Golden Globes: 12 Years Prevails, Barely and American Hustle Thrives

12 Years a Slave ended the night of the Golden Globes as a surprise winner; a surprise because it had gone empty-handed all night despite entering the evening as the nomination leader.  Even director Steve McQueen was visibly shocked at the win.  It was a much needed boost for the film’s Oscar prospects as it ended the critics awards season with no major wins from the big groups.

The big winner of the night was American Hustle, winning three awards; Best Picture (Comedy or Musical), Best Actress for Amy Adams (Comedy or Musical) and Best Supporting Actress (Jennifer Lawrence). Adams’ win was seen as crucial as it was against perennial winner Meryl Streep.  Leonardo DiCaprio won Best Actor in a Comedy or Musical for his balls-out performance of Wall Street criminal Jordan Belfort in the Martin Scorsese opus, The Wolf of Wall Street.

The Golden Globe winner ballots were due the same day as Oscar nomination ballots were due and while they won’t reflect an influence on Oscar nominations this Thursday, the wins for Amy Adams and Leonardo DiCaprio could prove crucial if they garner nods by the Academy.

Full list of winners:

Best Picture (Drama): 12 Years a Slave

Best Picture (Comedy or Musical): American Hustle

Best Director: Alfonso Cuarón, Gravity

Best Actor (Drama): Matthew McConaughey, Dallas Buyers Club

Best Actress (Drama): Cate Blanchett, Blue Jasmine

Best Actor (Comedy or Musical): Leonardo DiCaprio, The Wolf of Wall Street

Best Actress (Comedy or Musical): Amy Adams, American Hustle

Best Supporting Actor: Jared Leto, Dallas Buyers Club

Best Supporting Actress: Jennifer Lawrence, American Hustle

Best Screenplay: Her

Best Animated Film: Frozen

Best Foreign Language Film: The Great Beauty (Italy)

Best Original Score: All is Lost

Best Original Song: “Ordinary Love,” Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom

• Author
• Recent Posts

Erik Anderson

Erik Anderson is the founder/owner and Editor-in-Chief of AwardsWatch and has always loved all things Oscar, having watched the Academy Awards since he was in single digits; making lists, rankings and predictions throughout the show. This led him down the path to obsessing about awards. Much later, he found himself in film school and the film forums of GoldDerby, and then migrated over to the former Oscarwatch (now AwardsDaily), before breaking off to create AwardsWatch in 2013.

He is a Rotten Tomatoes-approved critic, accredited by the Cannes Film Festival, Telluride Film Festival, Toronto International Film Festival and more, is a member of the International Cinephile Society (ICS), The Society of LGBTQ Entertainment Critics (GALECA), Critics Choice Association (CCA), San Francisco Bay Area Film Critics Circle (SFBAFCC) and the International Press Academy. Among his many achieved goals with AwardsWatch, he has given a platform to underrepresented writers and critics and supplied them with access to film festivals and the industry and calls the Bay Area his home where he lives with his husband and son.

Latest posts by Erik Anderson (see all)

• 2026 Tribeca Festival Celebrates 25th Anniversary with World Premieres of ‘Hadestown: The Musical,’ ‘Earth, Wind & Fire’ Doc - April 16, 2026
• ‘Beef’ Season 2 Review: Oscar Isaac, Carey Mulligan, Cailee Spaeny and Charles Melton Sink Their Teeth Into Lee Sung Jin’s Meaty Morality Tale [A-] - April 16, 2026
• George Clooney to be Honored at 51st Chaplin Award Gala by Stephen Colbert, Sam Rockwell and More - April 15, 2026