Hans Zimmer has responded to the Golden Globes opting to not air the Original Score category, sharing that they shouldn’t be ignored as films wouldn’t be the same without composers.
The 83rd Annual Golden Globes took place over the weekend (Sunday January 11) at the Beverly Hilton in Beverly Hills, California – kicking off the film and TV industry’s awards season.
Hosted by Nikki Glaser for the second year in a row, Adolescence, The Pitt and The Studio nabbed major wins on the television side, while One Battle After Another and ping-pong epic Marty Supreme cleaned up in the film department.
One category that didn’t get televised this year was the Best Original Score category, which had huge names like Hans Zimmer, Ludwig Göransson, Max Richter and more nominated.
Ahead of the ceremony, Zimmer – who was nominated for the Brad Pitt-starring F1: The Movie – spoke out about the decision not to air that section of the night and said that he thought it was a “shame”.
“I think it’s a shame not to honour those people — my friends — who work so hard to become a voice,” he told Variety.
“As a person who has been making films forever, everybody who works on a film works their utmost, doesn’t get any sleep, there are no weekends,” he added, before quipping: “Sometimes my children wonder who I am — I come into the house and they call the police.
“I think the work should always be acknowledged. This year is a fantastic year for composers — don’t ignore them, you don’t have a movie without them.”
Zimmer has been nominated 17 times at the Golden Globes over the years, and has won three times. The first trophy came in 2001 for his work on Gladiator, he then won again for The Lion King in 2004, and most recently secured a win in 2022 for Dune.
This year he was up against Ludwig Göransson (Sinners), Max Richter (Hamnet), Radiohead‘s Jonny Greenwood (One Battle After Another), Alexandre Desplat (Frankenstein), and Kangding Ray (Sirāt) – and it was Göransson who ultimately took home the trophy.
Later in his red carpet interview, Zimmer joked that there was one positive thing about not having the category aired, saying: “It means I don’t have to make an insane speech and embarrass humanity as we know it.”
Big wins on the night included the Leonardo DiCaprio-led One Battle After Another taking home four awards, including the Best Female Actor in a Supporting Role award for Teyana Taylor.
Timothée Chalamet was named Best Lead Male Actor in a comedy Marty Supreme – beating out DiCaprio and George Clooney – and historical drama Hamnet won Best Motion Picture in Drama, and saw Jessie Buckley take home the Best Female Actor in a Lead Role in the drama category.
As for Zimmer, the legendary composer and producer is also shortlisted for the Best Original Song trophy at the Oscars. Once again nominated for F1, he is up against Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross for their work as Nine Inch Nails on the recent Tron: Ares film, Jonny Greenwood for One Battle After Another, and The National‘s Bryce Dessner for Train Dreams.
At the end of 2025, F1 was named as Number 12 on NME’s list of the Best Films of the Year, and celebrated for its quick quips, daring stunts, and epic score.
“Whether you’re a petrolhead or not, there’s no denying that Top Gun: Maverick director Joseph Kosinski’s latest daredevil thriller was one of the most stylish, adrenaline-pumping blockbusters of the year,” the entry read. “Yes, it played fast and loose with the real rules of Formula 1 and frequently fell foul of tired genre tropes – but still steered through with enough charm and precision to cross the finish line impressively.”
