'Emilia Pérez' leads Golden Globe nominations with 10, followed by 'The Brutalist' and 'Conclave'

"Emilia Pérez" led the way at this year’s Golden Globes nominations Monday with 10 nods, including for best picture and best actress, both in the musical or comedy categories.

The unusual film — a Spanish-language musical from France about a transgender drug cartel leader — came in well ahead of runner-up "The Brutalist," with seven nods, and the third-place title, "Conclave," with six.

The nominations, announced by Mindy Kaling and Morris Chestnut, may make the upcoming ceremony something of a head-scratcher for audiences, who likely have not seen many of the top-nominated titles. "The Brutalist," starring a Globe-nominated Adrien Brody as a European architect, is a sprawling period drama that runs three-and-a-half hours with a 15-minute intermission; it won’t be released until Dec. 20, and only in a limited number of theaters. "Conclave," a mystery-thriller that earned Ralph Fiennes a Globe nomination as a cardinal uncovering a secret, has been a modest hit with $38 million. "Anora," a comedy about a Brighton Beach sex worker that earned five nods, has made $25 million — an impressive sum for a low-budget comedy but not much by Hollywood standards.

Contrast that with the Globes’ previous lineup, which included the dueling cultural phenomena "Barbie" and "Oppenheimer," plus Martin Scorsese’s star-studded epic "Killers of the Flower Moon" (featuring Leonardo DiCaprio and Robert DeNiro). Two of the "smaller" movies that performed well at the Globes, "Poor Things" and "The Holdovers," featured the well-known stars Emma Stone and Paul Giamatti, respectively. (Both actors won in their categories.) Even viewers who hadn’t seen their movies surely knew their faces.

This year, the Globes sniffed at the big blockbusters. "Wicked," a well-reviewed musical based on the hugely popular Broadway play — and a high earner with $455 million — drew only four nods. Three are in the musical or comedy categories: Best Motion Picture, leading actress for Cynthia Erivo as a green-skinned witch and supporting actress for Ariana Grande as her blonde frenemy. The fourth nod is for Cinematic and Box Office Achievement.

That dubiously titled award, introduced last year, once again looks like a bid for movies that weren’t worthy of real awards (like "Alien: Romulus") but sold a lot of tickets ("Deadpool & Wolverine"). The other titles in the grab-bag include Disney-Pixar’s "Inside Out 2," also nominated for best animated film, and "Gladiator II," which also earned a nod for Denzel Washington as supporting actor.

As always, the Globes’ most valuable function may be as tea leaves for the Oscars. A best actress win in the musical/comedy category for Karla Sofía Gascón, the transgender star of "Emilia Perez," could position her to become the first openly transgender person to win a best actress Oscar. (The Globes in 2022 gave their first acting award to a transgender actress, Michaela Jaé Rodriguez, of the FX series "Pose.") Then again, the best predictors of the Oscars usually come in the dramatic, not the comedic, categories. This year’s best dramatic actress nominees include such A-list favorites as Nicole Kidman in "Babygirl" and Angelina Jolie in "Maria."

That prestigious category also made room for an unlikely first-time nominee: Pamela Anderson, who plays a fading Las Vegas entertainer in "The Last Showgirl." Meanwhile, the horror movie "The Substance" — something of a cult favorite this year that featured Demi Moore as an actor staving off old age — drew an impressive five nominations, including for Moore and supporting actress Margaret Qualley.

The 82nd Golden Globes will be broadcast Jan. 5 at 8 p.m. on CBS and streaming on Paramount+ from the Beverly Hilton Hotel in Beverly Hills, California.

By Rafer Guzmán

rafer.guzman@newsday.com@raferguzman