From ‘Allahu Akbar’ to Australia fires: best Golden Globe moments

BEVERLY HILLS, CALIFORNIA – JANUARY 05: (L-R) Actor Ramy Youssef, Golden Globe winner for Best Performance by an Actor in a Television Series – Musical or Comedy, and Dana Walden, Chairman, Disney Television Studios & ABC Entertainment, attend the 2020 Walt Disney Company Post-Golden Globe Awards Show celebration at The Beverly Hilton Hotel on January 05, 2020 in Beverly Hills, California. Rachel Murray/Getty Images for Hulu/AFP

LOS ANGELES — Hollywood’s Golden Globes ceremony lived up to its reputation on Sunday, with plenty of memorable moments served up to its A-list audience as they guzzled champagne at the Beverly Hilton.

Here are some of the key moments:

Gervais strikes out

British comic Ricky Gervais used his fifth and final stint as host to fire off one-liners on a slew of topics haunting the entertainment sector including #MeToo, lack of diversity and the streaming wars.

“Look, talking of all you perverts, it was a big year — ‘Surviving R. Kelly,’ ‘Leaving Neverland,’ ‘Two Popes’,” Gervais joked, referring to two documentaries about sexual abuse and one of this year’s best drama contenders.

Nominee Leonardo DiCaprio — and his string of young model girlfriends — was another target for Gervais.

“‘Once upon a Time… In Hollywood’ — nearly three hours long. Leonardo DiCaprio attended the preview and by the end, his date was too old for him,” said the host.

And he poked fun at tech giant Apple, noting: “Apple roared into the TV game with ‘The Morning Show,’ a superb drama about the importance of dignity and doing the right thing made by a company that runs sweatshops in China.”

But his performance drew criticism, with Deadline calling him “weakly cheeky” and Variety labelling it a “a tame, mildly political outing.”

‘We need to act’

Russell Crowe used his win at the Golden Globes to send a powerful message about the devastating fires in Australia and climate change — despite not being in the room.

Crowe stayed in his home country “protecting his family from the devastating bushfires,” presenter Jennifer Aniston explained, before reading his message.

“Make no mistake, the tragedy unfolding in Australia is climate change-based,” wrote the actor, who won for Showtime’s “The Loudest Voice” about Fox News founder Roger Ailes.

“We need to act based on science, move our global workforce to renewable energy and respect our planet… That way, we all have a future.”

Pierce Brosnan, Laura Dern and Patricia Arquette also addressed climate change, at a gala when organizers chose to serve only vegan food.

‘Allahu Akbar’

Egyptian-American actor Ramy Youssef doubtlessly raised a few eyebrows as he took to the stage after winning the first Golden Globe of the night for best actor in a comedy series for “Ramy.”

“I would like to thank my God. Allahu akbar. Thank you, God,” the Muslim actor said.

The phrase, which means “God is greatest,” is an everyday expression in the Muslim world, but for some in the West, it has been twisted and is associated with extremist attacks.

‘Go out and vote’

Michelle Williams urged women to go out and vote in this year’s US presidential election as she accepted a Golden Globe for best actress in a limited series or television movie.

“As women and as girls, things can happen to our bodies that are not our choice,” the “Fosse/Verdon” star told the audience.

“So women, 18 to 118, when it is time to vote, please do so in your own self-interest… It is what men have been doing for years, which is why the world looks so much like them,” she added.

“Don’t forget we are the largest voting body in this country. Let’s make it look more like us.”

‘On the brink of war’

Arquette also used her moment in the spotlight to decry heightened tensions between the United States and Iran, after the US strike that killed a top Iranian military commander.

When future generations “look back on this night in the history books, we will see a country on the brink of war,” Arquette said, accepting her award for “The Act.”

“The United States of America, a president tweeting out a threat of 52 bombs including cultural sites… People not knowing if bombs are going to drop on their kids’ heads — and the continent of Australia on fire.”

She also ended her speech appealing to viewers to vote in the upcoming November election.

’52-year-old marriage’

Bernie Taupin described his songwriting career with legendary singer Elton John as a “52-year-old marriage,” as the duo won a Golden Globe for best original song for “(I’m Gonna) Love Me Again” from the biopic “Rocketman.”

“This is a song we wrote for a movie which deals with our relationship and it’s a relationship that doesn’t happen very much in this town — it’s a 52-year-old marriage,” Taupin said to applause.

John added that winning with Taupin was “one of the most emotional moments of my life.”