‘Succession’ and ‘The Bear’ win top TV honors at Golden Globes

[January 08, 2024]  By Danielle Broadway and Lisa Richwine

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Media dynasty drama “Succession” and dramedies “The Bear” and "Beef" took top television honors at the Golden Globes on Sunday.

“Succession,” which broke the record for most Golden Globe TV award nominations for its fourth and final season, took home the best drama award, along with three wins for cast members.

First-time Globe winners Matthew Macfadyen, who portrays Tom Wambsgans, husband of Roy media family member Shiv Roy, and Kieran Culkin, who plays the youngest Roy sibling, won for best male supporting actor and best male actor in a drama series. Sarah Snook, who plays Shiv Roy, won best female actor for a television drama.

Filled with mixed emotions by the HBO show's last awards season, "Succession" creator Jesse Armstrong called the win "bittersweet."

"Succession" depicts the struggle for power among members of the wealthy, back-stabbing Roy family. The gripping drama series won five Golden Globes prior to this, including its first best drama award in 2020.

Also leading the Golden Globe television race, FX's “The Bear” won the best television comedy award, gaining three Golden Globes for its second season.

"Thank you to the entire restaurant community. You know, we play the characters for a couple of hours or a couple of months out of the year, but this is y'all reality, the highs and lows, so thank you for embracing us to tell this story," said Lionel Boyce, who plays a restaurant worker named Marcus, in his acceptance speech.

Lead actor Jeremy Allen White, who portrays head chef, Carmen "Carmy" Berzatto, took home the best male actor Globe for a musical or comedy show, making it his second Golden Globe.

"I must have done something right in this life to be in your company," White said, referring to his fellow cast members in his acceptance speech.

Jeremy Allen White, Ayo Edebiri, and Ebon Moss-Bachrach pose with the award for Best Television Series Musical or Comedy for "The Bear" at the 81st Annual Golden Globe Awards in Beverly Hills, California, U.S., January 7, 2024. REUTERS/Mario Anzuoni

Breakout star Ayo Edebiri, who plays chef Sydney Adamu in “The Bear,” took home her first Golden Globe for best actress in a comedy show.

"I'm very lucky to be an artist," she said in her acceptance speech.

Edebiri, who was introduced in the first season of the show, had a more prominent role throughout the second season.

“The Bear” follows formally a formally trained chef, played by White, who returns to his hometown in Chicago to take over his family’s sandwich shop after the death of his brother.

Other noteworthy winners include the hot-headed Netflix comedy-drama "Beef," which won best television limited series, with leads Ali Wong and Steven Yeun bringing home best female and male actor. They were the first Globe wins for both actors and a nod to an Asian-led series.

Last June, Eldridge Industries purchased the Golden Globe assets with Dick Clark Productions (DCP) and the Hollywood Foreign Press Association, which was criticized for a lack of diversity and ethical lapses in its stewardship of the awards, was shut down as a consequence.

However, membership this year, under new ownership, expanded to 300 journalists from 75 countries around the world and 60% racial and ethnic diversity.

(Reporting by Danielle Broadway and Lisa Richwine; editing by Jonathan Oatis)

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