By: Alina Hou—Correspondent

The 80th Golden Globes, highlighting the best in American film and television, aired on January 10th, 2023, following last year’s cancellation after the uproar of Hollywood Foreign Press Association (HFPA)’s lack of diversity in their voting body.

This year’s host was Jerrod Carmichael: acclaimed filmmaker and stand-up comedian. In his opening monologue, Carmichael said, “I’ll tell you why I’m here. I’m here because I’m Black.” His sentence addresses the February 2021 report by the Los Angeles Times, which reported that there were zero black members within the HFPA. The panel comprises 87 international journalists who determine the nominees and winners of the Golden Globes each year.

For the 2023 season, the Golden Globes returned to its typical red carpet publicity and NBC broadcasting from The Beverly Hilton in Beverly Hills, California.

Some of the night’s top nominees include The Woman King’s Viola Davis, Blonde’s Ana de Armas, and Tár’s Cate Blanchett, among many others. 

The biggest winners were The Banshees of Inisherin, which won best comedy, and The Fabelamans, which won best drama. Everything Everywhere All at Once also scored home statues for Michelle Yeoh and Ke Huy Quan.

If the evening had a theme, it would be one of renewal. In her acceptance speech, Yeoh said, “As time went by – I turned 60 last year – and I think all of you women understand this, as the days, years, numbers get bigger, it seems like opportunities start to get smaller, as well.”

Best-supporting actor winner Ke Huy Quan echoed this theme. Quan said, “When I started my career as a child actor in ‘Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom,’ I felt so very lucky to have been chosen.”

“As I grew older, I started to wonder if that was it, if that was just luck. For so many years, I was afraid I had nothing more to offer. No matter what I did, I would never surpass what I achieved as a kid. Thankfully, more than 30 years later, two guys thought of me [Directors Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheinert] remembered that kid, and they gave me an opportunity to try again,” Quan added. 

There were also several tear-inducing speeches, such as the one from Angela Bassett, who won best supporting actress in a motion picture. She paid tribute to Chadwick Boseman, who died of cancer at 43 in 2020.

“We mourned, we loved, we healed and we were surrounded each and every day by the light and the spirit of Chadwick Boseman,” Bassett said. 

At the end of the night, the president of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, appeared on video telling attendees and viewers that Ukraine will win the war against Russia. “The tide is turning and it is already clear who will win,” Zelenskyy said to loud applause. 

“There were still battles and tears ahead, but now I can definitely tell you who was the best in the previous year. I was you — the free people of the free world, those who united around the support of the free Ukrainian people,” Zelenskyy added.