2015 Golden Globes Preview and Predictions

Is it just me, or has December/awards season really snuck up on us? Anyway, the Golden Globes nominations are coming quick, and here are my sarcastic commentary and over-my-head predictions for how the Hollywood Foreign Press Association will vote this year. Read up!

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS IN A TELEVISION SERIES, MINISERIES, OR TV MOVIE

1. Julia Roberts – The Normal Heart

2. Allison Janney – Mom

3. Kathy Bates – American Horror Story: Freak Show

4. Uzo Abuda – Orange is the New Black
5. Michelle Monaghan – True Detective

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR IN A TELEVISION SERIES, MINISERIES, OR TV MOVIE

1. Martin Freeman – Sherlock: His Last Vow

 

2. Jon Voight – Ray Donovan

3. Peter Dinklage – Game of Thrones

4. Matt Bomer – The Normal Heart

5. Bill Murray – Olive Kitteridge

BEST ACTRESS IN A MINISERIES OR TV MOVIE

1. Jessica Lange – American Horror Story: Freak Show

2. Frances McDormand – Olive Kitteridge

3. Zoe Saldana – Rosemary’s Baby

4. Cicely Tyson – The Trip to Bountiful
5. Sara Paulson – American Horror Story: Freak Show

BEST ACTOR IN A MINISERIES OR TV MOVIE

1. Matthew McConaughey – True Detective

 

2. Benedict Cumberbatch – Sherlock: His Last Vow

3. Mark Ruffalo – The Normal Heart

4. Woody Harrelson – True Detective
5. Adrien Brody – Houdini

BEST MINISERIES OR TELEVISION MOVIE

1. True Detective

 

2. Fargo

3. American Horror Story: Freak Show

4. The Normal Heart
5. Sherlock: His Last Vow

BEST ACTRESS IN A TELEVISION SERIES – COMEDY/MUSICAL

1. Julia Louis-Dreyfus – Veep

 

2. Lisa Kudrow – The Comeback

3. Amy Poehler – Parks and Recreation

4. Gina Rodriguez – Jane the Virgin
5.Taylor Schilling – Orange is the New Black

BEST ACTOR IN A TELEVISION SERIES – COMEDY/MUSICAL

1. Jeffrey Tambor – Transparent

 

2. Jim Parsons – The Big Bang Theory

3. Andy Samberg – Brooklyn Nine-Nine

4. Matt LeBlanc – Episodes
5. Anthony Anderson – Blackish

BEST TELEVISION SERIES – COMEDY/MUSICAL

1. Modern Family

 

2. Veep

3. Jane the Virgin

4. Orange is the New Black
5. Silicon Valley

BEST ACTRESS IN A TELEVISION SERIES – DRAMA

1. Viola Davis – How to Get Away with Murder

2. Robin Wright – House of Cards

3. Julianna Margulies – The Good Wife

4. Kerry Washington – Scandal
5. Claire Danes - Homeland

BEST ACTOR IN A TELEVISION SERIES – DRAMA

1. Clive Owen – The Knick

 

2. Kevin Spacey – House of Cards

3. Dominic West – The Affair

4. Michael Sheen – Masters of Sex
5. Steve Buscemi – Boardwalk Empire

BEST TELEVISION SERIES – DRAMA

1. House of Cards

 

2. Game of Thrones

3. The Knick

4. Boardwalk Empire
5. The Affair

BEST ANIMATED FILM

1. Big Hero 6

 

2. The Lego Movie

3. The Tale of Princess Kaguya

4. The Book of Life
5. The Boxtrolls

Explanation: We all know that the HFPA loves big movies, and even though Lego was star-studded and a box office smash, Big Hero 6 just seems like the type of material (Marvel) that is the flavor of the month. How to Train Your Dragon 2 will probably get in, but I just can’t figure out where.

BEST FOREIGN FILM

1. Two Days, One Night (Jean-Pierre & Luc Dardenne) – Belgium

 

2. Mommy (Xavier Dolan) – Canada

3. Ida (Pawel Pawlikowski) – Poland

4. Cantinflas (Sebastian del Amo) – Mexico
5. The Golden Era (Ann Hui) – Hong Kong

Explanation: They normally vote in favor of the name directors (Clint Eastwood’s Letters from Iwo Jima appeared in this category back in 2006, as was Angelina Jolie’s In the Land of Blood and Honey in 2011), and they love international stars. The Dardennes have Marion Cotillard in their critical hit, which should be enough to take the award. But hey, this is the hardest category to predict for any awards circuit.

BEST ORIGINAL SONG

1. “Lost Stars” – Begin Again

2. “Everything is Awesome” – The Lego Movie

3. “Masterpiece” – Beyond the Lights

4. “The Last Goodbye” – The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies
5. “Glory” – Selma

Explanation: I would try to justify these, but it would be pointless. It is basically random, but I would be shocked if the top two are ignored.

BEST ORIGINAL SCORE

1. The Theory of Everything­ – Johann Johannsson

 

2. Gone Girl – Trent Reznor & Atticus Ross

3. Big Eyes – Danny Elfman

4. Interstellar – Hans Zimmer
5. Maleficent – James Newton Howard

Explanation: They love the big names, but there is always a wild card in the mix. Maleficent might be that wildcard, and history shows that they give their wins to movies that sometimes don’t even get nominated anywhere else. It is hard to ignore the beauty of The Theory of Everything’s music, though.

BEST SCREENPLAY – MOTION PICTURE

1. Birdman – Armando Bo, Alexander Dinelaris, Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu, Nicolas Giacobone

 

2. Unbroken – Joel Coen, Ethan Coen

3. Boyhood – Richard Linklater

4. Gone Girl – Gillian Flynn
5. A Most Violent Year – JC Chandor

Explanation: The HFPA loves putting a screwball into this category, but the top movies are just too great of screenplays to not put in there. Plus, there isn’t a legitimate random romantic-comedy or anything.

BEST DIRECTOR – MOTION PICTURE

1. Angelina Jolie – Unbroken

 

2. David Fincher – Gone Girl

3. Clint Eastwood – American Sniper

4. Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu – Birdman
5. Christopher Nolan – Interstellar

Explanation: This seems pretty standard, and they love Jolie. She won three years in a row in different categories from 1997-1999. Eastwood is the only real shocker, but his movie will be popular and the Globes still can’t get enough of him.

The HFPA Dream Lineup:

Tim Burton – Big Eyes

Clint Eastwood – American Sniper

Peter Jackson – The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies

Angelina Jolie – Unbroken

Christopher Nolan – Interstellar

BEST ACTRESS IN A SUPPORTING ROLE IN A MOTION PICTURE

1. Meryl Streep – Into the Woods

2. Patricia Arquette – Boyhood

3. Emma Stone – Birdman

4. Anna Kendrick – Into the Woods
5. Cameron Diaz – Annie

Explanation: Seemingly, Streep is nominated whether she has a movie being released or not. Diaz is a weird addition, I know, but they do love her. She was nominated 4 times between 1998 and 2002. If Annie is any good, then she might be a no-brainer for the Globes.

The HFPA Dream Lineup:

Cameron Diaz – Annie

Jane Fonda – This Is Where I Leave You

Kristen Stewart – Still Alice

Meryl Strep – The Giver

Meryl Streep – Into the Woods

BEST ACTOR IN A SUPPORTING ROLE IN A MOTION PICTURE

1. JK Simmons – Whiplash

 

2. Edward Norton – Birdman

3. Johnny Depp – Into the Woods

4. Robert Duvall – The Judge
5. Albert Brooks – A Most Violent Year

Explanation: Usually, this category is pretty similar to the other awards, unless there is something absurd like Tom Cruise in Tropic Thunder or John Travolta in Hairspray in the running. Depp is nominated always. Brooks is really just a stab.

The HFPA Dream Lineup:

Matt Damon – Interstellar

Johnny Depp – Into the Woods

Shia LaBeouf – Fury

Tyler Perry – Gone Girl

Chris Pine – Into the Woods

BEST ACTRESS IN A LEADING ROLE IN A MOTION PICTURE – COMEDY/MUSICAL

1. Julianne Moore – Maps to the Stars

2. Angelina Jolie – Maleficent

3. Helen Mirren – The Hundred-Foot Journey

4. Keira Knightley – Begin Again
5. Jenny Slate – Obvious Child

Explanation: This category, with the exception of their thirst for stars, has a tendency to put an indie or two in there. Greta Gerwig was nominated for Frances Ha last year, so Jenny Slate takes that potential spot. Moore might be set to win two awards, like Kate Winslet was back in 2008, mainly because of the HFPA’s obsession with David Cronenberg.

The HFPA Dream Lineup:

Jennifer Aniston – Cake

Tina Fey – This Is Where I Leave You

Angelina Jolie – Maleficent

Melissa McCarthy – St. Vincent

Emma Stone – Magic in the Moonlight

BEST ACTOR IN A LEADING ROLE IN A MOTION PICTURE – COMEDY/MUSICAL

1. Michael Keaton – Birdman

2. Joaquin Phoenix – Inherent Vice

3. Chris Rock – Top Five

4. Bill Murray – St. Vincent
5. Ralph Fiennes – The Grand Budapest Hotel

Explanation: This would be a really interesting group. The Comedy/Musical actor category is always strong. It is hard to completely leave out musical contenders Mark Ruffalo, John Lloyd Young, and James Corden, but these stars in strong films are too hard to get by.

The HFPA Dream Lineup:

Jim Carrey – Dumb and Dumber To

Jamie Foxx – Annie

Bill Murray – St. Vincent

Al Pacino – The Humbling

Chris Pratt – Guardians of the Galaxy

BEST MOTION PICTURE – COMEDY/MUSICAL

1. Into the Woods

 

2. Birdman

3. Inherent Vice

4. Jersey Boys
5. Guardians of the Galaxy

Explanation: The Globes love to even out the musicals and comedies, and the musicals almost always win. This would be a cool list, and Jersey Boys gets in because it is Eastwood. Superhero movies have yet to really been embraced, but none have fully embellished in its comedy like Guardians.

The HFPA Dream Lineup:

Begin Again

Into the Woods

Jersey Boys

Jimi: All Is By My Side

Magic in the Moonlight

BEST ACTRESS IN A LEADING ROLE IN A MOTION PICTURE – DRAMA

1. Julianne Moore – Still Alice

2. Reese Witherspoon – Wild

3. Shailene Woodley – The Fault in Our Stars

4. Scarlett Johansson – Under the Skin
5. Marion Cotillard – Two Days, One Night

Explanation: Johansson would be the one real surprise, but like Diaz and Jolie, the HFPA simply loves her. She was nominated 4 times between 2003 and 2005. Moore is really set up for a sweep, and she deserves it. It is a shame that she has never won an Oscar or a Globe in the film categories. Why not give her two?

The HFPA Dream Lineup:

Anne Hathaway – Interstellar

Scarlett Johansson – Under the Skin

Jennifer Lawrence – The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 1

Reese Witherspoon – Wild

Shailene Woodley – The Fault in Our Stars

BEST ACTOR IN A LEADING ROLE IN A MOTION PICTURE – DRAMA

1. Steve Carell – Foxcatcher

2. Bradley Cooper – American Sniper

3. Brad Pitt – Fury

4. Benedict Cumberbatch – The Imitation Game
5. David Oyelowo – Selma

Explanation: Carell is a past winner at the Globes, and his transformative performance seems like a safe bet for the Drama category. Pitt is nominated consistently. International actors are also popular here, so leaving off Eddie Redmayne, Timothy Spall, and Jack O’Connell was difficult.

The HFPA Dream Lineup:

Bradley Cooper – American Sniper

Robert Downey Jr. – The Judge

Matthew McConaughey – Interstellar

Brad Pitt – Fury

Channing Tatum – Foxcatcher

BEST MOTION PICTURE – DRAMA

1. Unbroken

2. Gone Girl

3. Boyhood

4. Interstellar
5. A Most Violent Year

Explanation: This is a really loaded category, and once again, the international movies might have to take a back seat. These seem pretty secure, with the exception of newly minted NBR Best Picture A Most Violent Year, which no one has really seen yet. It will be a fight between box office megahit Gone Girl, indie Boyhood, and Jolie’s war epic Unbroken for the top prize.

The HFPA Dream Lineup:

American Sniper

Fury

Gone Girl

The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies

Interstellar

There they are! Anyone who has any input or expertise, feel free to speak up. I only do this one for fun. I don’t follow it nearly as closely as the Oscars. Comment below!