#WTLCEntertainmentNews: Diversity Up As 73rd Annual Golden Globe Nominations Announced

Source: adventtr / Getty

The nominations for the 73rd Annual Golden Globe Awards were announced in Hollywood on Thursday morning. ‘Diversity watchers’ who closely monitor entertainment industry awards were watching to see if black actors, actresses and other industry people were going to be acknowledged for their contributions during the year. Starting off with the announcements, Oscar-nominated actress Angela Bassett was one of the morning’s announcers reading from the list of nominees.

Here are some of the nominees and categories to watch: 

Will Smith. Source: AFP / Getty

Will Smith received a nom for the film Concussion in the Best Performance by an Actor–Best Picture-Drama category. He goes up against Bryan Cranston in Trumbo, Leonardo DiCaprio in The Revenant, Michael Fasbender in Steve Jobs, and Eddie Redmayne in The Danish Girl.

Idris Elba. Source: Karwai Tang / Getty

Idris Elba received a nom for the film Beasts of No Nation in the Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role in Any Motion Picture category. Elba competes with Paul Dano in Love & Mercy, Mark Rylance in Bridge of Spies, Michael Shannon in 99 Homes, and Sylvester Stallone in Creed.

Empire Cast, ‘Lyons Family’. Source: FOX / Getty

Empire received a nom for the Best Television Series-Drama category. The Fox series goes up against HBO/HBO Entertainment’s Game of Thrones which is also a production in association with Bighead, Littlehead; Television 360 and Startling Television; USA Network/Universal Cable Productions’ Mr. Robot; Netflix and Gaumont International Television for Netflix’s Narcos; and Starz/Sony Picture TV’s Outlander.

Viola Davis. Source: Getty / Getty

Taraji P. Henson. Source: Jason Kempin / Staff / Getty

Viola Davis and Taraji P. Henson go head-to-head receiving a noms for their respective shows How To Get Away With Murder (ABC) and Empire (Fox) in the Best Performance by an Actress in a Television Series-Drama category. Davis and Henson compete with Caitriona Balfe in Outlander, Eva Green in Penny Dreadful, and Robin Wright in Netflix’s House of Cards.

OITNB Cast Members. Source: Essence Magazine & Essence.com

Orange Is The New Black received a nom for the Best Television Series-Musical or Comedy category. The show stars several black actresses in an ensemble cast that Black America has bonded with, including Udo Aduba’s ‘Crazy Eyes’.  OITNB, a production of Netflix Lionsgate Television for Netflix competes with Hulu Lionsgate TV/Right of Way’s Casual; Amazon Video/Amazon Studio’s Mozart in the Jungle; HBO Entertainment in association with Judgemental Films, Alec Berg, Altschuler Krinsky Works and 3 Arts Entertainment’s Silicon Valley; Amazon Video/Amazon Studio’s Transparent and HBO/HBO Entertainment in association with Dundee Productions’ Veep.

Left: Bessie Smith Right: Queen Latifah. Source: Michael Ochs Archives / Getty

Queen Latifah received a nom for the television movie Bessie in the Best Performance by an Actress in a Limited Series or Motion Picture Made for Television category. She goes up against Kirsten Dunst in Fargo, Lady Gaga in American Horror Story: Hotel, Sarah Hay in Flesh & Bone, and Felicity Huffman in American Crime.

Idris Elba. Source: Mark Cuthbert / Getty

David Oyelowo. Source: Michael Stewart / Getty

Idris Elba and David Oyelowo also go head-to-head receiving a noms for their respective shows Luther and Nightingale in the Best Performance by an Actor in a Limited Series or Motion Picture Made for Television category. Elba and Oyelowo compete with Oscar Isaac in Show Me A Hero, Mark Rylance in Wolf Hall, and Patrick Wilson in Fargo.

Uzo Aduba. Source: Jenny Anderson / Getty

Regina King. Source: John Lamparski / Getty

And, in the final ‘double threat’ category, Uzo Aduba from Orange Is The New Black and Regina King from American Crime face-off with their noms for their respective Netflix and NBC shows in the Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role in a Series, Limited Series or Motion Picture Made for Television category. Aduba and King compete with Joanne Froggatt in Downton Abbey, Judith Light in Transparent, and Maura Tierney in The Affair.

An online entertainment service is leading the nominations for television networks, severely beating out the traditional on-air television networks, again. That’s Netflix. They have a total of eight noms with HBO in second place at seven. The closest traditional television network is ABC with four.

This is the annual industry awards for excellence given by the Hollywood Foreign Press Association. The awards show will be hosted by comedic actor/writer Ricky Gervais on January 10. It will be televised at 8 p.m. Eastern on NBC.

To see the entire list of nominations, click HERE.

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