It’s official: Ricky Gervais will host the 69th annual Golden Globes, which NBC will broadcast on Jan. 15.
When Gervais hosted the last edition of the show earlier this year, his pointed barbs at his fellow celebrities angered some members of the Hollywood Foreign Press Assn., which presents the event, and Philip Berk, who was then the group’s president, told THR that Gervais “definitely crossed the line.”
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But the HFPA has had time to reconsider and announced Wednesday on its website, “After weeks of rumours it’s finally official — Ricky Gervais will be back to host the Golden Globes for a third year.”
After meeting with NBC exec Douglas Vaughn, senior vp specials at NBC, who supported the idea of Gervais hosting, the organization voted in favor of Gervais’ return.
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But the vote wasn’t exactly unanimous. A blog post on the HFPA website posted by one of its members said, “While many welcome Gervais’s return, not everyone is happy with the decision because last year his blunt one-liners targeting big-name celebrities caused anger and resentment in some quarters. After the show Gervais dismissed the possibility of coming back for a third time, but he gradually warmed to the idea and last month met with HFPA President Dr. Aida Takla-O’Reilly in Paris to discuss it.”
