who have struggled immigrating to this country, I hope that this work stands to lift you up a bit and to give you a voice.”

Brody is considered a likely nominee when the Oscar nominations are unveiled on Jan. 17.

Jan. 5, 2025, 10:53 p.m. ET

Kyle Buchanan

The Projectionist, at the Golden Globes

This is a great, televised boost for Fernanda Torres, who didn’t make BAFTA’s best actress long list. It’s an awfully competitive category this year, and Torres needed this win to stay in the mix.

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Jan. 5, 2025, 10:55 p.m. ET

Melena Ryzik

Culture reporter

Torres is visibly shaking and still gives a heartfelt speech.

Jan. 5, 2025, 10:55 p.m. ET

Alissa Wilkinson

Movie critic

I’m surprised but pleased to see this win. “I’m Still Here” has been a huge hit in Brazil, a biopic with a genuine political point to make (and the target of a far-right boycott in its home country). It’s also one of many recent South American films intertwining themes of memory, both collective and individual.

Best Performance by an Actress in a Motion Picture, Drama

Fernanda Torres

Wins best performance by an actress in a motion picture, drama for "I'm Still Here."

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Jan. 5, 2025, 10:50 p.m. ET

Brooks Barnes

The awards for lifetime achievement were essentially elbowed off the main show by the categories added last year — best blockbuster and best TV stand-up comedian. “We found that we weren’t able to do a full tribute to our honorees due to the time restrictions of the show,” Barry Adelman, a longtime Globes organizer, said last month.

Jan. 5, 2025, 10:49 p.m. ET

Alissa Wilkinson

Movie critic

Well, it looks like we’re in the home stretch. Four more awards left, all of them movie-related: actor and actress in a drama, and the best picture awards for comedy/musical and drama.

Best Television Series, Drama

“Shogun”

Wins for best television series, drama.

Best Performance by an Actress in a Television Series, Drama

Anna Sawai

Wins best actress in a television series, drama for "Shogun."

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Jan. 5, 2025, 10:38 p.m. ET

Kyle Buchanan

The Projectionist, at the Golden Globes

During the commercial break, the Globes projected an honest-to-God studio leader board onto the wall, noting that Netflix has won six prizes tonight, Max has won four and FX/Hulu has won three. Just in case things weren’t already competitive …

Jan. 5, 2025, 10:37 p.m. ET

Vanessa Friedman

Chief fashion critic

OK, Nikki Glaser. I believe we are on dress seven now.

Jan. 5, 2025, 10:33 p.m. ET

Margaret Lyons

Television critic

“Hacks” slayed “The Bear” at the Emmys in September, too, in what felt like something of an upset. “Nobody Wants This” was popular enough that it seemed like it could be a Globes darling, but the “Hacks” train keeps rolling.

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Jan. 5, 2025, 10:32 p.m. ET

Sinna Nasseri

Photographer at the Golden Globes

Nicolas Cage, Pamela Anderson and Ralph Fiennes at the Golden Globes.

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Golden Globes Highlights: ‘The Brutalist’ and ‘Emilia Pérez’ Win Top Film Awards (25)

Jan. 5, 2025, 10:26 p.m. ET

The New York Times

Watch a scene from ‘Emilia Pérez’ featuring ‘El Mal,’ which just won best song.

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Golden Globes Highlights: ‘The Brutalist’ and ‘Emilia Pérez’ Win Top Film Awards (26)

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Jan. 5, 2025, 10:05 p.m. ET

Esther Zuckerman

Sebastian Stan Wins His First Golden Globe, for ‘A Different Man’

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Playing an actor with a facial disfigurement who gets an experimental treatment that transforms his appearance but doesn’t help his career has won Sebastian Stan his first Golden Globe, for “A Different Man.”

“Our ignorance and discomfort around disability and disfigurement has to end now,” Stan said while accepting his award. “We have to normalize it and continue to expose ourselves to it and our children, encourage acceptance. One way we can do that is continuing to champion stories that are inclusive. This was not an easy movie to make.”

The director Aaron Schimberg’s dark comedy was released by A24 but wasn’t one of the studio’s most high-profile projects this year. It is a satire about Edward (Stan), who, after getting a new face, discovers that his former neighbor (Renate Reinsve) has written a play inspired by him. Unfortunately, she now doesn’t recognize him and doesn’t think he is the right person for the lead in her show. Instead, she is captivated by Oswald, played by Adam Pearson, an actor with neurofibromatosis.

“A Different Man” was not the only movie that garnered Stan a Globe nomination this year. He was also up for best actor in a drama for his transformation into a young Donald J. Trump for Ali Abbasi’s biopic, “The Apprentice.” (Adrien Brody won for “The Brutalist.”) That film focuses on Trump’s relationship with the lawyer and fixer Roy Cohn in the 1970s and ’80s. Speaking of “The Apprentice” during his acceptance, he said it was a movie he was “lucky to be a part of and that I am proud to be in.”

For a time it was unclear whether “The Apprentice,” which premiered at the Cannes Film Festival in May, was ever going to hit theaters. Trump, then running for president, threatened to sue. It was ultimately released by Briarcliff Entertainment in October. Speaking to The Times about the decision to play Trump, Stan said, “for some reason every time somebody said, ‘Don’t do it,’ it made me want to do it more.”

Referring to both “The Apprentice” and “A Different Man” on the telecast on Sunday, he said, “These are tough subject matters, but these films are real and they are necessary and we can’t be afraid and look away.”

He ended the speech by dedicating the Globe to his parents: “This is for my mom, who left Romania in search of a better life and gave me everything, and for my stepfather, Tony, who took on a single mom and a grown-up kid. Thank you for being a real man. Golden Globes, I love you.”

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Golden Globes Highlights: ‘The Brutalist’ and ‘Emilia Pérez’ Win Top Film Awards (2025)
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