'Belfast, 'Power of the Dog' lead Golden Globe nods in controversial year

Movie dramas The Power of the Dog and Belfast led nominations on Monday for the annual Golden Globe in a year clouded by controversy and a scaled-down ceremony.

Belfast set in 1970s Northern Ireland, and director Jane Campion's Western The Power of the Dog got seven nods each. They were followed by global-warming satire Don't Look Up; King Richard, about the father of tennis champions Venus and Serena Williams; director Steven Spielberg's new version of the classic musical West Side Story and coming-of-age tale Licorice Pizza with four each.

Netflix movies had a leading 17 nods. The winners of the Golden Globes will be announced on January 9 but the format of the ceremony is unclear after broadcaster NBC earlier this year dropped plans to televise the glitzy awards dinner in Beverly Hills after a controversy over the Hollywood Foreign Press Association (HFPA), the group that votes on them.

Critics objected to the HFPA having no Black members and raised long-standing ethical questions over whether close relationships with Hollywood studios influenced the choice of nominees and winners. Tom Cruise returned the three Golden Globe statuettes that he won.

The HFPA has since added 21 new members, six of whom are Black, banned gifts and favours, and implemented diversity and sexual harassment training. The group now has 105 members total.

Despite these moves, major film and TV studios have tried to distance themselves from the honours and did not submit programming for consideration as they have in the past.

It is unclear whether any of the actors, directors and musicians nominated for Golden Globes will attend the 2022 ceremony, which had been one of the biggest Hollywood awards shows in the run-up to the Oscars.

Rapper Snoop Dogg was the only celebrity on hand on Monday to announce the nominations.

Belfast, The Power of the Dog, deaf community movie Coda, sci-fi epic Dune and King Richard all got nods for best movie drama.

A musical take on the classic Cyrano and an adaptation of the off-Broadway hit Tick, Tick... Boom will compete with Don't Look Up, Licorice Pizza and West Side Story for best musical or comedy.

Lady Gaga (House of Gucci), Nicole Kidman (Being the Ricardos), Will Smith (King Richard), Kristen Stewart (Spencer) and Denzel Washington (The Tragedy of Macbeth) were among the actors nominated for best drama movie performances.

The HFPA said it had made its choices this year by watching films in movie theatres, at screenings and on streaming platforms in what it called “a fair and equitable voting process.”

“While the Golden Globes will not be televised in January 2022, we will continue our 78-year tradition,” the HFPA said in an open letter released ahead of Monday's nominations. “The last eight months have been difficult, but we are proud of the changes we have achieved so far.”

Reuters