5 behind-the-scenes moments from the 2024 Golden Globes ballroom

Check out the behind-the-scenes tea on all things Golden Globes.

The 2024 Golden Globes promised glitz, glamour, and a night of entertainment, and it did not disappoint (for the most part). The star-studded affair, held Sunday at the Beverly Hilton in Beverly Hills, California, featured A-list talent we know and love such as Angela Bassett, Issa Rae and Lenny Kravitz, dinner provided by Nobu, an endless flow of Moët Champagne, great gowns — beautiful gowns — and so much more. However, there’s the show you see on TV … and then, there’s the show behind the scenes.

We saw several first-time nominees at this year’s Globes, including winners Ayo Edebiri and Da’Vine Joy Randolph, who were bursting with excitement. There were also veteran nominees in the room such as Jeffrey Wright and Quinta Brunson, who stayed cool and calm throughout the night. TheGrio was in the International Ballroom at the Hilton, where we had an inside look at the top moments — both on screen and off. Keep reading to get the behind-the-scenes tea on all things Golden Globes.

Nobu all night

For the first time ever, the Globes partnered with the iconic restaurant and celebrity hot spot Nobu for dinner. The menu featured salmon tartare with caviar in wasabi soy, yellowtail jalapeño, a trio of traditional nigiri (Matsuhisa sea bream nigiri, salmon nigiri, and tuna nigiri with nikiri soy sauce), sashimi salad with Matsuhisa dressing, and miso black cod. The Nobu-catered dinner was a great idea in theory, but not so much in practice. The smell of room-temperature sushi soon filled the room and by the end of the night, the scent was overwhelming — so much so that presenter Will Ferrell jokingly commented, “It smells like hot sushi in here. Am I the only one? It’s hot.” We’d be remiss if we did not mention the food was delicious when it was first brought out — but maybe next time we skip the sushi.

My girlfriends

The Golden Globes is technically a competition but you couldn’t tell by watching all the Black nominees at Sunday’s affair — especially among the women. There were several Black-girl-magic moments of friendship, love, admiration and respect. Nominees Da’Vine Joy Randolph and Quinta Brunson shared a hug and hello on the red carpet that warmed our hearts. Just a few moments later, Angela Bassett offered her own warm congratulations and embrace on stage when she presented Randolph with the Golden Globe for best supporting actress in a motion picture for “The Holdovers.” Randolph was no doubt excited to win, but receiving the award from Bassett — who eloquently and passionately announced her name — was a beautiful moment.

Issa Rae, who has been nominated for several Golden Globes, showed love to both Ayo Edebiri and Danielle Brooks — two first-time nominees. During the commercial break, Rae and her husband, Louis Diame, chatted up Brooks with laughs and smiles all around. When Edebiri won her award, she and Rae gave each other a huge hug complete with giggles and excitement. Earlier that night, Edebiri and Brunson burst into song (Cheetah Girls’ “Cheetah Sisters”) while hugging on the red carpet during an interview. If the night was any indication, Black women in Hollywood are a true sisterhood.

PDAs and couple cuteness

Friendship wasn’t the only connection on display at the 2024 Golden Globes — it was also date night for several celebrity couples. Love was very much in the air for both new beaus and longtime partnered pairs inside the ballroom. Issa Rae — who is notoriously private about her personal life, having walked the carpet with her husband only one or two times — was booed up with her man, businessman Louis Diame. The two were spotted on the red carpet and worked the room together inside the event. Best supporting actress in a movie nominee Danielle Brooks was supported by her hubby, Dennis Gelin, who accompanied her to the awards show. The couple, who wed in January 2022 and share one daughter, were hand-in-hand throughout most of the evening and theGrio spotted them sharing a cute moment and loving conversation after Brooks’ loss. Wanda Sykes’ plus-one was none other than her wife of 15 years, Alex Niedbalski. We love the love!

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Hosting flop

Host Jo Koy is being blasted with negative critiques about his opening monologue, but the opening was even more cringeworthy in person. Nearly every joke flopped and many of his lines — from his overplayed quip about “Wakanda forever” to his tone-deaf joke about “Color Purple” being “what happens to your butt when you take Ozempic”— were met with complete silence or noticeable groans in the ballroom. The comedian was announced as a first-time host a few weeks ago and noted in his opening that he did not have much time to prepare, but really, we expected better. As the chilly reception continued among the audience, Koy went off script, saying, “I got the gig 10 days ago! You want a perfect monologue? Yo, shut up. You’re kidding me, right? Slow down, I wrote some of these and they are the ones you are laughing at.” Yikes.

Black nominee snubs

When the Golden Globes show was boycotted by broadcasters and actors alike in 2021 due to a lack of Black members in the Hollywood Foreign Press Association, the organization promised to do better. The HFPA disbanded in 2023 and we thought change was on the horizon. While there has been some progress (last year’s ceremony featured four Black winners and a win for Brunson’s “Abbott Elementary”), the 2024 Golden Globes did not reflect that. Only two Black actors, Ayo Edebiri and Da’Vine Joy Randolph, took home awards. Other Black nominees, including Lenny Kravitz, Jeffrey Wright, Colman Domingo, Fantasia Barrino, David Oyelowo, Trevor Noah, and Chris Rock went home empty-handed. Black shows and movies such as “American Fiction” and “Abbott Elementary” that were nominated also came away with zero awards. Several categories featured no Black nominees at all. Luckily, the Black Hollywood tribe supported each other inside the ballroom so the losses didn’t sting too badly. Here’s hoping for next year!