What to expect from the Golden Globes nominations, as they recognize art about our age of anxiety
By Choire Sicha, CNN
(CNN) — Films and TV shows about anxiety and fear are expected to lead the awards when nominations for the Golden Globes are announced on Monday.
“One Battle After Another” is considered by awards-watchers to be the lead contender for awards, expected to receive nominations for acting, directing and script. That film, which stars Leonardo DiCaprio at his most offhandedly brilliant as a hapless revolutionary bumbling into nightmarish political machinations, all while surrounded by fabulous, powerful and troubled women, is currently available for streaming at movie-theater ticket prices. It will return to select IMAX theaters on December 11th for a week; few tickets remain.
The gorgeous Joachim Trier film “Sentimental Value” is expected to be well-recognized as well. That movie tracks the relationship between a distressed, easily panicked actress and her callous film director father — plus the life of their family’s house as well. In addition to an unbelievable performance by Renate Reinsve in the lead role, the film also has Elle Fanning absolutely nailing the role of an American actress pushed to the levels of her comfort and talent.
It seems like a lifetime ago, but “Sinners” was released just back in April and voters should remember its cultural moment and box office success. The Ryan Coogler Jim-Crow-plus-vampires hit neatly mashed up the horrors of the supernatural with the horrors of the very human.
“Hamnet” and “Wicked: For Good” are also predicted to perform well in nominations.
Parents will of course expect nominations for “KPop Demon Hunters,” the soundtrack of their lives since the mega-hit was released on Netflix just (can you believe it!) back in June.
There is, of course, one actress who should be recognized with all the awards available as the very avatar of our age of apprehension: the terrifying clown-witch visage of Aunt Gladys in “Weapons.”
(“One Battle,” “Weapons,” and “Sinners” are produced, co-produced and/or distributed by Warner Bros. Pictures, which currently shares a parent company with CNN.)
The Golden Globes television nominations, as we further mingle “what is TV and what is a movie” each year, are only somewhat less weighted and freighted.
Both “Severance,” the eerie tribute to the awfulness of having to work, and “Adolescence,” the Netflix mega-smash about a teenager accused of murder, are expected to be recognized.
“Pluribus,” “The Last of Us” and “The Pitt” — all extremely stressful shows, each apocalyptic in their own way, especially about the dire state of the American health care system — should perform well too.
Regular award show faves like “The White Lotus,” “The Bear,” and “Only Murders in the Building” are expected to receive multiple nominations, ideally giving Parker Posey the opportunity to wear something totally unhinged to the ceremony.
The Golden Globes awards show, hosted by Nikki Glaser, will take place on Sunday, January 11, 2026. The nominations will be announced beginning at 8 a.m. ET on Monday, December 8, 2025.
The-CNN-Wire
™ & © 2025 Cable News Network, Inc., a Warner Bros. Discovery Company. All rights reserved.
