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It's the dawn of a new year, and you know what that means: the Golden Globe Awards are upon us!
Sunday's 75th Annual Golden Globe Awards will recognize the best achievements in television and film over the course of 2017. Members of the Hollywood Foreign Press Association, which hands out the Globes every year, enjoy being a little bit contrarian with their picks, meaning that every year, it's pretty much a guarantee that at least one or two awards will seem out of left field. But that's what keeps it interesting!
Here are our best guesses for who will receive Golden Globes this year in the television categories:
DRAMA SERIES
Nominees:
The Crown
Game of Thrones
The Handmaid's Tale
Stranger Things
This Is Us
Will Win: The Handmaid's Tale
The Handmaid's Tale pretty much has this one in the bag. It's a safe bet that Hulu's breakout hit will repeat its Emmy win for Best Drama, but again, nothing is certain when it comes to the Golden Globes.
Watch Out For: The Crown
Netflix's The Crown, the 2017 Best Drama winner at the Globes, could prove to be a spoilsport by defending its... well, you know.
COMEDY/MUSICAL SERIES
Nominees:
black-ish
The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel
Master of None
SMILF
Will & Grace
Will Win: The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel
As we've said, the Globes love to think of themselves as the Next Big Thing award, and this year's shiny new comedy is Amazon's The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel. Expect the HFPA's track record of rewarding fledgling Amazon series (see: Transparent, Mozart in the Jungle) to continue.
Watch Out For: SMILF
Another freshman comedy that could potentially stop Mrs. Maisel's momentum is Showtime's SMILF. The under-the-radar series clearly caught the attention of the HFPA, but will it be enough to come out on top?
LIMITED SERIES OR TV MOVIE
Nominees:
Big Little Lies
Fargo
Feud: Bette and Joan
The Sinner
Top of the Lake: China Girl
Will Win: Big Little Lies
More like Big Little Lock. HBO's miniseries was a hit with both critics and fans, and the most star-studded ensemble of all the nominees. Plus, with the #MeToo movement in full force, a win for Big Little Lies would send a big statement about women's voices needing to be heard.
Watch Out For: The Sinner
The Sinner and its leading lady, Jessica Biel, were surprise nominees for this year's Golden Globes (more on her later), so the HFPA might opt to stun everyone and give it a Best Limited Series prize.
DRAMA ACTOR
Nominees:
Jason Bateman (Ozark)
Sterling K. Brown (This Is Us)
Freddie Highmore (The Good Doctor)
Bob Odenkirk (Better Call Saul)
Liev Schreiber (Ray Donovan)
Will Win: Freddie Highmore
This one's a toss-up. The Good Doctor was undoubtedly the biggest hit among the crop of new broadcast shows last fall, yet only scored one Globe nod. If the HFPA wants to think of themselves as crowd-pleasers and throw a bone to viewers who don't have access to streaming services and other premium cable channels (where the vast majority of nominees reside), yet still reward a new show, here's their chance.
Watch Out For: Sterling K. Brown
On the other hand, the HFPA could also reach those broadcast viewers by handing This Is Us star Sterling K. Brown a Best Drama Actor Globe to put next to his Emmy.
DRAMA ACTRESS
Nominees:
Caitriona Balfe (Outlander)
Claire Foy (The Crown)
Maggie Gyllenhaal (The Deuce)
Elisabeth Moss (The Handmaid's Tale)
Katherine Langford (13 Reasons Why)
Will Win: Elisabeth Moss
Simply put, this award needs to go to Elisabeth Moss, whose portrayal of narrator Offred in The Handmaid's Tale is one of the best television performances of the past decade, let alone year. It's almost inconceivable that the award would go to anyone else.
Watch Out For: Maggie Gyllenhaal
The Globes love their star power, and Maggie Gyllenhaal's daring performance in HBO's The Deuce was rather noteworthy. But Moss is basically untouchable at this point.
COMEDY/MUSICAL ACTOR
Nominees:
Anthony Anderson (black-ish)
Aziz Ansari (Master of None)
Kevin Bacon (I Love Dick)
William H. Macy (Shameless)
Eric McCormack (Will & Grace)
Will Win: Eric McCormack
This could be it, folks: the year that Will & Grace breaks its 0-for-27 losing streak at the Golden Globes. There's virtually no chance the show will win the Comedy Series award, but McCormack could eke out a victory among this rather even playing field of comedy actors.
Watch Out For: Kevin Bacon
Really this award is wide open, but considering the HFPA's aforementioned love of Amazon shows and A-listers, they might like to see Kevin Bacon up on that stage.
COMEDY/MUSICAL ACTRESS
Nominees:
Pamela Adlon (Better Things)
Alison Brie (GLOW)
Issa Rae (Insecure)
Rachel Brosnahan (The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel)
Frankie Shaw (SMILF)
Will Win: Rachel Brosnahan
Mark our words: The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel will be one of the big winners on Globes night, going 2-for-2 in Comedy Series and Comedy Actress. In her first leading role, Rachel Brosnahan is utterly charming as the title character, and if her acceptance speech is even half as funny as some of Mrs. Maisel's improvised stand-up routines, we're in for a treat.
Watch Out For: Frankie Shaw
In the same way that SMILF could be a dark horse contender for Best Comedy, Shaw could upset Brosnahan in the Comedy Actress category. Or, the HFPA could throw us a real curveball and split the awards between the two shows.
LIMITED SERIES/TV MOVIE ACTOR
Nominees:
Robert De Niro (The Wizard of Lies)
Jude Law (The Young Pope)
Kyle MacLachlan (Twin Peaks)
Ewan McGregor (Fargo)
Geoffrey Rush (Genius)
Will Win: Ewan McGregor
Another essentially wide-open race. We'll give the edge to McGregor simply because he was tasked with playing two characters in Fargo, not just one.
Watch Out For: Robert De Niro
Again, this award is really anyone's for the taking, but De Niro's portrayal of disgraced Ponzi schemer Bernie Madoff was particularly noteworthy.
LIMITED SERIES/TV MOVIE ACTRESS
Nominees:
Jessica Biel (The Sinner)
Nicole Kidman (Big Little Lies)
Jessica Lange (Feud: Bette and Joan)
Susan Sarandon (Feud: Bette and Joan)
Reese Witherspoon (Big Little Lies)
Will Win: Nicole Kidman
We'd like to say Kidman is a lock for her portrayal of Celeste, the abused wife in Big Little Lies - she certainly deserves it - but we don't want to jinx her. This award could be where the HFPA drops its big bombshell of the night.
Watch Out For: Jessica Biel
The HFPA likes to keep audiences on their toes. Bestowing this honor upon Jessica Biel would truly floor people, and be exactly the type of jaw-dropping moment the Globes are known for.
TV SUPPORTING ACTOR
Nominees:
Alfred Molina (Feud: Bette and Joan)
Alexander Skarsgard (Big Little Lies)
David Thewlis (Fargo)
David Harbour (Stranger Things)
Christian Slater (Mr. Robot)
Will Win: Alexander Skarsgard
Skargard's chilling portrayal of abusive husband Perry will no doubt earn him a Golden Globe this year.
Watch Out For: David Harbour
Harbour's Emmy-nominated turn as fan favorite Sheriff Hopper in Netflix's Stranger Things (which has gone 0-for-4 heading into this year's Globes) could rain on Skarsgard's victory parade.
TV SUPPORTING ACTRESS
Nominees:
Laura Dern (Big Little Lies)
Ann Dowd (The Handmaid's Tale)
Chrissy Metz (This Is Us)
Michelle Pfeiffer (The Wizard of Lies)
Shailene Woodley (Big Little Lies)
Will Win: Laura Dern
Smart money is on Big Little Lies to clean up bigly at the Globes this year, and Dern could round out what could very well be a trifecta of acting awards for the miniseries. Dern is a Golden Globe favorite and three-time winner (not to mention a former Miss Golden Globe), so look for her to make it four.
Watch Out For: Ann Dowd
Dowd turned in stellar performances in both The Leftovers and The Handmaid's Tale (for which she's nominated) this year, so the first-time nominee could be a surprise winner.
The 75th annual Golden Globe Awards air Sunday at 8/7c on NBC. Who do you think will win?