Meryl Streep (left) and Ai-jen Poo (right) arrive at the 75th annual Golden Globe Awards at the Beverly Hilton Hotel on Sunday, January 7, 2018, in Beverly Hills, California. (Photo by Jordan Strauss/Invision/AP)
Usually at the Golden Globes, the red carpet is awash in color.
This year, it was a total blackout.
On Sunday, Hollywood’s A-listers turned out en masse in black – a sartorial show of force to draw attention to sexual harassment in showbiz and other industries, a culture of abuse revealed in the downfall of movies mogul Harvey Weinstein and others.
“ON SUNDAY WE WEAR BLACK to stand in solidarity with men and women everywhere who have been silenced by discrimination, harassment and abuse,” said a tweet from the Time’s Up initiative launched by hundreds of prominent women in Tinseltown to shine a light on the issue.
Women and men alike strutted into the Beverly Hilton for the gala event in their finest, the wide majority of them in basic black.
“People are aware now of a power imbalance. It’s led to abuse in our industry. (…) It’s everywhere,” Meryl Streep, who is vying for a Globe for her work in media drama “The Post,” told E! network on the red carpet.
Streep – who has come under fire over her denials that she knew about Weinstein’s misconduct – brought Ai-jen Poo, the head of the National Domestic Workers Alliance, as her plus one.
Indeed, the women behind the Time’s Up initiative have called special attention to their “sisters” in less than glamorous blue-collar jobs.
Streep, a three-time Oscar winner, said Hollywood’s men and women now felt “emboldened to stand together in a thick, black line.”
Indeed, the men of Hollywood took some flak ahead of the gala for saying they too would wear black, with some saying they would have worn tuxedos anyway.
But many donned black shirts as well, and offered their impassioned support for the movement.
“I don’t think this is a silent protest. This is going to make people talk about the issue,” David Thewlis, who starred in last year’s box office smash “Wonder Woman,” told AFP on the red carpet.
“As a father, as a husband, why wouldn’t you be 100 percent in support of this?”
‘Awakening’
Streep was not the only actress who walked the red carpet with an activist.
Michelle Williams (“All The Money in the World”) arrived with Tarana Burke, the creator of “#MeToo” that exploded in the wake of the revelations about Weinstein as women recounted their experiences online.
Amy Poehler entered with Restaurant Opportunities Center United president Saru Jayaraman.
The protest movement did not preclude Tinseltown’s finest from making fashion statements.
Oscar winner Catherine Zeta-Jones, who starred in 2017’s hit television series “Feud: Bette and Joan,” opted for a daring sheer lingerie-inspired black gown with plenty of artfully placed sequins – and emerald green earrings.
Alicia Vikander’s gown had a rather Victorian buttoned-up bodice with full coverage, sheer sleeves – and a bare back.
The only pops of color were minor – a streak of bright green eye shadow here, a snippet of white fabric at a neckline there, or an orange sash at the waist.
“Tonight is not a mourning. Tonight is an awakening,” actress-director Amber Tamblyn wrote in an opinion piece for The New York Times. /kga