Which Shows Weren’t Eligible for Golden Globes Nominations?

The 80th Annual Golden Globe Awards announced its list of nominees on Monday, December 12 with the help of Lopez vs. Lopez stars Mayan Lopez and Selenis Leyva, who stepped in for George Lopez after he tested positive for COVID-19. The 2023 Golden Globes TV nominations are a mixed bag with some unexpected noms and surprising snubs. The Golden Globes returns to TV this year after a one-year hiatus (the 79th Golden Globes winners were announced in a Twitter thread). Given the hiatus, let’s review what makes a TV show eligible for a Golden Globe.

As long as a show/film came out during the 2022 calendar year (with some exceptions for non-English language films), it was eligible for nomination consideration. The 2022 films and TV shows were made available for viewing for HFPA voters through screening events and screeners, which is why Avatar: The Way of Water was eligible for nominations (and received them) even though it doesn’t come out in theaters until December 16.

The Hollywood Foreign Press Association does not require shows/films to be submitted for consideration in order to receive nominations. But per the HFPA rules, a series “must be eligible for and entered for consideration for one of the Best Television award categories for the performances from that television program to be eligible for those individual awards.”

An actor can be nominated for their performance even if their show is not nominated in the Best Television Series, Drama or Musical/Comedy categories. Streaming services, networks, and film studios were still able to submit their various works for consideration, as well as submit their suggestions for specific categories.

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Any show released during the 2022 calendar year in prime time hours (8:00 p.m. – 11:00 p.m. Monday through Saturday and 7:00 p.m. – 11:00 p.m. Sunday), plus streaming originals released weekly, in batches, or all at once, are eligible for Golden Globes. Shows that debut simultaneously on broadcast and streaming are also eligible.

The final season of Better Call Saul and Stranger Things Season 4 were released in two batches, but because the full seasons came out in 2022, the total sum of Better Call Saul Season 6 and Stranger Things Season 4 were eligible for noms. (The first received two, the latter none.) This differs from the Emmys, where Better Call Saul Season 6 Part 1 was nominated at the 2022 Emmys in September, and Part 2 will be eligible at the 2023 ceremony.

Kevin Costner received his first Golden Globe nomination for his performance in Yellowstone on December 12, which means the series must have been submitted for the top categories but did not receive a nomination. The same goes for Barry, which snagged noms for Bill Hader and Henry Winkler, but not in the overall Musical/Comedy category in which it was nominated in previous years.

Will Heath/NBC

There are certain kinds of shows that are never eligible for Golden Globes nominations. As the HFPA rules state: “variety shows or other programs composed of musical acts, sketches, and other talent performances are not eligible in any category.” This explains why Saturday Night Live and other variety series are not among the 2023 nominees. Reality shows such as The Bachelor franchise, Love Is Blind, and documentary series are also not eligible for consideration even though they fall within the prime time and streaming release windows. But a docudrama like Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story, is (it received top nods for the show and for stars Evan Peters and Niecy Nash-Betts). The Emmys has categories for variety and live shows, such as SNL and award show broadcasts (the Oscars telecast has won Emmys in the past).

Given all these rules, there were 459 TV shows were eligible for nominations this year — 211 for best TV drama, 127 for best musical or comedy, and 121 for limited series, anthology series or TV movie, per Variety. There were 388 eligible films.

The final seasons of Black-ish and This Is Us (which both premiered on January 4, 2022) were both eligible for nominations but received none, nor did any of its actors receive noms. The acting “snubs” could be a result of the shows not submitting themselves for consideration. Season 2 of Ted Lasso was eligible at the 2022 Golden Globes on January 9, but at the Emmys in September 2022, which explains its absence from this morning’s nominations. Notably, Reservation Dogs Season 2 did not make the list at all, whereas Season 1 was nominated for Best Musical/Comedy Series at the 79th Golden Globes (the Twitter thread version).

Given that Yellowstone Season 4 premiered in November 2021 and ended January 2, 2022, and Season 5 premiered November 15, it’s likely that Costner was nominated for his performance in Yellowstone Season 5, currently in-season.

Jerrod Carmichael hosts the 80th Annual Golden Globes awards on Tuesday, January 10, returning to NBC on a one-year contract.

80th Annual Golden Globe Awards, Tuesday, January 10, 8/7c, NBC and Peacock