Golden Globes Predictions
![As the Golden Globes approach, many are making predictions about the nominees and winners in each category.](https://lhshorizon.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/Awards-Season-Photo-.jpeg)
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As the Golden Globes approach, many are making predictions about the nominees and winners in each category.
As a result of the Covid-19 pandemic, there was a massive decline in the number of films and television shows released over the past several months, meaning entertainment-industry award shows are going to look very different this year. While in any other year, nominations come out in January, this year, the Golden Globe nominations were released in early February, and the Oscars are not airing their nominations until late April. The Golden Globe awards night is scheduled for Feb. 28.
Perhaps the upside to these large delays is that they allow more time for speculation on the winning entertainment of the year. Many websites have begun predicting which movies and shows will be taking home the coveted awards. With the Golden Globe nominations slowly growing closer, here is a look at the predicted nominees for the top categories:
BEST PICTURE: DRAMA
Da 5 Bloods
Mank
Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom
Nomadland
One Night in Miami
The Trial of the Chicago 7
Most likely to win: Nomadland
Netflix is looking to dominate the Best Picture: Drama category this year with Da 5 Bloods, Mank, Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom, and The Trial of the Chicago 7 all airing on the streaming service. The predicted winner for this category is Nomadland, a film about a woman who travels the country in her van after the recession. It currently holds a 96% score on Rotten Tomatoes (rottentomatoes.com), a popular American review website for movies and TV shows, and is universally praised as one of the best movies of the year. However, do not rule out the other contenders just yet; Mank and One Night in Miami both have a pretty good shot as well.
BEST PICTURE: COMEDY/MUSICAL
Borat Subsequent Moviefilm
Eurovision Song Contest
Hamilton
On the Rocks
Palm Springs
The Prom
Most likely to win: Hamilton
Possible surprise nomination: Soul
Because people could not go to the movies in theatres this year, streaming services are dominating every category. This is especially true for the Best Picture: Comedy/Musical award, where every single top-predicted nominee has been released on a streaming service. There was originally debate over whether or not Hamilton could be nominated, but now that it has been confirmed that it can be nominated, this Disney+ recording of the hit Broadway musical has jumped to the top of the predicted winners list. Other movies like The Prom and Eurovision Song Contest, while not getting the best reviews, benefit from being both a musical and a comedy. As for Soul, while not one of the top predictions, it still has a shot at making the nominee list.
BEST ACTOR: DRAMA
Riz Ahmed- The Sound of Metal
Chadwick Boseman- Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom
Anthony Hopkins- The Father
Delroy Lindo- Da 5 Bloods
Tom Hanks- News of the World
Most likely to win: Chadwick Boseman
Best Actor: Drama is a difficult category to predict. The three frontrunners are Riz Ahmed, Chadwick Boseman, and Anthony Hopkins. Boseman tragically passed away earlier this year, but his final performance in Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom has been hailed as one of the best of the year, and he has the best chance for the nomination. As for Tom Hanks and Delroy Lindo, there is still a small chance that one of them could take the prize; however, Hanks’s chances are pretty slim, as he would mostly get a nomination just by being Tom Hanks.
BEST ACTRESS: DRAMA
Amy Adams- Hillbilly Elegy
Viola Davis- Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom
Vanessa Kirby- Pieces of a Woman
Frances McDormand- Nomadland
Carey Mulligan- Promising Young Woman
Most likely to win: Frances McDormand
Possible surprise nomination: Zendaya- Malcolm and Marie
This is another tough category, although, every nominee has a pretty strong chance of winning this award. Frances McDormand probably has the best chance, as Nomadland is expected to do very well this awards season; however, Viola Davis or Vanessa Kirby could just as easily take home Best Actress. Amy Adams, while getting excellent reviews for her performance, suffers from poorer odds, as Hillbilly Elegy received some truly awful reviews (It currently sits at 26% on Rotten Tomatoes’ ratings).
BEST ACTOR: COMEDY/MUSICAL
Sasha Baron Cohen- Borat Subsequent Moviefilm
Pete Davidson- The King of Staten Island
Will Ferrell- Eurovision Song Contest
Lin Manuel Miranda- Hamilton
Matthew McConoughey- The Gentleman
Most likely to win: Sasha Baron Cohen
Best Actor: Comedy/Musical is a pretty straightforward category this year. It is going to more or less be between Sasha Baron Cohen and Lin Manuel Miranda for the award, with a very slim chance of success for the other contenders. Pete Davidson might have a shot, but not a very good one.
BEST ACTRESS: COMEDY/MUSICAL
Maria Bakalova- Borat Subsequent Moviefilm
Rashida Jone- On the Rocks
Rachel McAdams- Eurovision Song Contest
Meryl Streep- The Prom
Anya Taylor-Joy- Emma.
Most likely to win: Meryl Streep
For the most part, Best Actress: Comedy/Musical depends on how much the Golden Globes love Meryl Streep. If she wins this award, it would be her tenth Golden Globe win. Obviously, voters would want to give her this incredible achievement, but The Prom was not a well-reviewed film, and her performance in it was not as praised as her performances usually are. Because of this, there is still a good chance for some other contestants. Maria Bakalova was considered to be one of the best aspects of Borat Subsequent Moviefilm, and Anya Taylor-Joy has had a pretty great year between Emma. and The Queen’s Gambit, so it is safe to say either could land an upset on the night of the awards.
BEST DIRECTOR
David Fincher- Mank
Regina King- One Night in Miami
Spike Lee- Da 5 Bloods
Aaron Sorking- The Trial of the Chicago 7
Chloe Zhao- Nomadland
Most likely to win: David Fincher
Possible surprise nomination: Ryan Murphy- The Prom
Unlike the Best Picture and Best Actor/Actress categories, Best Director is not separated by genre. This means all movies are eligible for this award, making it much harder to predict. The odds seem to side with David Fincher in this category. Mank, which is about the man who wrote the film Citizen Kane, has received very positive reviews. The fact that the entire movie is filmed in black and white will certainly help its chances with voters. Ryan Murphy could get a surprise nomination with The Prom, as previous awards seasons have proven that Golden Globes voters really like his work.
BEST ANIMATED FILM
Onward
Over the Moon
Soul
The Croods: A New Age
Wolf Walkers
Most likely to win: Soul
This one really isn’t a competition. There is a very high chance that Soul will take home many awards this year, as the movie was universally praised and is even in the running for a Best Picture nomination. This is the first year where Pixar has two movies nominated: Onward and Soul.
BEST TV DRAMA SERIES
Better Call Saul
Bridgerton
The Crown
Lovecraft County
Ozark
Most likely to win: The Crown
Possible surprise nomination: The Mandalorian
Another incredibly close competition, Best TV Drama Series, could go to any of the five shows above. The Crown seems to have the best chance as of right now, but it could lose to any of the other four predicted shows. As for The Mandalorian, it pulled out a surprise nomination at the Emmy Awards this year, so it could have a chance at the Golden Globes as well.
BEST TV/COMEDY SERIES
The Flight Attendant
Ramy
Schitt’s Creek
The Great
What We Do in the Shadows
Most likely to win: Schitt’s Creek
The Best TV/Comedy Series category is going to be one that will go down in history. Earlier this year, at the Emmy Awards, Schitt’s Creek became the first show to ever win seven major awards for its category. Because of this, it would be fairly easy to assume that it would win at the Golden Globes, too. That being said, the Golden Globes are famous for awarding unexpected movies and shows. The Flight Attendant, an HBO Max original series, has garnered much attention recently, and there is a good chance it could pull a surprise win. There is even a chance that FX’s vampire-comedy, What We Do in the Shadows, could take home the award as well. One should keep a close eye on this category.
BEST LIMITED SERIES/TV MOVIE
Fargo
Mrs. America
Normal People
The Undoing
The Queen’s Gambit
Most likely to win: The Queen’s Gambit
This nomination is definitely going to The Queen’s Gambit. It was one of the most-streamed shows of the year, and it received excellent reviews all around. None of the other shows really have too much of a chance, except for Mrs. America, maybe. But, that is a very slim chance.
BEST TV DRAMA ACTOR
Jason Bateman- Ozark
Jonathan Majors- Lovecraft County
Josh O’Connor- The Crown
Bob Odenkirk- Better Call Saul
Al Pacino- Hunters
Most likely to win: Jonathan Majors
This award is anybody’s game. Josh O’Connor’s name seems to appear the most in many online predictions, but Al Pacino could wind up winning, as could Bob Odenkirk or Jason Bateman. This one will likely be a surprise, no matter who wins.
BEST TV DRAMA ACTRESS
Olivia Colman- The Crown
Phoebe Dynover- Bridgerton
Laura Linney- Ozark
Sarah Paulson- Ratched
Jurnee Smolett- Lovecraft County
Most likely to win: Olivia Colman
Olivia Colman has won an endless parade of awards for her portrayals of old, stern queens in both film and television, so another win would not be too surprising. But, Laura Linney has also attracted a lot of attention for season three of Ozark, so she could possibly win as well. As for Sarah Paulson, while her work in Ratched did receive positive reviews, the show did not, so it would be fair to assume she might just get a nomination and nothing else.
BEST TV/COMEDY ACTOR
Matt Berry – What We Do in the Shadows
Nicholas Hoult – The Great
Eugene Levy – Schitt’s Creek
Jason Sudekis – Ted Lasso
Ramy Youssef – Ramy
Most likely to win: Eugene Levy
As mentioned before, Schitt’s Creek dominated at the 2020 Emmys, and there is a fair chance that it will dominate at the Golden Globes as well. Eugene Levy definitely has the best chance here, but it is not set in stone; any of the other actors could wind up beating him for the award.
BEST TV COMEDY ACTRESS
Christina Applegate- Dead to Me
Linda Cardellini- Dead to Me
Kaley Cuoco- The Flight Attendant
Elle Fanning- The Great
Catherine O’Hara- Schitt’s Creek
Most likely to win: Catherine O’Hara
Possible surprise nomination: Natasha Demetriou- What We Do in the Shadows
Schitt’s Creek is poised to win this category as well, but Catherine O’Hara does have big competition here: Kaley Cuoco. The Flight Attendant is the show with the best chance of stopping Schitt’s Creek from another sweep, as Cuoco’s performance was met with tons of appraisal from critics. This one will really come down to the night of the awards, with both actresses having an incredibly high chance of winning.
BEST LIMITED SERIES/TV MOVIE ACTOR
Bryan Cranston- Your Honor
Hugh Grant- The Undoing
Hugh Jackman- Bad Education
Chris Rock- Fargo
Mark Ruffalo- I Know This Much is True
Most likely to win: Chris Rock
Here is yet another category that could sway in multiple directions. While most predictions are not giving this award to Chris Rock, he has a great shot of winning for a couple of reasons. For one, the Golden Globes is known to love when actors play a role out of their usual range, and Rock fits this bill perfectly as Loy Cannon, the stern mob boss. Fargo has won in this category in two out of its past three seasons, meaning the show is a favorite among voters. If Rock does not get the nomination, it should be a battle between the two Hughs, but he still has a good fighting chance.
BEST LIMITED SERIES/TV MOVIE ACTRESS
Cate Blanchett- Mrs. America
Shira Haas- Unorthodox
Nicole Kidman- The Undoing
Anya Taylor-Joy- The Queen’s Gambit
Kerry Washington- Little Fires Everywhere
Most likely to win: Anya Taylor-Joy
Possible surprise nomination: Octavia Spencer- Self Made
Just as The Queen’s Gambit is almost certainly going to win in its respective category, its lead actress is also the favorite for hers. Anya Taylor-Joy received an overflowing amount of positive reviews for her performance in the Netflix miniseries, meaning that she currently has the best odds. She could lose, though; Nicole Kidman has a fair chance as well.
That sums it up for the predictions. There are many other categories in addition to these, but these categories consist of the highest awards, and, therefore, are the most speculated about. When the actual nominations do come out, it will be much clearer to view the predicted winners for each category, as well as who should win each award.
![Photo of Jaiden Moreno](https://lhshorizon.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/Jaiden-Bio-475x356.jpg)
I am a member of the Class of 2023, and I am the online editor-in-chief. Some of my passions include acting, making movies, and finishing a bag of Doritos...