- Title: Trump, tributes and 'Star Wars' dominate backstage at The Golden Globes
- Date: 9th January 2017
- Summary: BEVERLY HILLS, CALIFORNIA, UNITED STATES (JANUARY 8, 2017) (UNRESTRICTED POOL) (SOUNDBITE) (English) ACTOR BILLY BOB THORNTON SAYING: "Luke Scott was a kid who was only 23-years-old and passed away last year. Luke made me want to come to work, he was the guy who, when I got there, I knew his face was, it was such a joyous face and he was so happy just to be there and have that job, to be around the business that he wanted to be around. To lose your life at 23-years-old when you're just starting something like that, I thought, you know what? I could thank people all night long, I can thank lawyers and agents and everybody but at the end of the day, the two entities that I have to thank are Luke Scott, this PA that made me happy to be there, and Amazon who was willing to do this show." (SOUNDBITE) (English) ACTOR TRACEE ELLIS ROSS SAYING: "It was really cool, really cool and like a special treat and then I said my entire speech to Meryl Streep, I was looking right at her and I was like, 'Am I doing good?' It was great. I hope to party as much as possible but I have a very big week of work so I will be at work at 7 in the morning." (SOUNDBITE) (English) ACTOR STERLING K. BROWN SAYING: "Unfortunately it's not that surprising because the show is more relevant than what it should be. You would think in 20 years’ time that things in this country would have progressed to such a place when you were look back on it and go, 'Oh, how interesting that was back then,' but back then is what's happening right now and so the fact that a primarily African-American jury in Los Angeles could find fault with the police department is not that surprising. We've got a lot of ocular proof over the past two years of police misconduct, an institution that's supposed to protect and serve, and a lot of people don't always feel protected or served." (SOUNDBITE) (English) ACTOR VIOLA DAVIS SAYING: "Well, I will, believe it or not, remove Trump from the equation because I feel that it's bigger than him. I believe that it is our responsibility to uphold what it is to be an American and what America is about and the true meaning of what it means to pursue the American Dream. I think that America, in and of itself, has been an affirmation but I think we've fallen short a lot because there is no way that we can have anyone in office that is not an extension of our own belief system. So then what does that say about us? And I think that, if you answer that question, I think that that says it all." (SOUNDBITE) (English) ACTOR TOM HIDDLESTON SAYING: "Well, Carrie Fisher was such a fighter and I spent one evening with her in Washington last summer at The White House Correspondents Dinner as a guest of The Guardian newspaper and she has this indomitable spirit that was bigger than the occasion, she was such a force for life. I think if we can take anything, a lesson, from her it's to live as fully as we can to embrace our weaknesses and that very act makes them become strengths. She was so funny, she insisted that when we were there she was looking after her dog, Gary, and I was looking after Gary's rubber duck which was a rubber duck of Princess Leia so I felt in the presence of the outgoing President of the United States that it was only appropriate to have a Princess Leia rubber duck in train because of Carrie's contribution." (SOUNDBITE) (English) ACTOR DONALD GLOVER SAYING: "Not getting to eat anything enjoyable for the rest of my life, focussing on mostly... well, Lando's a big deal for me, it was literally the first toy I ever got. It's interesting when you have something that's kind of iconic in a range where people will pay attention to it, it's hard because you want to live up to their expectations but all you can really do is live up to your own and Star Wars is really kind of high but I really just want to have fun." (SOUNDBITE) (English) DIRECTOR BARRY JENKINS SAYING: "I see what you're saying but, man, there are people who, my chest is vibrating right now because my phone is buzzing on Twitter and Instagram, people who have seen this film (Moonlight) three times, four times, not as escapism but as realism. They want to go into the cinema and see something real and reflective. All these films, they predate. No-one could have anticipated that we would be sitting on the President-elect that we have coming into office in the next 12 or 13 days, however, we all made these films because we felt something was lacking in the soil, at the root, these stories that hadn't been told. I don't know if it's that these two things were coming together at the same time, but we're here now and we have to keep telling these stories very truthfully and honestly and we have to give people things not to escape to, there is room for escapism, but things they can run to to reaffirm that, not that all lives matter because I don't want to step into that, but that if you feel something and you want to speak it and someone will be there to hear your truth and I think that's been the experience of Moonlight so far."
- Embargoed: 24th January 2017 05:57
- Keywords: Golden Globes backstage winners Donald Trump Viola Davis Billy Bob Thornton protest Moonlight Barry Jenkins Donald Glover Tom Hiddleston Tracee Ellis Ross Meryl Streep
- Location: BEVERLY HILLS, CALIFORNIA, UNITED STATES
- City: BEVERLY HILLS, CALIFORNIA, UNITED STATES
- Country: USA
- Topics: Celebrities,Arts/Culture/Entertainment
- Reuters ID: LVA0015YCY2BX
- Aspect Ratio: 16:9
- Story Text:Trump, tributes and "Star Wars" dominated backstage at The Golden Globes.
With actress Meryl Streep, who received the Cecil B. DeMille Award, having already turned her acceptance speech into a scathing attack on U.S. President-elect, others used the winners room backstage to make their own statements.
When asked about the current political climate, Viola Davis, named best supporting actress for her performance in "Fences," told journalists: "I will, believe it or not, remove Trump from the equation because I feel that it's bigger than him. I believe that it is our responsibility to uphold what it is to be an American and what America is about and the true meaning of what it means to pursue the American Dream."
"I think that America, in and of itself, has been an affirmation but I think we've fallen short a lot because there is no way that we can have anyone in office that is not an extension of our own belief system. So then what does that say about us? And I think that, if you answer that question, I think that that says it all."
When asked a similar question, Barry Jenkins, director of "Moonlight" which won best motion picture - drama, added: "My chest is vibrating right now because my phone is buzzing on Twitter and Instagram, people who have seen this film three times, four times, not as escapism but as realism. They want to go into the cinema and see something real and reflective. All these films, they predate."
"No-one could have anticipated that we would be sitting on the President-elect that we have coming into office in the next 12 or 13 days, however, we all made these films because we felt something was lacking in the soil, at the root, these stories that hadn't been told. I don't know if it's that these two things were coming together at the same time, but we're here now and we have to keep telling these stories very truthfully and honestly."
"Star Wars" was also a recurring topic with a tribute to Carrie Fisher from Tom Hiddleston and Donald Glover discussing his role as a young Lando Calrissian in an upcoming spin-off from the hugely successful franchise.
Glover, winner of best actor in a musical or comedy TV series for "Atlanta", said playing a young Lando is putting a number of pressures on him. He explained: "Not getting to eat anything enjoyable for the rest of my life, I'm focusing on mostly... well, Lando's a big deal for me, it was literally the first toy I ever got. It's interesting when you have something that's kind of iconic in a range where people will pay attention to it, it's hard because you want to live up to their expectations but all you can really do is live up to your own and Star Wars is really kind of high but I really just want to have fun."
Hiddleston, awarded best actor in a mini-series or motion picture made for television for his performance in "The Night Manager", reminisced about his time with Fisher, musing: "I spent one evening with her in Washington last summer at The White House Correspondents Dinner as a guest of The Guardian newspaper and she has this indomitable spirit that was bigger than the occasion, she was such a force for life. She insisted that when we were there she was looking after her dog, Gary, and I was looking after Gary's rubber duck which was a rubber duck of Princess Leia so I felt in the presence of the outgoing President of the United States that it was only appropriate to have a Princess Leia rubber duck in train because of Carrie's contribution."
Another tribute of the evening came from Billy Bob Thornton, winner of best performance by an action in a television series for "Goliath," when he referenced a colleague called Luke Scott. When asked by journalists backstage who that was, he explained: "Luke Scott was a kid who was only 23-years-old and passed away last year. Luke made me want to come to work, he was the guy who, when I got there, I knew his face was, it was such a joyous face and he was so happy just to be there and have that job, to be around the business that he wanted to be around."
"To lose your life at 23-years-old when you're just starting something like that, I thought, you know what? I could thank people all night long, I can thank lawyers and agents and everybody but at the end of the day, the two entities that I have to thank are Luke Scott, this PA that made me happy to be there, and Amazon who was willing to do this show." - Copyright Holder: POOL (CAN SELL)
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