Renee Zellweger is back... with a singular and weird Globes speech
Monday, January 6, 2020 at 3:06PM 
Usually actors try to find the perfect balance of sincere, hilarious and warm when delivering an acceptance speech. It’s a plus if they can marry something personal to them with something meaningful to a room full of their colleagues and to the audience at home. It’s very rare that someone takes the stage and proceeds to be confrontational, but that’s exactly what Renée Zellweger did Sunday night while accepting the trophy for best performance by an actress in a drama...
She starts with a bit of self doubt “wow I’m really up here,” then proceeds to remind the audience that it’s been a while since she’s been invited to one of these events “Y’all look pretty good seventeen years later.” And that it might have been their fault for ignoring her and her work all this time "thank you for welcoming me back to the family reunion.”
Zellweger was not going to let things go unmentioned, certainly not the years she was ignored.
It's a weird choice and the speech proceeds to get weirder with her qualifying why she’s starting with mentioning her agents and managers. Though she doesn’t forget to mention her fellow nominees in general and her collaborators on Judy by name, it’s a rambling speech with no structure or message. Not the kind that seals an Oscar win.
Only when she gets to pay tribute to Judy Garland does her speech cohere:
"The conversations that I have had with people internationally, they just want to express their love of Judy Garland and tell [me] about the great personal significance of her legacy. Her humanity has been a great reminder that the choices we make matter. What we make matters, and how we choose to honor each other in our lifetimes can matter a great deal down the road."
On social media people were perplexed by her accent, that Texas drawl she drifted in and out of. People have begun speculating if this speech might affect her chances at the Oscars, even though no one questioned Joaquin Phoenix's equally eccentric speech.
Zellweger has always been peculiar and that didn't stop her the last time she won every televised award, and it won’t stop her this year. Who’s going to step in for the win should she falter? Charlize Theron was mentioned earlier in the season as strong competition but has faded with her film’s lackluster box office and reviews. Scarlett Johansson doesn't seem to want it badly enough as her campaign has been quiet and no one appears to be in a rush to award her yet. Saoirse Ronan’s film is cresting at the right moment for her to possibly get nominated, but win? It might be too late for that and she’s someone, like Kate Winslet, who they are comfortable nominating many times before they finally win. I wish that Alfre Woodard had a real chance at the win as she gives without question, in my opinion, the best performance of the year.
I liked Zellweger’s speech. It was totally her; singular and a bit odd. I hope we get to see a few more curious speeches. What did you think?
Reader Comments (71)
I hated her speech and I hope someone else wins best actress. I wish Saoirse was a more forceful campaigner. Because Little Women deserves some big awards. It is a shame that Clemency had so little money for a campaign because Alfre Woodard is so much better than Renee.
"No one questioned Joaquin Phoenix's equally eccentric speech"'? Really?
After hearing how awkward, rambling, and confrontational her speech was, I got home and got to watched. What’s the fuss all about? It was a fairly standard acceptance speech: thank the agents, mention the other nominees, talk about the work, the film, etc. Is it just the 17 years thing that has people so riled up? Or the Texas accent? If Matthew McConaughey gave this speech (and he pretty much has on several occasions), no one would be bothered by it.
Biggs - Matthew McConaughey was constantly ridiculed for his speeches during the 2014 awards season.
I thought it was a terrible speech and would affect her chances for an Oscar. Reminding people that it had been 17 years was superfluous and slightly insulting.
Compare how she handles this attention with Hugh Grant - who had gone years without being invited to the Golden Globes, and was utterly charming.
He didn't act like an entitled, whiney, ass. I am really hoping for Saoirse.
Mo'Nique is the last award season actress I remember being confrontational in her acceptance speeches.
Let Renée have her moment. Gosh.
I dun ustand this hate towards Renee. So she was rambling n being peculiar in her speech, but she has alws been kinda quirky in her speeches.
I find it so unfair tt so many netizens r coming down hard on her, when Phoenix, Colman, etc gave equally baffling speeches. No every celeb can give inspiring n beautiful speeches like Close, Meryl n Michelle ok..
This is her 1st televised award speech, I'm sure w more practices at SAG, Bafta n Indie Spirits n she will improve tremendously when she gives her Oscar speech! 😁
Joaquin used his time to urge his colleagues to make personal changes that reflected their political commitments to climate change and comment on the futility of awarding performances. He was awkward, but he spoke about some issues greater than his career.
If Renee had done something similar, she would not have faced the same degree of criticism.
Wish we voted for best overall performance in a film instead of who’s going to give the best speech or affirminative action quotas/identity politics. If an actor refused to show up for ceremonies and still gave the Best Performance of the year, would voters select someone else who will be at the podium with a guaranteed speech?
It's 16 years since she was last there, rather than 17, no? She was there to pick up her award for Cold Mountain (2003) in early 2004. I'm getting she gets just as confused as the rest of us over the different ways the internet quotes the 'year' of awards (sometimes the year of release, sometimes the year of the show).
This is the definition of misogynistic. Joaquin could go and basically act like an offensive, blathering, fool and it's considered an artistic choice and part of his brilliance. Because Renee, showed restraint and thought through her words (she's always had a accent: PLEASE!), she's deemed odd or ungrateful. Nonsense. She gave a thorough, thoughtful, grateful, articulate speech. Leave her alone. She is unrivaled this year in her brilliant performance. And don't forget: the award is for the performance, not the speech!
Didn't care for the speech, not the biggest fan of Zellweger or this particular performance or movie. But I think at this point it's basically her Oscar to loose unless Woodard pulls of Cotillard and somehow ends up on the ballot. It just seems like none of the other ladies have the love and support that would need to get them there. Zellweger has the Garland narrative and her own
personal narrative and people (not me) seem to genuinely respond to that performance.
But frankly her Oscar ranks as a low point for that category and almost literally every film she made after was totally dismal. So I think her speech was totally unearned.
Saying that speech was ‘confrontational’ Is like saying our buffoon leader is compassionate! NOT!
Wonder what the reaction would be if Renee and JPhoenix switched speeches? Zellweger comes on, disheveled, tossing F bombs to the point where 1/4 of her speech must be muted, talks about the unimportance of awards. Phoenix uses a hippie-dippy twang, is defensive about not being welcome back since Walk the Line 14 years earlier, but praises his crew/make-up staff etc. RZ would be labeled an intoxicated train wreck, while JP would be excused for his ‘award awkwardness.’
I didn’t find the speech that incoherent. I thought it was pretty obvious what she was trying to do; tie the parallels with what popular culture and the media should have worked out through Judy Garland’s own history and haven’t, and she used herself as the example for how they haven’t. I found it very genuine and actually quite touching, all the way through (though I hope she had more than just her agents demonstrating their belief in her during her absence).
Anyway, I doubt she will be toppled, but it’s gonna be a hard feat for her to win a third individual SAG award. I don’t think anyone in the film awards has when you exclude ensemble wins.
I didn't really interpret her words as confrontational - I would take her words at surface value. that she's glad to be back, and happy to be there, as opposed to "FU for ignoring me..." As Freud once said, sometimes a cigar is just a cigar. Also, Girlfriend had clearly had a few glasses of champagne. Cut her some slack.
I didn't really interpret her words as confrontational - I would take her words at surface value. that she's glad to be back, and happy to be there, as opposed to "FU for ignoring me..." As Freud once said, sometimes a cigar is just a cigar. Also, Girlfriend had clearly had a few glasses of champagne. Cut her some slack.
Phoenix's speech was much weirder!
My big takeaway from all this: Renee Zellweger has been out of the spotlight for so long that everyone forgot she was from Texas.
For the record, I didn't have a problem with her speech (playful ribbing isn't the same as confrontational in my book). I didn't have a problem with Joaquin's speech either; his "awards are meaningless" spiel was nothing new, but he tempered that with gracious thanks to his collaborators, his fellow nominees, and even the HFPA.
some great comments here :)
Yes her speech scared me too ... I think she is just ... really odd privately - but not in a odd cute way like Phoenix (I like his speech)
I would really like to know why so many voters run for the same names in all the award shows