Golden Globes TV snubs and surprises: 'The Handmaid's Tale,' 'This Is Us' and Sacha Baron Cohen

Golden Globes TV snubs and surprises: ‘The Handmaid’s Tale,’ ‘This Is Us’ and Sacha Baron Cohen

Dec. 6, 2018 7:31 AM PT

The Hollywood Foreign Press Assn. solidified its love of new things during Thursday morning’s announcement of the Golden Globe television nominations. And its love of old things.

It’s just those pesky middle-aged things that HFPA isn’t as taken with.

Here are the five biggest snubs and surprises from this year’s batch of Golden Globe nominations.

Snub: Poor “The Handmaid’s Tale.” Even though the dystopian adaptation of the Margaret Atwood novel nabbed the award for drama series just last year, it’s already been cast to the curb — or the Colonies — like a common Unwoman. The show completely missed out on a drama series nomination this year, after the category saw 100% turnover from last year’s nominees.

That means that not only did Hulu’s “Handmaid’s” miss out, but so did NBC darling “This Is Us.” The latter was completely shut out of the nominations, though, while “Handmaid’s” managed to eke out acting accolades for Elisabeth Moss and Yvonne Strahovski.

FULL COVERAGE: 2019 Golden Globe nominations »

Sacha Baron Cohen was nominated for a Golden Globe on Thursday morning for his performance in "Who Is America?"

Surprise: Remember when Sacha Baron Cohen was making headlines for pranking politicians and making mischief for his Showtime series “Who Is America?” No? Well, HFPA remembered. The man of many disguises earned a nomination for actor in a comedy, perhaps the most shocking announcement of a morning full of them.

One can only wait in wonder to see who Baron Cohen will arrive as at the ceremony.

Snub: Despite its second season earning near-universal praise from the critical community, FX’s “Atlanta” couldn’t crack back into comedy series on Thursday, despite its victory in the category two years prior. At least Donald Glover, star and series mastermind, managed to nab a nomination for comedy actor.

Candice Bergen was nominated for a Golden Globe Thursday morning for her performance in "Murphy Brown."

Surprise: It might have surprised some to hear Candice Bergen nominated for comedy actress for the revival of “Murphy Brown.” but it shouldn’t have. Bergen was the Julia Louis-Dreyfus of her day during the original run of the series, winning five Emmy Awards for the role before declining future nominations. You know you’re powerful when you can tell awards bodies you’ll opt out of their ceremonies.

There were a lot of blasts from the past during Thursday’s nominations, as veteran actors scored nods, including Alan Arkin and Michael Douglas for “The Kominsky Method” and Henry Winkler for “Barry.”

Surprise: “Kinky Boots” Tony winner Billy Porter is no stranger to awards, but his Golden Globe nomination for “Pose” was still a pleasant turn of events. FX’s series exploring New York’s underground ball scene of the 1980s captured audience’s imaginations and hearts with its colorful and emotional tale. And the HFPA took note, too.

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