With a red carpet dyed black by actresses dressed in a color-coordinated statement, the Golden Globes were transformed into an A-list expression of female empowerment in the post-Harvey Weinstein era. Oprah Winfrey led the charge.
“For too long women have not been heard or believed if they dared to speak their truth to the power of those men,” said Winfrey, accepting the Cecil B. DeMille Award for lifetime achievement. “But their time is up. Their time is up!”
More than any award handed out Sunday at the Beverly Hilton Hotel in Beverly Hills, California, Winfrey’s moment — one greeted by a rousing, ongoing standing ovation, one that left many attendees and viewers in tears — encapsulated the mood at an unusually powerful Golden Globes. The night served as Hollywood’s fullest response yet to the sexual harassment scandals that have roiled the film industry and laid bare its gender inequalities.
“A new day is on the horizon!” promised Winfrey, who noted she was the first black woman to be given the honor.
With a cutting stare, presenter Natalie Portman followed Winfrey’s speech by introducing, as she said, “the all-male” nominees for best director.
Host Seth Meyers opened the night by diving straight into material about the sex scandals. “Good evening ladies and remaining gentlemen,” he began. In punchlines on Weinstein — “the elephant not in the room” — Kevin Spacey and Hollywood’s deeper gender biases, Meyers scored laughs throughout the ballroom, and maybe a sense of release.
“For the male nominees in the room tonight, this is the first time in three months it won’t be terrifying to hear your name read out loud,” said Meyers.
The first award of the night, perhaps fittingly, went to one of Hollywood’s most powerful women: Nicole Kidman, for her performance in HBO’s The Big Little Lies, a series she and Reese Witherspoon also produced. She chalked the win up to “the power of women.”
Big Little Lies, which came in the leading TV nominee, won four awards, including best limited series and best supporting actress for Laura Dern. Like seven other female stars, Dern walked the red carpet with a women’s rights activist as part of an effort to keep the Globes spotlight trained on sexual harassment. Dern was joined by farmworker advocate Monica Ramirez, Michelle Williams with “Me Too” founder Tarana Burke, and Meryl Streep with domestic worker advocate Ai-jen Poo.
“May we teach all of our children that speaking out without fear of retribution is our new North Star,” said Dern, accepting her Globe.
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