Golden Globes 2018: Gary Oldman, Who Once Said Awards Were 'Bent,' Wins Best Actor

New Delhi: This Golden Globes changed things for Gary Oldman, one of the most famous actors to have gone unrecognised by the Oscars and the Globes for years. The 59-year-old star ended the drought by winning Best Actor - Drama for his performance as Winston Churchill in Darkest Hour. While he never reached Peter O'Toole levels of Oscar-lessness, Gary Oldman's lack of nominations and wins regularly makes it to press during award season and is often attributed to the mysterious workings of the Academy. His failure to score any Golden Globes, however, is easier to explain. Mr Oldman himself has previously speculated that the Hollywood Foreign Press Association might have been deliberately ignoring him because of comments he made dismissing the award show's credibility. Darkest Hour was not just Gary Oldman's first Globe win, but also his first nomination.

Some years after he described the Golden Globes as 'meaningless' and 'bent' and compared it unfavourably to the Oscars and the BAFTAs, Gary Oldman found himself the man of the moment, finally. He didn't gloss over it in his speech. "I feel very humbled and surprised to have been asked to this stage," he said, "I would like to congratulate my fellow nominees for your beautiful work. I'm in very fine company this evening indeed."

He was also quick to focus on the merits of his role. "Winston Churchill said, 'My taste is simple, I'm easily satisfied by the very best.' And I was surrounded by the very best," he said.

He also thanked team Darkest Hour and his wife. "She would say to friends, 'I go to bed with Winston Churchill but I wake up with Gary Oldman,' which I suppose is better than the other way around," Gary Oldman said.

"I am very proud of Darkest Hour. It illustrates that words and actions can change the world and boy oh boy does it need changing. Thank you to the Hollywood Foreign Press Association, and thank you Winston Churchill," Gary Oldman concluded.

Watch Gary Oldman's full speech here.
 

A massive congratulations to Gary Oldman for being awarded the Best Performance by an Actor in a Motion Picture - Drama award for his role in @DarkestHour! #GoldenGlobes pic.twitter.com/YyPfI7iBNl

— Golden Globe Awards (@goldenglobes) January 8, 2018

This is what Gary Oldman had said about the Golden Globes earlier: "People talk about 'sympathy win' or someone will get something for their body of work rather than that role. The Oscars and Baftas, the voting and all of that is pretty straightforward. But the Globes, the foreign press, is a whole different thing."

Watch the old interview here.



This picture of Gary Oldman, watching Frances McDormand win the Best Actress - Drama award for Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri, was tweeted by the Golden Globes official Twitter account.
 

Gary Oldman stopped backstage to see Frances McDormand win Best Actress in a Motion Picture - Drama at the #GoldenGlobes. pic.twitter.com/RZQKVfVzEV

— Golden Globe Awards (@goldenglobes) January 8, 2018

The 75th Golden Globe awards were held in Beverly Hills, California on Sunday. The event was hosted by Seth Meyers.