With awards shows’ ratings dropping annually, many have pinned that on mainstream viewers tuning out because their favorite tentpoles are overlooked in the Best Picture categories.
Popular Best Picture candidates and hosts have traditionally been tied to Oscars’ ratings. However, the Golden Globes has continually had respect for popcorn pics between their drama and musical/comedy feature categories, and that still didn’t stop ratings from dropping to a historical low last year of 6.3M total viewers. In the past, the org has nominated such blockbusters as Beverly Hills Cop, Ghostbusters, Avatar, Black Panther and Top Gun: Maverick in its Best Feature categories.
But with the introduction of this year’s new Cinematic & Box Office Achievement slot at the Globes, it’s arguable that a three-hour show just got longer.
The category is relegated to eight nominations, and this morning counts Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour, Oppenheimer, Barbie, Super Mario Bros Movie, Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse, Guardians of the Galaxy: Vol. 3, John Wick: Chapter 4 and Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning. Half of these movies are already being recognized in the top feature sections: Super Mario and Spider-Man in Best Animated Film, Oppenheimer in Best Feature Drama, and Barbie in Best Musical/Comedy Feature.
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On the upside, three franchises finally received Globes’ love: Mission: Impossible, John Wick and Guardians of the Galaxy. Of these, James Gunn’s Guardians has had a presence at the Oscars before with hair and make-up and VFX noms for the first 2014 movie and a VFX nod for the 2017 sequel. No Mission or John Wick movie has ever been recognized by AMPAS when it comes to Oscar noms.
It remains to be seen if these categories prompt an appearance by these movies’ actors at the Globes; celebs being an important currency for the show. There is a pause in Swift’s Eras Tour in January, her next playdate being Feb. 7 in Tokyo, Japan. That would be a big ratings and social media stunt for the Globes if she attends and wins; just look at those Chiefs games. Her concert movie has been a savior to the fall box office which was damaged by the actors strike; the pic making $250M worldwide.
Tom Cruise returned his two Golden Globes for Born on the Fourth of July and Magnolia in protest over the HFPA’s lack of diversity. He didn’t attend the awards ceremony last year when Top Gun: Maverick was nominated; it would be an anomaly if he decided to return this year for Mission Impossible- Dead Reckoning‘s only nom. The New Year’s priority for Cruise is production on Mission: Impossible 8.
Lionsgate’s John Wick: Chapter 4 is currently pushing for its below-the-line categories this awards season as well as stunts at the SAG Awards. A win here at the Globes could further propel its awards chances.
Overall, any love for Spider-Verse, Oppenheimer and Barbie is lagniappe in regards to their anticipated awards momentum.
The Globes is where the first Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse started its awards launch, winning for Best Animated Feature back in 2019 and continuing on to an Oscar win in that respective category.
The new popcorn pics category for the Globes is similar to the one proposed by AMPAS in August 2018: Outstanding Achievement in Popular Film. The category received a barrage of criticism, seen as an attempt to pander to mainstream audiences. In addition, many had a problem with the use of the word “popular” as part of the category title. A month later, AMPAS postponed the category to “examine and seek additional input regarding the new category.” To date, the Popular Film Slot at the Oscars appears to be officially nixed.