Golden Globes 2015: Snubs and Surprises

The Hollywood Foreign Press' love of fresh new faces rewards the very deserving Rodriguez, the titular star of The CW's new romantic dramedy who was nominated as Best Actress in a Comedy Series. The show was a critically acclaimed standout in a very "meh" fall season, and much of that is due to Rodriguez's charming, grounded performance. She's proved more than capable of balancing big emotional scenes with wacky high jinks and pratfalls. Count us among her believers.

Angelina Jolie’s film about the incredible ordeal of World War II hero Louis Zamperini was billed as a serious awards contender before anyone saw it, but today's results suggest otherwise. Like 'Interstellar,' the film got shut out of the major categories, including the Best Director list which didn't have a spot on it for Jolie. She wasn't the only one who came up empty: The HFPA also ignored 'Unbroken' lead actor Jack O'Connell and the brothers Coen who worked on the screenplay.

Hardly anyone has seen the indie drama, and the critics who have seen the film have largely been mixed. But Aniston’s star power and her vanity-free performance as a scarred, depressed woman suffering from chronic pain helped land her a nomination for Best Actress in a Drama.

'Gone Girl' took home nominations for Best Screenplay and Best Actress, but Affleck, the film's leading man, failed to earn a Best Actor nom despite a performance — as confounded husband Nick — that earned him some of the strongest acting reviews of his career.

The musical remake is hitting theaters next week, so not many have gotten a chance to judge her performance yet. But Wallis is no awards season newbie: She became youngest nominee ever for Best Actress at the Oscars a few years ago for 'Beasts of the Southern Wild.'

After a solid year of hype, a 'Time' magazine cover, and coronation as his generation’s Kubrick, the world has moved on from Christopher Nolan. 'Interstellar' received only lukewarm reviews — and no love from the HFPA, which only gave it a nod for Best Original Score. Also overlooked: last year’s Best Actor-Drama winner, Matthew McConaughey and Jessica Chastain (though she did get recognised for her supporting turn in 'A Most Violent Year').

Paul Thomas Anderson’s stoner detective film confounded some critics at the New York Film Festival. But Phoenix has been nominated four times before — winning once for 'Walk the Line' — and his trippy performance, which earned a nod for Best Actor in a Musical or Comedy, is the most laudable thing about 'Vice.'

His cunning, evil wolf is hardly in the film, but the HFPA has nominated Depp for much less, including 2010’s double nod for 'The Tourist' and 'Alice in Wonderland.' Unfortunately for Depp, he was unable to land his 10th Best Actor nomination.

'Pride' only played in limited theaters in America over the summer, but still managed a nomination for Best Motion Picture, Musical or Comedy. An underdog comedy about the odd alliance between labor and gay rights activists in 1980s working-class England, it was a hit overseas. And hey, the name of the organisation is the Hollywood Foreign Press Association.

For the second day in a row, Tatum was the actor from the big 'Foxcatcher' triumvirate left out of the nomination equation, having been snubbed by the SAGs yesterday. The film is about his character, lonely Olympic wrestler Mark Schultz, but Steve Carell’s physical transformation made him the candidate for lead actor; the charming performance put on by Mark Ruffalo, who plays his wrestling brother Dave, got him the Best Supporting Actor nod.

Tim Burton's 1960s dramedy about artists Walter and Margaret Keane has only received mild reviews, but that didn't stop its stars, Christoph Waltz and Amy Adams, from receiving acting nominations. Lana del Ray also got a nod for Best Original Song.

Here’s something that's not awesome: A total cold shoulder for 2014's biggest earworm. The anthem from 'The Lego Movie' — which earned a deserved Best Animated Film nomination — replaced "Let it Go" in audience's heads, but the joyous ode to teamwork and harmony failed to earn a Best Original Song nom.

The exhaustingly long domestic drama was a bomb both with critics and audiences, but its star and producer, Robert Downey Jr., has been campaigning hard for Duvall. And it’s hard to say no to Iron Man.

Working from a book written by Jane Hawking, screenwriter McCarten spent years crafting this true-to-life tale about the triumph and tragedy of Stephen Hawking’s life, career, and marriage to Jane. A moving film that earned a nomination for Best Picture and acting nods for both its stars, Eddie Redmayne and Felicity Jones, its failure to capture a Best Screenplay nod was a curious oversight.

No one’s doubting the worthiness of his performance — which just earned him a nomination for Best Actor in a Musical or Comedy — in Wes Anderson’s hit. It’s just impressive that voters remember the March movie given the glut of November and December releases.

The film was a quiet hit for Disney, making $88 million worldwide by targeting older audiences, á la 'The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel.' And how can you say no to Mirren on the campaign trail?

Despite being the two most popular sitcoms on the air right now (and 'Big Bang' is officially the No. 1 comedy around numbers-wise), Globes voters decided to single out buzzier, but niche-ier shows airing on cable and streaming services, like HBO’s 'Girls' and Netflix’s 'Orange is the New Black.' You know the TV landscape has changed drastically when the sole network comedy nominated ('Jane the Virgin') airs on The CW.

It was a zero-sum game for Shonda Rhimes' shows in the Best Actress in a TV Drama Series category: Viola Davis, from Rhimes' new show 'How to Get Away with Murder,' got a slot…and Washington, a nominee last year in this category, got bumped. Olivia Pope would never stand for this.

Netflix muscled its way into the awards races last year, but it was an open question whether upstart Amazon would be able to find similar success, especially as some awards bodies (looking at you, Emmys) have seemed reluctant to embrace the brave new world of online streaming. Looks like we underestimated the Globes’ ability to be forward-thinking, as they rightly honoured Jill Soloway’s hilarious, heartfelt portrait of an eccentric family (Best TV Series, Comedy/Musical) and Jeffrey Tambor’s remarkable lead performance as the clan’s patriarch/matriarch (Best Actor).

Last year’s winner for Best Comedy Series and Best Actor in a Comedy (Andy Samberg) couldn’t get arrested this time around, with the Fox sitcom being completely shut out of both (and any other) categories. On the other hand, its absence did clear a path for HBO’s 'Silicon Valley' to slip into contention, and as much as we love the 99th Precinct’s goofy cops, it warms our geeky hearts to see the nerds behind Pied Piper get their due.

'The Wire' finally gets some accolades — in a roundabout sort of way. West was just as good on the HBO drama as he is now on Showtime's steamy mystery series. West (previously a Golden Globe nominee for 'The Hour') is perfect as the sometimes-charming, sometimes-difficult writer Noah Solloway.

With 'Jane the Virgin''s Gina Rodriguez (deservedly) taking the slot that Globes voters always hold open for fresh-faced young actresses, all the clones in the world couldn’t help Maslany repeat in the Best Actress in a Drama Series category. Too bad, because the Canadian actress continued to dazzle on the BBC America series, taking whatever challenges the writers threw at her (like, say, playing a transgendered clone) and killing them, no matter what the clone.

One of the frequent knocks against 'True Detective' was that it relegated the female characters to the margins in favour of being 'The Matt & Woody Show.' Emmy voters must have agreed, because Monaghan was conspicuously absent from the series’ 11 nomination haul; the Globes went the other way, making room for her in the Best Supporting Actress (in a Series, Miniseries or TV Movie) category among the wildly different Joanne Froggatt from 'Downton Abbey' and 'Mom''s Allison Janney.

'Sons of Anarchy''s male lead has been inexplicably overlooked throughout the series' run, and Hunnam's snub in the Best Actor in a Drama Series category was particularly harsh based on his performance in this final season. Even though Jax was at his most unhinged and violent, Hunnam's portrayal included humour and subtlety as the character dealt with the inevitability of his own fate, as well as unimaginable revelations about his mother — played by Katey Sagal, who was also undeservedly snubbed, along with the show itself, of course.

Gervais memorably carpet-bombed Hollywood during his two stints hosting the Globes: Were the HFPA voters worried that he would sic his barbed tongue on them if they didn’t nominate his little-seen Netflix series? That’s the only logical explanation we can come up with for singling out the irascible British comic in the Best Actor in a Comedy Series category over more deserving candidates like 'Silicon Valleys Thomas Middleditch or 'New Girls Jake Johnson.

Best Actor in a Drama Series is a bruiser of a category, but the exclusion of Rhys is particularly painful, as it would've been so easy for him to slide into the place left empty by Bryan Cranston. (Keri Russell also deserved to find a place in the Best Actress category, and if the AFI sees fit to include 'The Americans' as one of the years top shows two years running, why can’t the Globes?) Rhys's performance this year was amazing, as an anguished Philip struggled between his dedication to Mother Russia and his love for his family.

GOLDEN GLOBES 2015: SNUBS AND SURPRISES