NBC Says It Won't Air the Golden Globes in 2022
May 10 2021 - 6:00PM
Dow Jones News
By Joe Flint
NBC said it wouldn't broadcast the Golden Globes next year,
citing a lack of reform in the organizing body behind the annual
awards show. The Hollywood Foreign Press Association, the group of
international journalists and critics that has bestowed the awards
since the 1940s, has been criticized for a lack of diversity and
concerns about its nomination process.
NBC's move comes after viewership of the most recent Globes
ceremony sustained a 62% drop, much of which could be attributed to
apathetic audiences during the Covid pandemic and a glitchy show
that unfolded mostly online. The network, which has an eight-year
deal to air the Globes, beginning with the 2019 ceremony, left the
door open to a return of the telecast.
"We continue to believe that the HFPA is committed to meaningful
reform. However, change of this magnitude takes time and work, and
we feel strongly that the HFPA needs time to do it right. As such,
NBC will not air the 2022 Golden Globes. Assuming the organization
executes on its plan, we are hopeful we will be in a position to
air the show in January 2023," NBC said in a statement.
"Regardless of the next air date of the Golden Globes,
implementing transformational changes as quickly -- and as
thoughtfully -- as possible remains the top priority for our
organization," HFPA board members said in a statement Monday. "We
invite our partners in the industry to the table to work with us on
the systemic reform that is long overdue, both in our organization
as well as within the industry at large." The organization has an
estimated 87 members.
NBC's announcement comes amid boycotts of the HFPA by major
studios, including Amazon and Netflix, and WarnerMedia.
In a letter to the HFPA's leadership committee reviewed by The
Wall Street Journal, Netflix co-CEO Ted Sarandos wrote that the
streaming company would be "stopping any activities with your
organization until more meaningful changes are made." Over
questions of diversity and ethics, Mr. Sarandos wrote that the
streamer and the talent it works with "cannot ignore the HFPA's
collective failure to address these crucial issues with urgency and
rigor."
Amazon studio head Jen Salke said in a statement last week: "We
have not been working with the HFPA since these issues were first
raised, and like the rest of the industry, we are awaiting a
sincere and significant resolution before moving forward."
The leadership of WarnerMedia, parent of Warner Bros. and HBO,
told the HFPA in a letter seen by The Wall Street Journal, "We
don't believe the plan goes far enough in addressing the breadth of
our concerns, nor does your timeline capture the immediate need by
which these issues should be addressed. WarnerMedia Studios and
Networks will continue to refrain from direct engagement with the
HFPA, including sanctioned press conferences and invitations to
cover other industry events with talent, until these changes are
implemented."
The HFPA announced a new set of changes to address its diversity
and oversight, including expanding its membership by 50% over the
next 18 months and making changes within its executive ranks. "We
understand that the hard work starts now and we remain dedicated to
becoming a better organization and an example of diversity,
transparency, and accountability in this industry," the HFPA posted
on its site last week.
The HFPA's move to make changes came after a February Los
Angeles Times investigation raised questions about how the
organization operates and its finances and alleged that its
members' votes can be swayed by fancy junkets and access to stars.
The coverage also criticized the HFPA's lack of diversity.
In response to the Los Angeles Times, the HFPA said, "None of
these allegations has ever been proven in court or in any
investigation, [and they] simply repeat old tropes about the HFPA
and reflect unconscious bias against the HFPA's diverse
membership."
Actors including Scarlett Johansson and Mark Ruffalo have spoken
out against the group in recent days.
NBC pays an average fee of about $60 million a year for the
Globes. By comparison the Oscars, awarded by the Academy of Motion
Picture Arts and Sciences, are in the $100 million range.
Write to Joe Flint at joe.flint@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
May 10, 2021 17:45 ET (21:45 GMT)
Copyright (c) 2021 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.
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