Kansas City’s Jason Sudeikis wins first Golden Globe. His reaction? ‘That’s nuts’
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More about KC’s Jason Sudeikis and ‘Ted Lasso’
Jason Sudeikis, who grew up in Overland Park, created and stars in the acclaimed Apple TV+ series “Ted Lasso.”
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With a sweep of last year’s Emmy Awards, plus five Golden Globe nominations this year, “Schitt’s Creek” looked to be a favorite to win it all at the Globes as well.
But savvy prognosticators, as well as Kansas City fans, were rooting for “Ted Lasso” and hometown celebrity Jason Sudeikis. And they were halfway right.
On Sunday night, “Schitt’s Creek” did indeed win best musical or comedy series. But Sudeikis, 45, who grew up in Overland Park, walked away with best actor, his first Golden Globe Award.
“That’s nuts,” Sudeikis said, stammering a bit before he hit his stride in an acceptance speech via Zoom.
“I kind of reject the premise of being a best actor because, in my humble opinion, the best actor is the person you’re acting with. So I want to give this shout-out to all the people I get to act with on this show, because they’re incredible. Do they make me the best? No. But they make me better.”
Sudeikis was up against Don Cheadle for “Black Monday,” Nicholas Hoult for “The Great,” Eugene Levy for “Schitt’s Creek” and Ramy Youssef for “Ramy.”
Cheadle, by the way, was born in Kansas City but grew up in Denver, and he was the one who started motioning to Sudeikis that he really needed to bring his speech to a close.
“Don’s right, I got to wrap this puppy up,” Sudeikis conceded. “Never been my forte. Little windy.”
Speaking in a virtual press room later, Sudeikis said he appreciated Cheadle’s advice: “Hey that’s just Kansas City love.
“If anyone is going to tell me to do that, he’d know I’d listen to him. That’s all that is. A lot of people don’t know that he’s an excellent stage manager as well as an American acting icon. The guy’s got chops, you know?”
(Cheadle, by the way, later appeared in a pre-recorded sketch involving advice on fake diseases from real medical pros — in Cheadle’s case, a professor at Truman Medical Center/UMKC.)
While many nominees dressed up as if they could gather on a red carpet instead of holing up at home, Sudeikis took a more casual approach, wearing a rainbow tie-dye sweatshirt.
Tina Fey, who hosted the awards with Amy Poehler, made note of it: “If anybody wants to know where they can get Jason Sudeikis’ hoodie, go to nbc.com/globesfashion. (The site doesn’t work. We tried.)
ET dubbed it one of “the best cozy looks” of the night.
Sudeikis told reporters that the hoodie is part of the merchandise for Forward__Space, the New York dance and workout studio founded by his sister Kristin Sudeikis. (Sorry, the hoodie is sold out. We tried.)
“I believe when people that you care about do cool, interesting things, that you should support them,” Sudeikis said.
In addition to “Schitt’s Creek,” “Ted Lasso” was up against “Emily in Paris,” “The Flight Attendant” and “The Great.”
As expected, “Schitt’s Creek” star Catherine O’Hara won best actress in a TV comedy. But the series’ creator, Dan Levy, lost best supporting actor to John Boyega of “Small Axe,” and “Schitt’s Creek” co-star Annie Murphy lost best supporting actress to Gillian Anderson of “The Crown,” a big winner Sunday night.
The Globes are chosen by the Hollywood Foreign Press Association, about 90 members with unusual tastes. The Globes had never, ever acknowledged “Schitt’s Creek” in its previous seasons, not even with a nomination. As awards website GoldDerby put it, the HFPA “would rather anoint the next big thing than admit that it had made an oversight.” And yet “Schitt’s Creek” still won the top TV comedy prize.
But HFPA politics and proclivities aside, critics agree that Sudeikis was deserving.
“In many ways,” Variety said in its predictions, “it’s this year’s feel good vehicle in the way that ‘Schitt’s Creek’ was during the last awards cycle. As the heart of ‘Ted Lasso,’ Sudeikis may be hard to beat.”
Sudeikis created and stars in the series, about a Kansas football coach transplanted to England to coach their version of football, aka soccer. He has a lot to learn. But he also has a lot to teach, on and off the field.
Sudeikis & Co. are currently shooting a second season of “Ted Lasso” in England — hence the thick Ted Lasso mustache he was sporting Sunday and the vibe that he had stayed up till 2 a.m.
No word on when it will debut, but we know that Apple TV+ has already OK’d a third season.
But first, “Ted Lasso” is up for a Screen Actors Guild Award for best comedy series ensemble, and Sudeikis is up for an acting award. Those ceremonies are set for April 4.
And notably, while the Globes snubbed “Da 5 Bloods,” which Kansas filmmaker Kevin Willmott co-wrote with Spike Lee, their Vietnam veteran drama is up for SAG’s top award — best film ensemble — as well as a posthumous supporting actor nod for Chadwick Boseman and one for stunt work.
This story was originally published February 28, 2021 at 8:59 PM with the headline "Kansas City’s Jason Sudeikis wins first Golden Globe. His reaction? ‘That’s nuts’."
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