NBC Won’t Air The Golden Globe Awards In 2022 Following Criticism Of The HFPA's Lack Of Diversity

Netflix, Amazon Studios, and WarnerMedia are boycotting the Hollywood Foreign Press Association, saying the organization lacks a diverse lineup in its award recipients.

NBC announced on Monday that it will not broadcast the 2022 Golden Globe Awards following months of criticism around the lack of diversity in the Hollywood Foreign Press Association.

“We continue to believe that the HFPA is committed to meaningful reform,” NBC said in a statement. “However, change of this magnitude takes time and work, and we feel strongly that the HFPA needs time to do it right. As such, NBC will not air the 2022 Golden Globes. Assuming the organization executes on its plan, we are hopeful we will be in a position to air the show in January 2023.”

Representatives for the HFPA and the Golden Globes didn’t immediately respond to BuzzFeed News’ requests for comment.

The news about NBC not airing next year’s Golden Globes comes after Netflix, Amazon Studios, and WarnerMedia announced they’re boycotting the HFPA until it implements concrete and meaningful change. The organization has been in the spotlight for months since the Los Angeles Times published investigations into its inner workings in February. The investigations have shed light on an alleged culture of corruption at the HFPA and reported that in the fiscal year ending in June 2020, its members took home nearly $2 million in payments for committees and other tasks. The LA Times also reported that the organization has a stark lack of diversity; among its 87 members, the HFPA includes no Black journalists. The awards' nominees and winners are overwhelmingly white.

In a letter to HFPA President Ali Sar, Warner Bros. executives, including Ann Sarnoff, the CEO and chair of the corporation’s studios and networks, wrote, “While we commend the HFPA membership’s approval of the plan to move towards radical reform, we don’t believe the plan goes far enough in addressing the breadth of our concerns, nor does your timeline capture the immediate need by which these issues should be addressed.”

The letter, published by Variety, goes on, “WarnerMedia Studios and Networks will continue to refrain from direct engagement with the HFPA, including sanctioned press conferences and invitations to cover other industry events with talent, until these changes are implemented. This includes work with HBO, HBO Max, Warner Bros. Pictures Group, Warner Bros. Television, TNT and TBS. The work of ensuring equity and inclusion is never finished and something we all must work together to achieve. We understand the challenges ahead for you, as we work towards diversifying our own executive and employee ranks. However, we call upon you to move with greater urgency.”

On May 6, Netflix CEO Ted Sarandos wrote a letter to the HFPA saying the streamer was “stopping any activities with your organization until more meaningful changes are made.”

“We know that you have many well-intentioned members who want real change — and that all of us have more work to do to create an equitable and inclusive industry,” Sarandos wrote. “But Netflix and many of the talent and creators we work with cannot ignore the HFPA’s collective failure to address these crucial issues with urgency and rigor.”

Some Hollywood actors have also started speaking out against the HFPA. Scarlett Johansson told Variety that she has avoided answering questions from members of the HFPA in press conferences because some of their inquiries and remarks “bordered on sexual harassment.”

“As an actor promoting a film, one is expected to participate in awards season by attending press conferences, as well as awards shows. In the past, this has often meant facing sexist questions and remarks by certain HFPA members that bordered on sexual harassment. It is the exact reason why I, for many years, refused to participate in their conferences,” Johansson said. “Unless there is necessary fundamental reform within the organization, I believe it is time that we take a step back from the HFPA and focus on the importance and strength of unity within our unions and the industry as a whole.”

Mark Ruffalo told Deadline that he “cannot feel proud or happy” about being the recipient of a Best Actor award at the Golden Globes in 2021 for his role on the HBO miniseries I Know This Much Is True.

“It’s discouraging to see the HFPA, which has gained prominence and profited handsomely from their involvement with filmmakers and actors, resist the change that is being asked of them from many of the groups that have been most disenfranchised by their culture of secrecy and exclusion,” Ruffalo said in a statement.

Tom Cruise has also reportedly returned the three Golden Globe trophies he’s won over the years: his Best Actor awards from 1990 for his role in Born on the Fourth of July and 1997 for Jerry Maguire, and the Best Supporting Actor award in 2000 for Magnolia.

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