With a new year comes a new round of awards season questions: Who wore it best? Which host will deliver the most laughs? And which hopeful nominees will take home the top trophies? The Golden Globes kick off the Hollywood awards season every January with Instagram-worthy red carpet looks and tearful acceptance speeches, and this year was no different.
The 2026 Golden Globe winners — including the stars and creative teams behind Netflix’s KPop Demon Hunters, Adolescence, and Ricky Gervais: Mortality — boast portfolios that often transcend a single genre. You can learn about some of their movies and series below.
Paul Thomas Anderson, aka PTA, won Best Director – Motion Picture for One Battle After Another, which also nabbed the prize for Best Performance by a Female Actor in a Supporting Role in any Motion Picture (more below). Anderson, who’s been nominated for 11 Oscars and is known for heavy-hitting dramas like Magnolia and There Will Be Blood, also directed the musical ANIMA, starring Radiohead’s Thom Yorke. The 15-minute film is part music video and part dystopian visual album, and it’s currently available to watch on Netflix.
Star of stage and screen Jessie Buckley won Best Performance by a Female Actor in a Motion Picture – Drama for Hamnet, which co-stars Paul Mescal. Buckley previously starred in writer-director Alex Garland’s folk-horror film Men and Sarah Polley’s Oscar-winning Women Talking, as well as other dramas like I’m Thinking of Ending Things, The Lost Daughter, and Wicked Little Letters.
After winning Best Performance by a Female Actor in a Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy for If I Had Legs I’d Kick You, Rose Byrne got laughs from the crowd for explaining that her longtime partner, actor Bobby Cannavale, wasn’t in attendance — he was at “a reptile expo in New Jersey” to adopt a bearded dragon. (No, seriously.) The comment was pitch-perfect for an actor known for her comedies, including Neighbors, Just Buried, Bridesmaids, Peter Rabbit, and Annie (2014). Byrne has also tackled thrillers like Insidious and I Am Mother and done voice work in documentaries like Puff: Wonders of the Reef and animated flicks like Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem.
Timothée Chalamet’s leading role in director Josh Safdie’s Marty Supreme won him the award for Best Performance by a Male Actor in a Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy. The actor — who’s been making headlines lately for his rumored alter ego, British rapper EsDeeKid — first broke onto the scene in 2017 with the critically acclaimed films Lady Bird and Call Me By Your Name. He’s since gone on to star in movies like The King, Don’t Look Up, Bones and All, A Complete Unknown, and Dune (2021) and its sequel.
Owen Cooper won Best Performance by a Male Actor in a Supporting Role on Television for his role in Adolescence. He plays Jamie Miller, a 13-year-old boy who’s arrested on suspicion of killing a girl in his class. While the series features his first onscreen performance, Cooper is soon set to co-star with Margot Robbie and Jacob Elordi in Wuthering Heights.
Adolescence, created by Jack Thorne and Stephen Graham and directed by Philip Barantini, won four awards at the 2026 Golden Globes. Erin Doherty took home one of them — Best Performance by a Female Actor in a Supporting Role on Television — for her part as Briony Ariston, a clinical psychologist who plays a major role in the series’ third episode. The British actor first gained mainstream recognition for her performance as Princess Anne in Seasons 3 and 4 of The Crown.
Singer-songwriter EJAE accepted the appropriately golden statue for Best Original Song – Motion Picture on behalf of the “Golden” songwriting team. The award-winning tune is the main track in Netflix’s animated KPop Demon Hunters, which also won for Best Motion Picture – Animated. “It’s a dream come true to be part of a song that is helping other girls, other boys, and everyone [of] all ages get through their hardship and to accept themselves,” EJAE said onstage. In addition to hearing her work in the animated feature about a group of demon-fighting superstars, you can watch EJAE and more artists perform for the 2026 Super Bowl crowd in Snoop’s Holiday Halftime Party.
While Ricky Gervais broke into the mainstream by co-creating the UK version of The Office — which inspired the US series starring Steve Carell — he’s now best known for his stand-up specials. His latest, Ricky Gervais: Mortality, won him this year’s Golden Globe for Best Performance in Stand-Up Comedy on Television. Several of the comedian’s other specials, movies, and series are also available on Netflix: Ricky Gervais: Humanity, Ricky Gervais: SuperNature, Ricky Gervais: Armageddon, Derek, After Life, Special Correspondents, and more.
Adolescence co-creator and star Stephen Graham won Best Performance by a Male Actor in a Limited Series, Anthology Series, or a Motion Picture Made for Television. In the series, he portrays Eddie Miller, whose 13-year-old son, Jamie (Cooper), is arrested on suspicion of murder. Graham began his career with roles in movies like Gangs of New York and This Is England and gained more attention for appearances in series like Boardwalk Empire and Peaky Blinders. He’ll soon reprise his role as Hayden Stagg in the upcoming Peaky Blinders: The Immortal Man alongside Cillian Murphy as the relentless gangster Tommy Shelby.
Wagner Moura won Best Performance by a Male Actor in a Motion Picture – Drama for his leading role in The Secret Agent. The Brazilian actor broke into Hollywood in the Matt Damon sci-fi flick Elysium and gained traction for his portrayal of infamous Colombian drug lord Pablo Escobar in Netflix’s Narcos, which co-stars Pedro Pascal. Moura is also known for his roles in Sergio, Wasp Network, The Gray Man, and Civil War.
Comedian, writer, and actor Amy Poehler got her start on Saturday Night Live and has since dived into television, movies, and — as of the past year — podcasting. She won the inaugural Golden Globes award for Best Podcast for Good Hang with Amy Poehler, on which she interviews other stars and celebrity friends like Gwyneth Paltrow, Andy Samberg, Maya Rudolph, and more. The Parks and Recreation alum has also directed movies like Moxie and performed in comedies like Wine Country, Wet Hot American Summer: First Day of Camp, Wet Hot American Summer: Ten Years Later, and more.
Seth Rogen nabbed the prize for Best Performance by a Male Actor in a Television Series – Musical or Comedy for the satirical series The Studio, which also won Best Television Series – Musical or Comedy. Rogen is known for comedies like Superbad, Pineapple Express, This Is the End, Neighbors, and Like Father; his voice work in animated movies like Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem and Sausage Party; and his stand-up comedy specials like Seth Rogen’s Hilarity for Charity.
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The Skarsgård family patriarch, Stellan, won Best Performance by a Male Actor in a Supporting Role in any Motion Picture for the tragicomedy Sentimental Value, which co-stars Renate Reinsve and Elle Fanning. Skarsgård is a prolific Swedish actor who’s known for his collaborations with director Lars von Trier in Breaking the Waves, Melancholia, and Nymphomaniac. He’s also starred in a variety of other movies, like The Hunt for Red October, Good Will Hunting, Mamma Mia!, The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, The Avengers, Romeo & Juliet (2013), and Borg vs. McEnroe.
Seven-time Emmy Award–winner Jean Smart added a third Golden Globe to her shelf after winning Best Performance by a Female Actor in a Television Series – Musical or Comedy for Season 4 of Hacks. The actor — who first gained prominence in the ’80s for her role in the sitcom Designing Women — boasts a broad portfolio: series like The District, 24, and Dirty John; movies like Guinevere, Garden State, and Babylon; and stage productions like The Man Who Came to Dinner, for which she was nominated for a Tony Award.
Better Call Saul alum Rhea Seehorn won Best Performance by a Female Actor in a Television Series – Drama for Pluribus, in which she worked once again with creator Vince Gilligan. Outside her collaborations with Gilligan, the actor has also appeared in The Thick of It, Dollhouse, Burn Notice, Roseanne, Veep, and Things Heard & Seen.
One Battle After Another star Teyana Taylor won the prize for Best Performance by a Female Actor in a Supporting Role in any Motion Picture. The multihyphenate got her start choreographing the music video for Beyoncé’s “Ring the Alarm” when she was 15 years old. She’s since released four original studio albums, including the recently Grammy-nominated Escape Room. As an actor, Taylor had roles in Stomp the Yard: Homecoming and Madea’s Big Happy Family, and she can be seen in Netflix movies like The After Party and Straw. She’ll also soon co-star with Matt Damon and Ben Affleck in the upcoming action flick The Rip.
The award for Best Performance by a Female Actor in a Limited Series, Anthology Series, or a Motion Picture Made for Television went to Michelle Williams for her role in Dying for Sex, which co-stars Jenny Slate. While Williams has received acclaim for her roles in dramas like Blue Valentine, Manchester by the Sea, and The Fabelmans, she got her start as Jen Lindley on the cult-favorite teen soap Dawson’s Creek, which is available on Netflix.
Noah Wyle, who first gained prominence in the ’90s for the medical drama ER, won Best Performance by a Male Actor in a Television Series – Drama for The Pitt, which also won Best Television Series – Drama. Between his rounds in fictional emergency departments, Wyle starred in the fantasy adventure movie The Librarian: Quest for the Spear and its sequels, as well as the postapocalyptic sci-fi series Falling Skies.
