2021 Golden Globes: Breaking Down the Race for Outstanding Limited Series/TV Movie

Awards Daily breaks down the top contenders in the race for Outstanding Limited Series at the 2021 Golden Globes. Is breakout sensation The Queen’s Gambit about to begin its awards run on a high-note or will the HFPA lean towards Emmy favorites like Mrs. America and Little Fires Everywhere?

For the past couple of years, we’ve seen a boom in limited series as the genre has quickly become the most innovative genre in television drawing in some of the most talented filmmakers of the modern era. So far, awards groups have been resistant to expanding the categories to represent the booming renaissance on TV, and this year, that has become very evident in the lead up for Best Miniseries or Television Film at the 2021 Golden Globes.

At this point, it even feels pointless to begin to predict what this year’s lineup will be with no less than ten major contenders that in any other year would be a lock. The lineup is so crowded it leaves little to no room to entertain shows like Hollywood, The Comey Rule, The Eddy, and Defending Jacob; all of which in a normal year would be major players in the race and still have a chance at receiving an acting nomination.

The Likely(?) Frontrunners

Just three months ago, no one had any idea of the phenomenon that The Queen’s Gambit would become. On paper, the story of a 1950s chess prodigy battling alcoholism seems like a very niche story, but audiences immediately took to it pushing it to become Netflix’s most watched limited series to date and even inspiring chess sales across the world to skyrocket.

The Queen’s Gambit will surely benefit from being one of the most loved series of the year as well as being the one most fresh in their minds. It also helps that the show stars Anya Taylor-Joy perfectly fits their obsession with celebrating the ingenue of the year.

Other than that the fall’s new shows debuted to mixed results. HBO’s The Undoing was an incredibly popular thriller from earlier this fall that features three of the HFPA’s favorite actors: Nicole Kidman, Donald Sutherland, and Hugh Grant. It’s also HBO’s most high-profile limited series of the year, and the network has monopolized this category, only missing out once in the past 30 years.

Six years ago the first season of Fargo won this very award and since then has earned an impressive 11 nominations including two wins for lead actor. So now after a three year hiatus, the fourth season return should be an easy prediction, but there has been an astounding lack of buzz and the average person probably had no idea that the fourth season has even come and gone. In all likelihood, the show’s best chance at a twelfth nomination will be Chris Rock in the lead actor race.

Then there’s Mrs. America, the FX limited series that ambitiously covers the history of the Equal Rights Amendment. It features one of the best ensembles of the year, and it will surely receive multiple acting nominations. But this is also a limited series that people respected more than they loved, and in such a crowded lineup it risks being forgotten.

Earlier this year Little Fires Everywhere seemed like an obvious contender at the Golden Globes. A head-to-head starring two of the most beloved actresses of today in an adaptation of a massively popular novel. It’s an incredibly accessible story while also dealing with issues of racism and class it became a true watercooler show that inspired a dozen think pieces. In a normal year it might have even won the top prize but in 2020 it feels like old news and one that might easily be forgotten.

Shaking Up The Conversation

With some of the year’s most anticipated shows premiering to mixed results it has left room for some surprising upsets. There are a handful of shows this year that flew under the radar only to become some of the most beloved and best reviewed shows of the year.

Right at the beginning of the pandemic Unorthodox premiered on Netflix helping audiences across the world escape. It was the first major discovery of the year and introduced a community in America that has largely been ignored in entertainment, the orthodox Jewish community of Brooklyn. It also has an international flare to it with a majority of the story taking place in Berlin. The show’s lead, Shira Haas, also perfectly fits the ingenue bill that the Golden Globes are notorious for loving. But with only five slots and a handful of Netflix shows to choose from it’s hard to tell if Unorthodox still makes the cut.

It’s been a while since we have seen a true romance compete in the TV categories at the Golden Globes but earlier this year Normal People became a massive success repeatedly breaking ratings records both for the BBC and Hulu. Based off of the popular novel of the same name Normal People charts the decade spanning relationship of two young adults played by newcomers Paul Mescal and Daisy Edgar-Jones. Mescal quickly became the breakout star while Edgar-Jones was repeatedly looked over in a competitive lead actress lineup. The same thing will likely happen at the Globes unless Normal People proves to be their favorite show of the year.

It’s a miracle that a show like I May Destroy You was able to find its way to television. Michaela Coel’s twelve-part exploration of her own experience with sexual assault was certainly not an easy show to pitch and in years past might have been an even harder one to find an audience for but Coel took her story into her own hands, insisted on creative control, and created what will become her magnum opus. Coel used her own personal story to explore sexual assault and trauma in a way we have never seen in mainstream media while simultaneously challenge how we have previously thought about consent. Right now it’s hard to gauge whether or not the show will go on to earn the awards that it deserves, but in many ways its better than anything it could possibly win.

What About Showtime?

The Hollywood Foreign Press has always made a point of inviting Showtime to the party. Just about every year the prestige network has had one of their series nominated for the top award whether it be their recent limited series (The Loudest Voice, Escape at Dannemora), one of their series winning dramas (Homeland, The Affair), or one of their many beloved dramedies. So even though they don’t have as many shows in the conversation why should 2020 be any different?

Leading up to the election their big contender was The Comey Rule – their newest limited series covering the current state of politics. The cast included a handful of awards friendly names including Jeff Daniels as Comey himself and a supporting turn from Brendan Gleeson as 45. Unfortunately for the network audiences are going through Trump era fatigue and the show failed to nail the zeitgeist. Gleeson however is still a strong contender for supporting actor and knowing how the HFPA is they could very well surprise him with a win.

Instead the network’s best shot at a nomination most likely lies in The Good Lord Bird – a Civil War era western chronicling the true story of abolitionist John Brown (portrayed by Brown). Hawke himself is a strong contender for lead actor but overall it will be interesting to see how well the limited series is received. It took audiences a while but eventually buzz for the show began to build at just the right moment.