British stars take centre stage as film world rolls out its red carpet
IT IS Hollywood’s barometer for next month’s Oscars, but the shortlist for Sunday night’s Golden Globe awards could hardly be more British.
The actresses Olivia Colman and Emily Blunt, from Norwich and London respectively, will go head-to-head for performances deeply rooted in English culture.
Ms Colman is nominated for her role as Queen Anne in the new film, The Favourite, and Ms Blunt for playing the title character in Mary Poppins Returns.
Claire Foy, who grew up in Leeds, has a best supporting actress nomination as the wife of the astronaut Neil Armstrong in First Man, and Richard E Grant is on the shortlist for the film, Can You Ever Forgive Me?
Unlike the Oscars, the Golden Globes also encompass TV performances, and the list of nominations includes Hugh Grant for his performance as the former Liberal politician Jeremy Thorpe in A Very English Scandal, and Benedict Cumberbatch for the 1980s drama, Patrick Melrose.
The awards, which will be presented in Los Angeles by actress Sandra Oh and comedian Andy Samberg, also see Richard Madden nominated for his role in the BBC’s Bodyguard, and the Welsh star Matthew Rhys for The Americans.
The British comic Sacha Baron Cohen is shortlisted for his TV satire, Who Is America?
The most-nominated film – in six categories – is the political comedy-drama Vice, in which Christian Bale plays the former US vice-president, Dick Cheney.
The Favourite, Green Book and A Star Is Born have five nominations each.
Spike Lee’s political comedy BlacKkKlansman and Mary Poppins Returns each have four nominations, while Bohemian Rhapsody, a film about the British rock band Queen, has two, including one for the American actor Rami Malek, as lead singer Freddie Mercury. He will compete with John David Washington, Bradley Cooper, Willem Dafoe, and Lucas Hedges.
The other best film nominees are If Beale Street Could Talk and the Marvel superhero blockbuster, Black Panther.
The award for best musical or comedy film will be contested by Crazy Rich Asians and Green Book, as well as The Favourite, Mary Poppins Returns and Vice.