Golden Globes 2012 Predictions (updated)

By James A. Molnar
TGK Editor

It’s time for bacchanalian party of the year: the Golden Globe Awards. Ricky Gervais is the ringleader for the third year of an evening where celebrities eat and, notably, drink — an awards show without the required gravitas. Two years ago, Gervais was the first host in 15 years for the show by the Hollywood Foreign Press Association (HFPA). After last year’s show, where Gervais pulled all the punches on the nominees and stars in the room, many thought the HFPA would not invite him back. Alas, the organization did and viewers will again see a smug Gervais beer in hand ready to dish some jokes.

Here are my predictions (marked in blue and winners highlighted **) for the 69th Annual Golden Globe Awards. Last year, I predicted 11/14 film categories correctly (79 percent) and 8/11 for television (73 percent), for a 76 percent average. Here's hoping to improve my average. Enjoy and feel free to leave comments. UPDATE: I predicted 10/14 (71 percent) and 7/11 (64 percent) categories for movies and television, respectively, with a 68 percent average.

Gerard Butler, Woody Harrelson, Rashida Jones and Sofia Vergara announced the nominees on Dec. 15. "The Artist" led the nominations with six (three wins). "The Descendants" (two wins) and "The Help" (one win) followed with five apiece.

Film 10/14

Best Motion Picture – Drama

• "The Descendants" **
• "The Help"
• "Hugo"
• "The Ides of March"
• "Moneyball"
• "War Horse"

Best Motion Picture – Comedy Or Musical

• "50/50"
• "The Artist" **
• "Bridesmaids"
• "Midnight in Paris"
• "My Week with Marilyn"

Best Performance By An Actress In A Motion Picture – Drama

• Glenn Close, "Albert Nobbs"
• Viola Davis, "The Help"
• Rooney Mara, "The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo"
• Meryl Streep, "The Iron Lady" #2 (very possible) **
• Tilda Swinton, "We Need to Talk About Kevin"

Best Performance By An Actor In A Motion Picture – Drama

• George Clooney, "The Descendants" **
• Leonardo DiCaprio, "J. Edgar"
• Michael Fassbender, "Shame"
• Ryan Gosling, "The Ides of March"
• Brad Pitt, "Moneyball"

Best Performance By An Actress In A Motion Picture – Comedy Or Musical

• Jodie Foster, "Carnage"
• Charlize Theron, "Young Adult"
• Kristen Wiig, "Bridesmaids"
• Michelle Williams, "My Week With Marilyn" **
• Kate Winslet, "Carnage"

Best Performance By An Actor In A Motion Picture – Comedy Or Musical

• Jean Dujardin, "The Artist" **
• Brendan Gleeson, "The Guard"
• Joseph Gordon-Levitt, "50/50"
• Ryan Gosling, "Crazy, Stupid, Love"
• Owen Wilson, "Midnight in Paris"

Best Performance By An Actress In A Supporting Role In A Motion Picture

• Bérénice Bejo, "The Artist"
• Jessica Chastain, "The Help"
• Janet McTeer, "Albert Nobbs"
• Octavia Spencer, "The Help" **
• Shailene Woodley, "The Descendants"

Best Performance By An Actor In A Supporting Role In A Motion Picture

• Kenneth Branagh, "My Week With Marilyn"
• Albert Brooks, "Drive"
• Jonah Hill, "Moneyball"
• Viggo Mortensen, "A Dangerous Method"
• Christopher Plummer, "Beginners" **

Best Director – Motion Picture

• Woody Allen, "Midnight in Paris"
• George Clooney, "The Ides of March"
• Michel Hazanavicius, "The Artist"
• Alexander Payne, "The Descendants"
• Martin Scorsese, "Hugo" #2 **

Best Screenplay

• "The Artist," Michel Hazanavicius
• "The Descendants," Nat Faxon, Alexander Payne, Jim Rash
• "The Ides of March," George Clooney, Grant Heslov, Beau Willimon
• "Midnight in Paris," Woody Allen **
• "Moneyball," Aaron Sorkin, Steven Zaillian #2 (who doesn't love Sorkin?)

Best Foreign Language Film

• "A Separation" (Iran) **
• The Flowers Of War" (China)
• "The Kid With The Bike" (Belgium)
• "In The Land Of Blood and Honey" (USA) #2
• "The Skin I Live In" (Spain)

Best Animated Feature

• "The Adventures of Tintin" #2 (very unlikely) **
• "Arthur Christmas"
• "Cars 2"
• "Puss In Boots"
• "Rango"

Best Original Score

• "The Artist," Ludovic Bource **
• "The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo," Trent Reznor & Atticus Ross #2 (unlikely)
• "Hugo," Howard Shore
• "War Horse," John Williams #3 (highly unlikely)
• "W.E.," Abel Korzeniowski

Best Original Song

• "Hello Hello" from "Gnomeo & Juliet," Elton John
• "Lay Your Head Down" from "Albert Nobbs," Sinead O'Connor
• "The Living Proof" from "The Help," Mary J. Blige #3 (also possible)
• "The Keeper" from "Machine Gun Preacher," Gerard Butler
• "Masterpiece" from "W.E.," Madonna #2 (very possible) **

Television 7/11
Best Television Series, Drama

• "American Horror Story" (FX)
• "Boardwalk Empire" (HBO) — Won in 2011
• "Boss" (Starz)
• "Game of Thrones" (HBO)
• "Homeland" (Showtime) **

Best Television Series, Comedy or Musical

• "Enlightened" (HBO)
• "Episodes" (Showtime)
• "Glee" (Fox) — Won in 2010 and 2011
• "Modern Family" (ABC) **
• "New Girl" (Fox) #2 (possible)

Best Actor in a Television Series, Drama

• Steve Buscemi, "Boardwalk Empire" (HBO) — Won in 2011
• Bryan Cranston, "Breaking Bad" (AMC) #3 (possible)
• Kelsey Grammer, "Boss" (Starz) #2 (very possible) **
• Jeremy Irons, "The Borgias" (Showtime)
• Damian Lewis, "Homeland" (Showtime)

Best Actress in a Television Series, Drama

• Claire Danes, "Homeland" (Showtime) **
• Mireille Enos, "The Killing" (AMC)
• Julianna Margulies, "The Good Wife" (CBS) — Won in 2010 #2
• Madeleine Stowe, "Revenge" (ABC)
• Callie Thorne, "Necessary Roughness" (USA)

Best Actor in a Television Series, Comedy or Musical

• Alec Baldwin, "30 Rock" (NBC) — Won 2007, 2009 and 2010
• David Duchovny, "Californication" (Showtime)
• Johnny Galecki, "The Big Bang Theory" (CBS) #2 (very possible)
• Thomas Jane, "Hung" (HBO)
• Matt LeBlanc, "Episodes" (Showtime) **

Best Actress in a Television Series, Comedy or Musical

• Laura Dern, "Enlightened" (HBO) **
• Zooey Deschanel, "New Girl" (Fox)
• Tina Fey, "30 Rock" (NBC) — Won in 2008 and 2009 #3 (unlikely)
• Laura Linney, "The Big C" (Showtime) — Won in 2011 #2 (possible)
• Amy Poehler, "Parks and Recreation" (NBC)

Best Supporting Actor in a Series, Miniseries or Motion Picture Made for Television

• Peter Dinklage, "Game of Thrones" (HBO) #2 (very possible) **
• Paul Giamatti, "Too Big to Fail" (HBO)
• Guy Pearce, "Mildred Pierce" (HBO)
• Tim Robbins, "Cinema Verité" (HBO)
• Eric Stonestreet, "Modern Family" (ABC) #3

Best Supporting Actress in a Series, Miniseries or Motion Picture Made for Television

• Jessica Lange, "American Horror Story" (FX) **
• Kelly Macdonald, "Boardwalk Empire" (HBO)
• Maggie Smith, "Downton Abbey" (PBS) #2 (very possible)
• Sofia Vergara, "Modern Family" (ABC)
• Evan Rachel Wood, "Mildred Pierce" (HBO)

Best Miniseries or Motion Picture Made for Television

• "Cinema Verité" (HBO)
• "Downton Abbey" (PBS) **
• "The Hour" (BBC America)
• "Mildred Pierce" (HBO) #2 (possible)
• "Too Big to Fail" (HBO)

Best Actor in a Miniseries or Motion Picture Made for Television

• Hugh Bonneville, "Downton Abbey" (PBS)
• Idris Elba, "Luther" (BBC America) **
• William Hurt, "Too Big to Fail" (HBO)
• Bill Nighy, "Page Eight" (PBS)
• Dominic West, "The Hour" (BBC America)

Best Actress in a Miniseries or Motion Picture Made for Television

• Romola Garai, "The Hour" (BBC America)
• Diane Lane, "Cinema Verité" (HBO) #2 (possible)
• Elizabeth McGovern, "Downton Abbey" (PBS)
• Emily Watson, "Appropriate Adult (ITV)
• Kate Winslet, "Mildred Pierce" (HBO) **

The Golden Globe Awards aired LIVE coast-to-coast on Sunday, Jan. 15, 2012, on NBC from 5:00-8:00 p.m. (PST) /8:00-11:00 p.m. (EST) from the Beverly Hilton Hotel with host Ricky Gervais.

Stay with The Gold Knight Blog for full coverage. This post was updated LIVE with results. Follow TGK fashion experts on Twitter with the #TGKfashion hashtag for all of the Red Carpet commentary.