On January 7th, 2024, the 81st annual Golden Globes aired on television at 5:00 pm PST.
This award show being one of the first television award shows to commence after the strike, expectations were high.
Actor and comedian Jo Koy, an American-Filipino, is well-known for his comedic roles in comedy specials, and had the honor of hosting.
Ten days prior to the big event, Koy claimed he received a call offering to host, to which Jo Koy confidently agreed. Many imagined that Koy’s stand-up comedy remarks would be friendly and joyful.
Despite not having seen every film that was nominated, Koy accepted the responsibility and began by binge-watching them all.
He opened with lighthearted gags. Koy demanded an additional hour and a second season of “Oppenheimer,” a movie he enjoyed. “Oppenheimer answered a lifelong question,” like “scientists do get laid.” The funny joke appeared to make the crowd laugh.
Following that, Jo Koy compared Oppenheimer and Barbie, the two most nominated films. Koy claimed that “Oppenhiemer is based on a seven hundred twenty-one page post surprise winning book about the Manhattan project,” after which “Barbie is on a plastic doll with big boobies.” At this point, the crowd became confused by the idea that Barbie was molded after a plastic doll with large breasts, despite the fact that Barbie was much more than just Margot Robbie’s figure.
Jo Koy reassured the audience that he was not a weirdo for thinking a plastic doll was attractive before assuring them once more that he was referring to Ryan Gosling, who portrayed Ken in the film. Koy stated, “the key moment in Barbie is when she goes from perfect beauty to bad breath, cellulite and flat feet.”
In that instance, he is right; Barbie’s peak began when the ordinary, flawless Barbie began to experience extraordinary moments.
The last line of Koy’s statement is, “or, what casting directors call a character actor.” A character actor is an actor or actress who takes on strange roles; in this instance, Margot Robbie was cast as an imperfect character.
Immediately putting his writers under the bus, Koy states, “Some I wrote, some other people wrote.” He instantly tries to shift the topic by saying, “Robert De Niro’s here,” but then shortly returns with, “Hey, I got the gig ten days ago. You want a perfect monologue? Yo, Shut up.” Jo Koy throws his writers under the bus again, noting the awkwardness and blank expressions in the room while assuring the audience that the jokes they are laughing are his own.
Jo Koy made another joke during the Golden Globes that went viral online and attracted millions of viewers. He included Taylor Swift in the gags. Jo Koy told the crowd that the show was put on after a football doubleheader.
The Golden Globes and the NFL are different, according to Koy, since “on the Golden Globes we have fewer camera shots of Taylor Swift.” With a direct and unimpressed attitude, Jo Koy apologized with a brief “I’m sorry about that-” before moving on. This gag caught the audience’s attention. The camera led to many peoples faces that showed no amusement.
A new category for stand up comedians was introduced this year. Nominees were Amy Schumer, Chris Rock, Wanda Sykes, Sarah Silverman, Rickey Gervais, and Trevor Noad. Gervais won with his special “Armageddon”, although he was not in attendance at the show.
More drama took to TikTok after the ceremony as fans clipped a part of the show of Selena Gomez and Taylor Swift gossiping. Many assumed it was about Timothee Chalemet and Kylie Jenner, as lip readers claimed Gomez tried to give Chalemet a hug while Jenner said no. Gomez cleared up the controversy via an Instagram comment reply stating, “I told taylor about two of my friends who hooked up. Not that it’s anyone’s business.”
The Golden Globes this year was labeled by critics as an unplanned disaster. Fans were disappointed and expressed this on social media shortly after the show was over. The Golden Globes seemed to be more about the drama and controversy rather than the actual awards.
