Takeaways and winners from the Golden Globes as the first ‘Battle’ for award show domination is won

The 2026 Golden Globes – what a night.

Toward the end of the evening, Julia Roberts claimed it had been “a beautiful night to be an artist,” and that was very much the case – even if the reality of the outside world didn’t quite break into the room like it sometimes does.

It was an unforgettable night for many, including 11 actors and one director who took home their very first Golden Globes, according to the organization.

Speaking of that director…

‘One’ big step for Paul Thomas Anderson

Let the battle to upset “One Battle After Another’s” award season momentum begin.

The acclaimed film from director Paul Thomas Anderson scooped up four awards on Sunday, earning the award for best musical or comedy film, as well as a best supporting actress in a motion picture win for Teyana Taylor. Anderson also picked up two individual honors, one for best director and one for best screenplay. The Globe wins were the first for the “Phantom Thread” director, who was previously nominated for writing 2021’s “Licorice Pizza.”

Anderson – an 11-time Academy Award-nominee – also directed awards darling “There Will Be Blood,” as well as acclaimed ’90s titles “Boogie Nights” and “Magnolia.” But could this year be his to finally pick up an Oscar? The signs are looking good so far.

Not only do the four statues bode well for the film’s future, but the room buzzed with good will for Anderson, who didn’t try to hide his glee.

While accepting the honor for best director, his second award of the evening, Anderson said, “You guys are being so generous with this affection for me and this film, and I’ll take it. I’ll take it with the love that it’s given and the appreciation.”

“One Battle After Another” stars Leonardo DiCaprio as a washed up revolutionary who finds himself facing off against nefarious entities led by a frightening colonel (Sean Penn). Both DiCaprio and Penn were also nominated at the Globes this year, along with newcomer Chase Infiniti, who played DiCaprio’s on-screen daughter, and an uproarious Benicio del Toro in the role of a well-connected karate teacher. The film was also up for best original score.

One question that seemed to dominate conversation on Sunday had nothing to do with the genre-scrambling film’s Oscar chances, but, rather, its categorization as a comedy in the first place, which is a whole other can of worms.

Those who have seen “One Battle After Another” — an edge-of-your-seat thriller/political manifesto — probably wouldn’t immediately put it in a “comedy or musical” category, but the Globes gonna Globe. This year was no exception.

This is, of course, a problem unique to this show as it makes a distinction between drama and comedy/musical categories – something that has long caused many to scratch heads, particularly among film honorees.

Presenter Judd Apatow took a long moment on stage to talk about his “beef” with the Globes stemming from this very issue. In 2015, the Ridley Scott-directed sci-fi odyssey “The Martian” ended up in the best musical or comedy category and beat out Apatow’s actual comedy “Trainwreck,” starring Amy Schumer and Bill Hader.

“You know Ridley Scott – America’s favorite comedy director. Director of such hilarious comedies as ‘Gladiator,’ ‘Blade Runner’ and ‘Alien,’” Apatow joked on stage.

The category confusion continued this year. Rose Byrne, who won in the best female actor for a musical or comedy category for the harrowing film “If I Had Legs I’d Kick You” – a portrait of an extremely overextended mother brought to the brink – noted during her acceptance speech that she “didn’t sing” in the role.

One thing the Globes can say: its polarizing box office achievement category – frustrating as some might find it that a Netflix movie with a limited theatrical run (“KPop Demon Hunters”) was nominated alongside a movie that earned the distinction before it even hit theaters (“Avatar: Fire and Ash”) – did work as intended, with box office behemoth “Sinners” taking home the statue. So maybe there is – sometimes – a method to the madness.

Golden Globes host Nikki Glaser’s monologue was as self aware as they come, with the night’s emcee joking that the show was “without a doubt the most important thing happening in the world right now.”

And that’s about as political as the ceremony got for quite a while.

Though some years past have been ripe with political commentary on stage, the topic was notably absent this year, with speech givers opting to shout-out their families and people inside the Globes ballroom as opposed to the weighty issues outside of it.

The red carpet was a slightly different story. Several celebrities including Mark Ruffalo and Jean Smart wore “Be Good” pins in support of Renee Nicole Good, the Minnesota mother who was shot and killed by ICE agents last week.

Smart, who won a Globe for best actress in a musical or comedy, later spoke to Extra about her decision to make a political statement at an award show, saying that she understands why people may not always want to hear what celebrities have to say about what’s going on in the world.

“I have mixed feelings about, you know, getting political or making social commentary at an awards event,” she said, later adding that she feels “we’ve gotten to a point now that is so important that everybody wakes up and opens their eyes, and is brave and calm, but at the same time try to be active.”

“Go with your conscience and stay involved,” she said.

“Adolescence” writer Jack Thorne also touched on social commentary during his acceptance speech, saying that “removing hate is our generation’s responsibility.”

“It requires thought from the top down,” he added. “The possibility seems remote now, but hope is a beautiful thing.”

And while presenting the award for best director, Apatow quipped that “we’re in a dictatorship now,” but immediately lightened the tone by joking that he was mostly focused on seeking justice for his film’s loss ten years ago.

The evening on the TV side was largely predictable, with Noah Wyle winning best actor in a TV drama for “The Pitt” and Jean Smart winning the Globe for best actress in a TV comedy for “Hacks,” a role for which she also won in 2022 and 2025.

One first-time winner did squeeze into the lineup, however: Rhea Seehorn, who took home her first-ever Globe for her performance in the Apple TV sci-fi drama “Pluribus,” a surprising moment in the night’s TV realm considering she went up against Hollywood vets including Kathy Bates and Helen Mirren.

During her speech, she thanked “Pluribus” creator Vince Gilligan – who also created “Better Call Saul,” on which Seehorn starred – for “writing me the role of a lifetime.”

As for other first-time winners, the night was kicked off on an emotional note thanks to “One Battle” standout Taylor, who won for her role as the fierce Perfidia Beverly Hills.

In her teary acceptance speech, Taylor addressed her “brown sisters and (the) little brown girls watching tonight,” saying “our softness is not a liability.”

“Our depth is not debt, it’s not too much,” she said. “Our light does not need permission to shine. We belong in every room we walk into. Our voices matter and our dreams deserve space.”

Other notable speeches included Timothée Chalamet’s, who last year openly admitted he wanted to be “one of the greats” while on an awards podium. When he again found himself in the limelight on Sunday after winning the award for best male actor in a musical or comedy for his role as a ping pong prodigy in “Marty Supreme,” he chose a somewhat humbler tone in his acceptance speech, sharing a life lesson that his father taught him.

“My dad instilled in me a spirit of gratitude growing up. Always be grateful for what you have. It’s allowed me to leave this ceremony in the past empty handed with my head held high, grateful just to be here,” Chalamet said. “I’d be lying if I didn’t say those moments didn’t make this moment that much sweeter.”

Speaking of speeches, we heard several from the stars of “Adolescence” — three to be exact, after the series’ stars Stephen Graham, Owen Cooper and Erin Dougherty all took home awards in their respective categories.

It does at this point sort of feel like we’ve been watching these actors win awards for this show forever though, so it’s worth noting that tonight may be the night that concludes the “Adolescence” victory lap in the show’s hugely successful award circuit run.

One person who me may see next year? Sophomore Golden Globes host Nikki Glaser, whose searing opening monologue had everyone from Leonardo DiCaprio to Julia Roberts taking jabs in stride.

Here’s a list of all the winners:

Best motion picture, drama

Best motion picture, musical or comedy

Best director — motion picture

Best performance by a male actor in a motion picture — drama

Best performance by a female actor in a motion picture – drama

Best male actor — motion picture, musical or comedy

Best performance by a female actor in a motion picture — musical or comedy

Best supporting male actor in a motion picture

Best supporting female actor in a motion picture

Best screenplay — motion picture

Best motion picture — animated

Best motion picture – non-English language

Best original score — motion picture

Best original song — motion picture

Cinematic and box office achievement

Best television series — drama

Best television series — musical or comedy

Best limited series, anthology series, or a motion picture made for television

Best performance by a female actor in a television series – drama

Best performance by a male actor in a television series – drama

Best performance by a female actor in a television series – musical or comedy

Best performance by a female actor in a limited series, anthology series, or a motion picture made for television

Best performance by a male actor in a television series – musical or comedy

Best performance by a female actor in a supporting role on television

Best performance by a male actor in a limited series, anthology series, or a motion picture made for television

Best performance by a male actor in a supporting role on television

Best podcast

Best performance in stand-up comedy on television

Several films (including “Sinners,” “Weapons” and “One Battle After Another”) and TV series (like “The Pitt,” “The White Lotus” and “Hacks”) mentioned in this story come from entities that, like CNN, are owned by Warner Bros. Discovery.