Golden Globes Winners Struggle to Reach the Stage

When Paul Giamatti won the Golden Globe for Best Actor in a Motion Picture — Musical or Comedy, he began his acceptance speech with a joke that likely resonated with many of the night’s winners.

“Too many steps,” Giamatti quipped. “Too many steps.”

While Giamatti went on to joke about the impact that the frequent standing ovations had on his aging knees (and his likelihood of being cast in a hypothetical “John Wick 5”), his comments touched on one of the night’s overarching themes: winners struggling to reach the stage.

While the Golden Globes were once again broadcast from their traditional home at the Beverly Hilton, a crowded seating arrangement and a lack of clear pathways to the stage created many awkward pauses as the crowd patiently waited for acceptance speeches to start.

Emma Stone had a visibly tough time reaching the stage for her acceptance speech after winning Best Actress in a Motion Picture, Musical or Comedy for “Poor Things.” The cast and crew of “Beef” were similarly inconvenienced, as their table was positioned in the back of the room. The A24/Netflix show’s success ended up delaying the awards on multiple occasions as both Ali Wong and Steven Yeung both won Golden Globes for Actor and Actress in a Limited Series for their performances, and creator Lee Sung Jin had to take the stage to accept the award for Best Limited Series.