Golden Globes

Stars won't shine at Golden Globes: actors union
Hollywood actors will boycott this month's Golden Globe Awards in a show of support for striking writers, the actors union said Friday, dealing a blow to the glittering red carpet extravaganza.


Screen Actors Guild (SAG) President Alan Rosenberg said in a statement there was "unanimous agreement" among actors not to cross picket lines set up by writers locked in a bitter dispute with film and television producers.

Rosenberg said the boycott would cover all nominees up for acting awards in the January 13 event, regarded as the second most important awards show in Hollywood after the Oscars. It would also cover stars acting as presenters.

The decision means that nominated A-listers such as Julia Roberts, Tom Hanks and George Clooney are all likely to steer clear of the Globes, greatly diminishing one of the highlights of Hollywood's awards season.

"After considerable outreach to Golden Globe actor nominees and their representatives over the past several weeks, there appears to be unanimous agreement that these actors will not cross WGA picket lines to appear on the Golden Globe Awards as acceptors or presenters," Rosenberg said.

"We applaud our members for this remarkable show of solidarity for striking Writers Guild of America (WGA) writers."

Hollywood screenwriters have been on strike since November 5 after the WGA and the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers (AMPTP) failed to agree terms for a new contract that expired in October.

Negotiations have foundered over the writers' demands for an increased share of profits from Internet and new media sales.

The two-month strike has forced the suspension of numerous television series as well as the postponement of work on several Hollywood films.

Hollywood has been abuzz with speculation in recent weeks over how the strike may impact the myriad awards shows leading up to and including the Oscars on February 24.

The WGA confirmed on Wednesday that the writers union would erect picket lines around the Golden Globes venue at the Beverly Hilton hotel, appearing to rule out any agreement with the show's organisers, Dick Clark Productions, allowing for a temporary waiver.

"Dick Clark Productions is a struck company. As previously announced, the Writers Guild will be picketing the Golden Globe Awards," the WGA said.

The writers union had already announced last month that it would not allow guild members to take part at both the Golden Globes and the Oscars.

The prospect of stars having to cross picket lines before they venture onto the Globes red carpet had been unnerving celebrities caught in the crossfire of the acrimonious dispute.

David Cronenberg, the director of gangster drama "Eastern Promises," which has been nominated for best picture at the Golden Globes, said last month he would be uncomfortable breaking ranks with writers.

"It would be very hard for me to cross a WGA picket line," said Cronenberg, a longstanding member of the WGA. "Everybody will have the same problem," he told Daily Variety.

The Los Angeles Times' theenvelope.com has reported that Globes organisers may cancel the televised broadcast of the event if writers picketed in an effort to prevent a public relations disaster.

Golden Globes

The Golden Globe Awards are American awards for motion pictures and television programs, given out each year during a formal dinner. Run as a fundraiser since 1944 by the Hollywood Foreign Press Association (HFPA), the awards are a major part of the film industry's "awards season" which culminates each year with the Oscars and Screen Actors Guild Awards. This is particularly true since 1996, when the HFPA signed a new television broadcast contract with NBC (prior to that, they were aired on TBS, but before the existence of TBS, one of the "big three" commercial networks, i.e. CBS, NBC, or ABC, always broadcast the show). The broadcast of the Golden Globe Awards generally ranks as the third most-watched awards show each year, behind only the Oscars and Grammys, and film studios actively solicit support from HFPA members and mention nominations and awards in their advertisements. The Golden Globes has grown to one of the highest honors for actors and actresses. The Golden Globe's similar British equivalent, considered equal in prestige, is the BAFTA.

The Golden Globes are awarded early in the year, based on votes from (as of 2005) 86 mostly part-time journalists living in Hollywood and affiliated with media outside of the United States.

Unlike the Academy Awards, for which the eligibility period begins January 1, the eligibility period for the Golden Globe Awards begins October 1.

Unlike the Oscars, the Grammys, and the Emmys, the Golden Globe Awards is one of two major Hollywood awards ceremonies (the other being the Screen Actors Guild Awards) that does not have a regular host; although, there is a presenter every year who introduces the ceremony at the beginning of the broadcast.