As the nominations for the 80^th Golden Globe Awards will be announced this coming Monday, here is what has been going on behind the scenes while we prepare for the return of the season’s most entertaining award show.
Four new categories, one new host and 103 new voters from across the world: the combined voting body (members and international voters) represents 62 countries including Kenya, Niger, Nigeria, Ukraine, Paraguay, Uruguay, Peru, Romania, Ghana, Singapore, Georgia and the Dominican Republic. This brings the total number of nationalities within the group to more than 80.
Says Helen Hoehne, President of the HFPA, “After bringing in our largest member class last year with 21 diverse members, it was clear we had to find new opportunities to bring in additional voters to ensure the continued diversification and growth in the voting body. The addition of new non-member voters drawn from international markets gives us the opportunity to more rapidly increase the number of voters while preserving our international identity and maintaining the commitment to bring in qualified and experienced entertainment journalists.”
These new voters were recruited from international industry organizations, as well as from active outreach to esteemed foreign film festivals and journalism professionals. They are 22.3% Latinx, 13.6% Black, 11.7% Asian, 10.7% Middle Eastern, and 41.7% White, with 58.3% self-identifying as ethnically diverse. Combined with the current HFPA membership, the total Golden Globe Awards voting body of 199 voters is 52% female, 51.8% racially and ethnically diverse with 19.6% Latinx, 12.1% Asian, 10.1% Black and 10.1% Middle Eastern. The voting body also includes individuals who self-identify as LGBTQIA+.
And this is just the beginning, says Chief Diversity Officer Neil Phillips. “Our work is not complete as we will continue to identify and recruit additional members and non-member voters to expand, diversify and strengthen the Golden Globe Awards while maintaining its unique international flavor. We remain committed to reshaping and growing the voting body while preserving the ability to make quality award decisions with integrity.”
The awards categories – previously, 13 in film and 12 in TV – have also changed: four were added to replace two acting categories for television, thereby increasing the chances for supporting actors and actresses instead of grouping them together from the different genres. They are:
·      Best Supporting Actor in a Television Series/Musical-Comedy or Drama
·      Best Supporting Actress in a Television Series/ Musical-Comedy or Drama
·      Best Supporting Actor in a Limited Series/Anthology or Motion Picture Made for Television
·      Best Supporting Actress in a Limited Series/Anthology or Motion Picture Made for Television
Add our new host, the talented comedy star Jerrod Carmichael and you have the makings of a historic broadcast. At only 35, he has already released three comedy specials; co-created, co-written, produced and starred in the semi-autobiographical NBC sitcom The Carmichael ShowOn the Count of Three.
The 80^th Golden Globe Awards will air live coast to coast on Tuesday, January 10, 2023, at 8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. PT from the Beverly Hilton in Beverly Hills on NBC and Peacock.