'The power of the dog' triumphs at the 2022 Golden Globes behind closed doors

And at 79 years old, the Golden Globes closed their doors. Cornered after a year of controversy, the Hollywood Foreign Press Association (HFPA) turned one of the most recognized award ceremonies in the industry into a private event on Sunday. He did it because there wasn't much to brag about: there was no red carpet, nominees and celebrities turned their backs on organizers, and only a handful of people witnessed the awards, which weren't broadcast on TV or the internet due to among other things, to the controversy unleashed in recent months by the lack of diversity and transparency of the leadership of the organization.

It was a night without luster. There were no gala dresses to talk about, there were no speeches by nervous actors after obtaining an unexpected award. The fragments of the films nominated for the awards were also missing. Not even a Zoom connection with the artists. It has been the facelift of an organization that, in his words, has been “79 years recognizing excellence in film and television and will continue to do so for many more years.”

Absences make it difficult to rescue something memorable from a ceremony whose transmission was limited to social networks and a blog on the Globes page. The awards were presented by heads of different civil society organizations that have received financial support from the HFPA, which has been subject to public scrutiny after years of operating in the dark. The association has boasted this Sunday of having donated 50 million dollars (about 44 million euros) during the last 25 years. On social media, only two stars volunteered to record a message of support: Jamie Lee Curtis and Arnold Schwarzenegger. The organization derives its largest revenue from the rights (about $27 million in 2020) that NBC pays to broadcast the awards. Last May, given the escalation of criticism against the HFPA, the chain announced that it would not broadcast the gala. This Sunday a game of the American football league occupied the space.

In the cinema category, Steven Spielberg's version of West Side Story was among the favorites of the hundred members of the HFPA, with three awards. It won the best comedy or musical film and won the awards for best actress, for Rachel Zewgler, and best supporting actress, for Ariana DeBose.