BEVERLY HILLS, California, Jan 11 (Reuters) - Dark comedy "One Battle After Another" and "Hamnet," a story about William Shakespeare's grief over the death of his son, claimed the top prizes on Sunday at the Golden Globes, one of the first major ceremonies in Hollywood's annual awards season.
"One Battle" was named best movie musical or comedy, one of its four Globe honors, and "Hamnet" earned the best movie drama prize.
Timothee Chalamet triumphed in one of the most competitive categories, taking the trophy for best male actor in a movie musical or comedy for his role as a professional table tennis player in "Marty Supreme."
Chalamet defeated "One Battle" star Leonardo DiCaprio, "Jay Kelly" actor George Clooney and other big names at the red-carpet ceremony in Beverly Hills, California. "This category is stacked. I look up to all of you," Chalamet said to his fellow nominees.
The actor noted that he had left the Globes in previous years without a win. "I’d be lying if I didn’t say those moments made this moment that much sweeter," he said.
The Globes, awarded by more than 300 entertainment journalists, are among the first of the 2026 Hollywood accolades to be handed out before the film industry's top honors, the Academy Awards, in March. Globes voters do not have a say in the Oscars, but a win at the Globes can help bring attention to potential Academy Awards contenders.
"One Battle," a Warner Bros Discovery film about a group of washed-up revolutionaries, is seen as a frontrunner for best picture at the Oscars. On Sunday, Paul Thomas Anderson won best director and best screenplay for the movie. Teyana Taylor landed the award for female supporting actor in a film.
"Hamnet" imagines how Shakespeare and his wife dealt with the death of their 11-year-old son, whose name was Hamnet. Historians believe Hamnet's death inspired the playwright to pen the play "Hamlet."
Irish actor Jessie Buckleywon best female actor in a movie drama for playing Shakespeare's wife, Agnes Hathaway.
"This was such an extraordinary set to be part of, telling the story of probably the most famous Brit who ever lived and we had a Chinese director, a lot of Irish and a mostly Polish crew," she said.
Brazilian movie "The Secret Agent" was named best non-English language film. In a surprise, its star Wagner Moura won best male actor in a movie drama.
Stellan Skarsgard earned a Globe for his supporting role in Norwegian family drama "Sentimental Value." "I was not prepared for this because, of course, I thought I was too old," the 74-year-old said on stage.
A new Globe for podcasts went to "Good Hang with Amy Poehler," in which the comedy star interviews mostly celebrity guests.
"This is an attempt to try to make a very rough and unkind world filled with a little bit more love and laughter, and laughing with people, not at them," Poehler said. "We just have such a good time making it."
"Golden," the catchy tune from Netflix phenomenon "K-Pop Demon Hunters," was named best original song.
"It's never too late to shine like you were born to," Korean-American singer Ejae said as she accepted the award.
In TV categories, emergency room tale "The Pitt" was named best drama and "The Studio" claimed best comedy.
Warner Bros Discovery, the subject of a Hollywood bidding war, led all media companies with nine Globe wins. Globes host Nikki Glaser joked that she would auction off the studio on Sunday. "So let's get down to business, shall we?" she said at the start of the show. "We'll start the bidding for Warner Brothers at $5."
Celebrities largely steered clear of political topics. Some stars wore “Be Good” pins on their black-tie attire to honor Renee Good, the woman fatally shot by an immigration officer last week in Minneapolis.
Glaser joked that the Globes were "without a doubt the most important thing that's happening in the world right now."
She took light-hearted jabs at the stars seated inside a Beverly Hills ballroom. Glaser joked about DiCaprio's reputation for dating young women before apologizing for the "cheap" remark. "We don’t know anything else about you, man," she said.
(Reporting by Lisa RichwineEditing by Nick Zieminski)
