“Category fraud” is having a crossover moment.
It happens every year, in awards cycles for both film and television. Campaigners submit films, shows and individual performances in categories they have no business being in, like a drama masquerading as a comedy or a blatant leading role being tipped for a supporting category. Industry reactions to some of these bold decisions, however, feel louder this year.
This creative maneuvering with category submissions happens for a reason: to improve the perceived odds of winning a trophy. Yet increasingly, the misrepresentations are spilling into broader industry discourse. (Just Google the limited series “The Beast in Me,” which was greenlit for a second season and Emmy winner Matthew Rhys.)
This year, these so-called crimes seem to be targeting comedy categories. Curry Barker’s “Obsession,” made for $750,000 and now surpassing $500 million worldwide, was submitted by Focus Features as a musical or comedy for the Golden Globes, putting breakout star Inde Navarrette in the comedy actress race. Yes, there are laughs. But by and large, audiences were exposed to the horrors of a woman robbed of control over her own mind and body.
Not long after, Bleecker Street submitted Mike Leigh’s “Tender Loving Care” in the same comedy categories. Barely anyone blinked, perhaps because so few have seen it yet. The film features drunken sing-alongs and dancing with abandon in the family kitchen. It also features hospital visits and aging parents coming to terms with the final chapters of life. Hardly a laughing matter for anyone who has seen their loved ones slow down.
A chuckle does not equate to comedy. The strategists know it, and so do the Globes. What’s missing is the nerve to define it and, more importantly, enforce it. This dilemma isn’t new. A decade ago, Ridley Scott’s “The Martian” won the Golden Globe for best motion picture comedy. You know, the one about a man stranded on Mars, trying not to starve to death. LOL! Wonder if the Globes will remember that when Amazon MGM’s “Project Hail Mary” comes calling, with Ryan Gosling and an adorable alien rock each trying to save their civilizations.
Universal entered “Get Out” as a comedy in 2017 and got away with it. Focus tried it in 2020 with “Promising Young Woman,” about a woman avenging a friend’s assault. That time, voters said no and moved it to drama.
The current Globes rulebook states a movie “primarily intended to have a serious or dramatic tone” with “comedic overtones or elements” belongs in drama.
The Globes don’t account for intent, but they make all decisions using their “sole discretion” and their final rulings don’t come with an appeals process.
When a submission is called into question, a committee assembled by the Golden Globes reviews the case and rules on potential disputes, whether they involve genre classification or lead-versus-supporting campaigns. Some strategists, anticipating that the committee may raise flags, now try to get ahead of the process by submitting additional documentation, including filmmaker quotes and source materials, to explain why a film belongs in its intended category.
One top awards campaigner says that despite the attempts, the truth usually wins out.
“You have to be up front and honest with your filmmakers,” says one awards strategist. “It’s about what sets up the movie for success overall. And if you think both classifications are too competitive, ‘frauding’ your movie doesn’t make it easier. The opposite will happen.”
Musicals can be just as tricky to classify. “Ray” and “Walk the Line” competed in the Globes’ musical or comedy category. Still, in recent years, the organization has emphasized that songs must propel the story forward, rather than appear as performances, to qualify. That distinction sent “Bohemian Rhapsody” and “Elvis” to the drama category. By that standard, “Michael”’s classification remains an open question. Jaafar Jackson performs many of Michael Jackson’s biggest hits in the biopic, but whether those musical sequences are integral to the storytelling or simply re-creations of the King of Pop’s performances could determine where the film lands.
The Globes could revisit their rules, but any awards campaigner will tell you: There’s always a way to moonwalk around them.
This week’s updated predictions are below.
(In alphabetical order. Ranked choices are on each individual category page)
Best Picture
“Artificial” (Neon)
“The Debut” (A24)
“Dune: Part Three” (Warner Bros.)
“Fjord” (Neon)
“The Invite” (A24)
“La Bola Negra” (Netflix)
“The Odyssey” (Universal Pictures) ***
“Project Hail Mary” (Amazon MGM Studios)
“Wild Horse Nine” (Searchlight Pictures)
“You Can See Everything” (A24)
Director
Javier Ambrossi and Javier Calvo, “La Bola Negra” (Netflix)
Martin McDonagh, “Wild Horse Nine” (Searchlight Pictures)
Christopher Nolan, “The Odyssey” (Universal Pictures)
Denis Villeneuve, “Dune: Part Three” (Warner Bros.) ***
Olivia Wilde, “The Invite” (A24)
Actor
Matt Damon, “The Odyssey” (Universal Pictures)
John Malkovich, “Wild Horse Nine” (Searchlight Pictures) ***
Pedro Pascal, “Behemoth!” (Searchlight Pictures)
Andrew Scott, “Elsinore” (Focus Features)
John Turturro, “The Only Living Pickpocket in New York” (Sony Pictures Classics)
Actress
Marion Bailey, “Tender Loving Care” (Bleecker Street)
Julianne Moore, “The Debut” (A24) ***
Inde Navarrette, “Obsession” (Focus Features)
Renate Reinsve, “Fjord” (Neon)
Olivia Wilde, “The Invite” (A24)
Supporting Actor
Andrew Garfield, “Artificial” (Neon) ***
Paul Giamatti, “The Debut” (A24)
Guitarricadelafuente, “La Bola Negra” (Netflix)
John Leguizamo, “The Odyssey” (Universal Pictures)
Sam Rockwell, “Wild Horse Nine” (Searchlight Pictures)
Supporting Actress
Penélope Cruz, “The Invite” (A24)
Anne Hathaway, “The Odyssey” (Universal Pictures) ***
Sandra Hüller, “Project Hail Mary” (Amazon MGM Studios)
Samantha Morton, “The Odyssey” (Universal Pictures)
Kate O’Flynn, “Tender Loving Care” (Bleecker Street)
Original Screenplay
“Artificial” (Neon) — Simon Rich
“The Debut” (A24) — Jesse Eisenberg
“Fjord” (Neon) — Cristian Mungiu
“Tender Loving Care” (Bleecker Street) — Mike Leigh
“Wild Horse Nine” (Searchlight Pictures) — Martin McDonagh ***
Adapted Screenplay
“Dune: Part Three” (Warner Bros.) — Brian K. Vaughan, Denis Villeneuve
“The Invite” (A24) — Rashida Jones and Will McCormack ***
“La Bola Negra” (Netflix) — Javier Ambrossi, Javier Calvo, Alberto Conejero
“The Odyssey” (Universal Pictures) — Christopher Nolan
“Project Hail Mary” (Amazon MGM Studios) — Drew Goddard
Casting
“Being Heumann” (Apple Original Films) — Adam Caldwell and Bernard Telsey
“Fjord” (Neon) — Hannah Chocron Foldøy
“La Bola Negra” (Netflix) — Eva Leira and Yolanda Serrano
“The Odyssey” (Universal Pictures) — John Papsidera ***
“Wild Horse Nine” (Searchlight Pictures) — Sarah Finn
Animated Feature
“Forgotten Island” (DreamWorks Animation) — Joel Crawford, Januel Mercado and Mark Swift
“Ray Gunn” (Netflix) — Brad Bird, John Lasseter, Lisa Beroud, David Ellison and Dana Goldberg
“Tangles” (Independent Film Company) — Leah Nelson, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Lauren Miller Rogen, Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg
“Toy Story 5” (Pixar) — Andrew Stanton, Lindsey Collins and Jessica Choi
“Wildwood” (Laika) — Travis Knight and Sam Wilson ***
Production Design
“Dune: Part Three” (Warner Bros.) ***
“La Bola Negra” (Netflix)
“The Odyssey” (Universal Pictures)
“Project Hail Mary” (Amazon MGM Studios)
“Werwulf” (Focus Features)
Cinematography
“Artificial” (Neon)
“Dune: Part Three” (Warner Bros.)
“La Bola Negra” (Netflix)
“The Odyssey” (Universal Pictures) ***
“Project Hail Mary” (Amazon MGM Studios)
Costume Design
“Dune: Part Three” (Warner Bros.) ***
“La Bola Negra” (Netflix)
“Michael” (Lionsgate)
“The Odyssey” (Universal Pictures)
“Sense and Sensibility” (Focus Features)
Film Editing
“Dune: Part Three” (Warner Bros.)
“The Invite” (A24)
“La Bola Negra” (Netflix)
“The Odyssey” (Universal Pictures) ***
“You Can See Everything” (A24)
Makeup and Hairstyling
“Digger” (Warner Bros.)
“Dune: Part Three” (Warner Bros.) ***
“Michael” (Lionsgate)
“The Odyssey” (Universal Pictures)
“Wicker” (Black Bear Pictures)
Sound
“Behemoth!” (Searchlight Pictures)
“Dune: Part Three” (Warner Bros.)
“The Mosquito Bowl” (Netflix)
“The Odyssey” (Universal Pictures) ***
“Project Hail Mary” (Amazon MGM Studios)
Visual Effects
“Dune: Part Three” (Warner Bros.) ***
“Godzilla Minus Zero” (GKids)
“Project Hail Mary” (Amazon MGM Studios)
“Spider-Man: Brand New Day” (Sony Pictures)
“Wildwood” (Laika)
Original Score
“Artificial” (Neon) — Damon Albarn
“Behemoth!” (Searchlight Pictures) — The Behemoth! Collective
“Dune: Part Three” (Warner Bros.) — Hans Zimmer
“The Odyssey” (Universal Pictures) — Ludwig Göransson ***
“Wildwood” (Laika) — Dario Marianelli
Original Song
“This City May Have Chewed Me Up (But It Hasn’t Spit Me Out)” from “The Debut” (A24) ***
“La Nieve” from “La Bola Negra” (Netflix)
“Let Me Sell You a Dream” from “Musk” (Bleecker Street)
“I Knew It, I Knew You” from “Toy Story 5” (Pixar)
“The Better Part of Bravery” from “Wildwood” (Pixar)
Documentary Feature
“14th” (Netflix)
“Musk” (Bleecker Street)
“Naza” (The Guardian and MK2) ***
“Once Upon a Time in Harlem” (Neon)
“Rehearsals for a Revolution” (Sony Pictures Classics)
International Feature
“Fjord” from Romania (Neon)
“La Bola Negra” from Spain (Netflix) ***
“Minotaur” from France (Mubi)
“Possible Love” from South Korea (Netflix)
“Woman Unknown” from Denmark (U.S. Distributor TBD)