Paramount’s announcement on Monday revealed that the 2024 Golden Globes telecast achieved its highest ratings in years, thanks in part to the “Barbenheimer” phenomenon. Amid the organization’s transition from NBC to CBS and the recognition of blockbuster hits like Greta Gerwig’s “Barbie” and Christopher Nolan’s “Oppenheimer,” the event garnered 9.4 million viewers—a significant increase of approximately 50% compared to the previous year’s record-low viewership of 6.3 million.
Hosted by comedian Jo Koy, the show, which also streamed on Paramount+ for the first time, became the platform’s second-highest-streamed live event. To broaden its appeal, the Golden Globes introduced two new competitive categories for the 2024 broadcast—Cinematic and Box Office Achievement for high-grossing films and Best Performance in Stand-Up Comedy on Television, won by Ricky Gervais.
Notable nominees in the Box Office Achievement category included Christopher Nolan’s “Oppenheimer,” the third “Guardians of the Galaxy” film, Taylor Swift’s “Eras Tour” concert film, and Greta Gerwig’s blockbuster “Barbie,” which earned $1.4 billion and secured the inaugural Box Office statuette.
Other prominent contenders at the 2024 Golden Globes included Bradley Cooper for “Maestro,” Leonardo DiCaprio for “Killers of the Flower Moon,” Timothée Chalamet for “Wonka,” Ali Wong and Steven Yeun from the hit streaming series “Beef,” and several members of the ensemble cast of HBO’s popular drama series “Succession.”
The 2024 telecast followed significant organizational changes, including the dissolution of the Hollywood Foreign Press Association (HFPA) and the Golden Globes’ acquisition by Dick Clark Productions in 2023. These alterations came in response to a multi-year controversy surrounding the HFPA, prompted by a 2021 Los Angeles Times exposé revealing a lack of diversity in the HFPA’s membership. The subsequent restructuring of rules and membership requirements aimed to address these issues. The show’s return to NBC in early 2023 was short-lived, as it moved to CBS after the HFPA’s association concluded.
The Golden Globes faced declining ratings in the aftermath of the 2021 controversy, with a 62% drop in viewership on NBC. The subsequent year on air saw another record low with 6.3 million viewers.
