Demi Moore’s Golden Globe Win Highlights Hollywood’s Gender Gap

The 82nd Golden Globe Awards, considered a precursor to the Academy Awards, took place on January 5th (local time) in Los Angeles, USA.

The historical drama “SHOGUN” (starring and produced by Hiroyuki Sanada) triumphed in all four categories it was nominated for: Best Drama Series, Best Actor in a Drama Series (Hiroyuki Sanada), Best Actress in a Drama Series (Anna Sawai), and Best Supporting Actor (Tadanobu Asano).

In the main film category, 62-year-old Demi Moore won Best Actress in a Comedy/Musical for her role in The Substance (original title, Japanese title: The Substance. Surprisingly, this was her first award in over 45 years of career, and she captured Hollywood’s attention with a shocking speech.

The film is a suspenseful story about a former top actress, played by Moore, who, after turning 50, begins using a new regenerative medical treatment after noticing a decline in her appearance and a drastic reduction in job opportunities. This leads to horrifying events. The movie will be released in Japan on May 16th.

Even if you make a lot of money, your acting will not be recognized.

Moore, known for her role in the romantic story Ghost/ New York’s Phantom (1990) with Patrick Swayze, saw a huge hit with the film and starred in other major works like The Truth About Cats and Dogs (1996), G.I. Jane (1997), and Charlie’s Angels: Full Throttle (2003). In The Truth About Cats and Dogs, where she played a stripper, she earned a fee of $12.5 million (about 2 billion yen), becoming the highest-paid actress in the world at the time.

In her personal life, her marriage and divorce from Bruce Willis, star of the Die Hard series, generated gossip that dominated U.S. entertainment media, making her a Hollywood star. However, she remained disconnected from major film awards such as the Golden Globe and Academy Awards.

Moore was nominated for the Golden Globe Award for Best Actress in a Musical/Comedy for Ghost/ New York’s Phantom, but she did not win. Additionally, while Ghost earned Whoopi Goldberg the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress, Moore was not even nominated for Best Actress.

In her acceptance speech, Moore referred to these moments in her career.

“Thirty years ago, a producer called me a popcorn actress,” 

She revealed.

“At that time, I believed that awards like this were not meant for me. I could be in movies that earned a lot of money, but I thought my acting would never be recognized, and I truly believed that.”

She confessed, 

“When I was at my lowest point, a script came to me that was magical, bold, courageous, unconventional, and absolutely extraordinary. That was The Substance. The universe told me, ‘You are not finished yet.'”

Then continued.