It’s a battle between the demon hunters and the zoo animals. Given the fact that Golden Globe voters are international journalists, it would make sense for them to award Zootopia 2, a global hit that has crossed $1.4 billion at the box office—with more than $1 billion of that coming from overseas. But considering the unexpected sensation that was Netflix’s KPop Demon Hunters, we bet that the Globes are going to go with the girls from Huntrix. Plus, their smash-hit song literally has “Golden” as the title. They’re going up, up, up and winning the Globe. —C.M.
Best Original Score
Alexandre Desplat, Frankenstein
PREDICTED WINNER: Ludwig Göransson, Sinners
Jonny Greenwood, One Battle After Another
Kangding Ray, Sirāt
Max Richter, Hamnet
Hans Zimmer, F1
This category is full of heavy hitters, including 17-time nominee (and three-time winner) Hans Zimmer and 16-time nominee (and two-time winner) Alexandre Desplat. Ludwig Göransson, who won in 2024 for Oppenheimer, has also been nominated multiple times, as has Jonny Greenwood. But Göransson’s score for Sinners may have the lead here, especially since the film’s story is so specifically tied to music. —R.F.
Best Original Song
“Dream as One,” Avatar: Fire and Ash
PREDICTED WINNER: “Golden,” KPop Demon Hunters
“I Lied to You,” Sinners
“No Place Like Home,” Wicked: For Good
“The Girl in the Bubble,” Wicked: For Good
“Train Dreams,” Train Dreams
There’s one song on this list that has played incessantly on the radio and in your home all year. That’s “Golden,” from the Netflix megahit KPop Demon Hunters. It’s hard to imagine not giving the award to one of the most popular songs of the year—but maybe don’t count out Wicked: For Good’s “The Girl in the Bubble.” That song, performed by Ariana Grande and written specifically for the film, could make the case to voters that rewarding a song that appears in the biggest musical of the year only makes sense. But—come on. It feels even more ridiculous not to reward one of the biggest pop hits of the year from one of the most popular films. It’s gonna be golden. —J.R.
Cinematic and Box Office Achievement
Avatar: Fire and Ash
F1
KPop Demon Hunters
Mission: Impossible—The Final Reckoning
PREDICTED WINNER: Sinners
Weapons
Wicked: For Good
Zootopia 2
