Save DiCaprio from the jokes

The 2026 Golden Globes featured a Leonardo DiCaprio joke.

- RAJA SEN

'One Battle After Another' is here to dominate the season.

This is going to be a staple of every single award ceremony this year. A joke about age, or dating 20-somethings. DiCaprio smiled the weary smile of a man who has heard this song and knows the chorus by heart. Settle in, Leo. Maybe like the iconic Jack Nicholson, you should take to wearing sunglasses at prize-giving shows. Awards season is a long-haul flight with turbulence, uncomfortable shoes, and no escape. And this year, One Battle After Another is boarding early and taking the best seats.The film by Paul Thomas Anderson took home the prizes for Best Motion Picture (Musical or Comedy), with Anderson deservedly winning both Best Director and Best Screenplay. The first Globe of the night went to Teyana Taylor for her combustible performance that powers the film. Her heartfelt and excitable speech did what good speeches do, widening the room. “Most importantly, to my brown sisters and little brown girls watching tonight,” she said, “our softness is not a liability.” She went on, impassioned and striking. “We belong in every room we walk into. Our voices matter and our dream deserves space.”

That the second award did not go to Taylor's costars Sean Penn or Benicio Del Toro—but instead to A Sentimental Value actor Stellan Skarsgård, an excellent, undervalued performer—is because both beloved actors must surely have split the vote. Either way, Sean Penn will certainly win the Oscar for Best Supporting Actor. It is the best, showiest, most unforgettable performance. It's undeniably good.