The Golden Globes 2026 were thrown into chaos when a fire briefly broke out backstage.
“Crisis averted inside #GoldenGlobes backstage press room as catering knocked over a coffee holder and the sterno underneath was lit,” The Hollywood Reporter’s Chris Gardner shared via X during the Sunday, January 11, live awards show.
In the footage, officials can be seen frantically trying to tamp down smoke flowing out of a sterno at the catering section. At the same time, other staffers pulled a black curtain away from flames erupting on the carpet.
“For a brief moment, the carpet was on fire and smoke wafted up around the curtains,” Gardner revealed. “They put it out quickly fortunately. Yikes!”
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Us Weekly has reached out to the Golden Globes for comment.
The incident occurred while the Golden Globes ceremony was airing live on CBS and Paramount+ in another section of the Beverly Hilton. At 8 p.m. ET, host Nikki Glaser stepped on stage to deliver her monologue in front of a star-studded crowd that included Leonardo DiCaprio, Emma Stone, Ariana Grande and Timothée Chalamet.
Glaser, 41, started off her Globes opening on a controversial note with a joke about late convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein’s client list, which drew big laughs from the packed crowd.
“There are so many A-listers here, and by A-listers I mean people who are on a list that has been heavily redacted,” Glaser quipped. “And the Golden Globe for best editing goes to the Justice Department.”
Elsewhere in her monologue, the comic mockingly described Jacob Elordi and Paul Mescal as “the same person to my mom” and poked fun at the Wicked franchise by referring to the sequel, Wicked: For Good, as Wicked: For Money.
“Once again, Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande gave us two career-defining performances,” Glaser began. “Two hours into that movie, I was in tears. I was like, ‘I can’t believe there’s still 45 minutes left.’”
There were plenty of big wins in the Golden Globes categories, including Amy Poehler making history by winning the show’s first-ever Best Podcast Award for her show “Good Hang.”
“I don’t know about awards shows, but when they get it right, it makes sense. Thank you so much for this,” Poehler, 54, teased. “I just want to say that I know I’m new to this game, I have great respect for this form. I have great respect for all the people that I am nominated with. I am big fans of all of you, except for NPR. Just a bunch of celebs phoning it in. Try harder.”
When Rose Byrne accepted the Best Performance by a Female Actor in a Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy Award for If I Had Legs I’d Kick You, she revealed a hilarious reason why her husband, Bobby Cannavale, had to skip the ceremony.
“I want to thank my husband, Bobby Cannavale, he couldn’t be here because we’re getting a bearded dragon and he went a reptile expo in New Jersey. Thank you baby,” Byrne, 46, revealed.
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Other notable winners throughout the night included Marty Supreme’s Chalamet, 30, for Best Actor in a Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy and The Pitt star Noah Wyle for Best Actor in a Television Series – Drama, as well as Jean Smart (Hacks) and Seth Rogen (The Studio) winning the two Best Actor in a Television Series – Musical or Comedy Awards.
After being escorted on stage by George Clooney to accept her Globe, Smart, 74, declared, “Oh, my God. What can I say, I’m a greedy bitch!”
The 83rd Golden Globe Awards aired on Sunday, January 11, on CBS and Paramount+ from the Beverly Hilton.
