Golden Globes 2026: Seen and Heard at Every Star-Studded Party

If there were an award for best bash of Golden Globes weekend — and, at this point, why not? — just give it to W already for Saturday night’s Chateau Marmont penthouse celebration. The event boasted more stars per square inch of any event outside of the Globes itself: Emma Stone (holding court with director Yorgos Lanthimos), Michael B. Jordan, Jacob Elordi (who had guests swooning because he brought his parents, who kept taking pictures of his oversized face on the wall), Benicio del Toro (when was the last time you saw him at a party?), Dwayne Johnson, Chase Infiniti, Tessa Thompson, Elle Fanning (with sister Dakota and boyfriend, Gus Wenner, in tow), Sydney Sweeney and Mia Goth. Sweeney and Seyfried had a Housemaid reunion and bear-hugged it out amid flashbulbs, while the Euphoria star was seen in close conversation with her HBO series co-star Maude Apatow. Lana Del Rey arrived super early, just after the 8 p.m. start time. Heated Rivalry phenoms Connor Storrie and Hudson Williams came on the later end, after 11 p.m., causing a commotion with their arrival and impromptu photo shoot on a roses-covered bed. Kendall Jenner and Hailey Bieber turned heads as they navigated the party, with Bieber lightly tapping Jenner’s rear in the direction they were headed. The White Lotus stars on the scene included Parker Posey, Patrick Schwarzenegger and Walton Goggins. Katherine LaNasa arrived with her husband, Grant Show, fresh from a wrap party for The Pitt and intent on finding her close friend Rhea Seehorn, who was on the terrace with her husband. If you need more convincing about the award-worthy status, how about this: Jennifer Lopez, fresh from a residency at Caesars Palace, performed for free, dancing it up in the penthouse living room in a glittering red gown while surrounded by a gaggle that included costume designer Ruth E. Carter. Then, close to midnight as Kevin Bacon and Kyra Sedgwick were waiting for their car, a massive SUV pulled past the crush of fans and Chateau security all the way down the cobblestone driveway and into the garage so its VIP passenger could make a secretive entrance: Leonardo DiCaprio jumped out with model girlfriend Vittoria Ceretti and headed upstairs. As we headed home, Josh Safdie jumped out of his car, too. An autograph hound asked for his signature, only for Safdie to politely decline, “Not on blank paper.” Smart man.

Conner Storrie and Hudson Williams? Check. The Heated Rivalry guys, possibly now cloned and at multiple parties at once, were the only talent present Saturday night at Bar Marmont who inspired many a guest to violate the no photos policy, with selfie after selfie. Tessa Thompson was there. So was much of the cast of Abbott Elementary. And, for anyone still on team Team Jeremiah, The Summer I Turned Pretty’s Gavin Casalegno showed. Zooey Deschanel and her fiancé, Jonathan Scott, chatted with Kristen Bell and Dax Shepard, who also shared a couch with Kyra Sedgwick and Kevin Bacon. Power couples, unite! Ghosts of Real Housewives past and present, Lisa Rinna and Rachel Zoe, were both spotted near the caviar bar — though if they crossed paths, we missed it. Kate Beckinsale wore a petticoat that was too obscenely large for the event and the venue, unless you were trying to make your way through the packed crowd and found yourself in its wake. In that case, it was a lifesaver. Thanks, Kate. Notably, former Amazon MGM Studios boss Jen Salke was in attendance for her first Amazon Globes party since departing for a rich first-look deal across film and TV. It’s always nice to see an amicable split. Oh, and Shaboozey valeted his Harley on Sunset Blvd. Everybody at the Bar (Marmont) get tipsy, indeed.

Saturday’s BAFTA Tea began with a long wait in Four Seasons lobby, thanks in part to an unknown party crasher. Security was heard calling for backup over headphones, asking, “Can you help me escort them out? They are banned from the event.” Those who made it inside were greeted with cucumber, egg and cress salad sandwiches — or, as a writer for one of this year’s best picture Oscar contenders put it, “fucking British bullshit.” Entry drama and palate preferences aside, the room was bustling with A-listers, like Gwyneth Paltrow. She could barely walk through the crowd without being stopped. Michael B. Jordan had a similar issue, though he had his not-so-incognito security detail in tow. His fellow Sinners stars Delroy Lindo and Li Jun Li made the rounds, the latter snapping pics with Teyana Taylor. She also struggled to make it through the room without being stopped, though Taylor did manage a brief catchup with Tessa Thompson. Wagner Moura, Joel Edgerton, Benicio Del Toro, Damson Idris, Jerry Bruckheimer, Chase Infiniti, Kate Hudson, Keri Russell, Tramell Tillman, Renate Reinsve, Aimee Lou Wood and a fashionably late Leonardo DiCaprio were all there. DiCaprio, who brought his parents, popped in through a side door in the ballroom around 4:20 p.m. and disappeared just as quickly before the event concluded at 5:00 p.m. Kristen Stewart was said to be in the vicinity but allegedly opted for a post inside the hotel lobby. Perhaps Hamnet’s Jacobi Jupe wouldn’t have minded joining her. The 12-year-old was seen pouting and noticeably tuckered from hours of shmoozing.

Natasha Rothwell said what was on pretty much every performer’s mind — except Natasha Lyonne, I guess — when she announced “Fuck Tilly Norwood” to the non-AI crowd gathered at the Independent Spirit Awards Nominees Brunch. Those in attendance Saturday at the London West Hollywood rooftop included Ethan Hawke, Zoey Deutch, Joel Edgerton, Dylan O’Brien, Stephen Graham, Erin Doherty, Rebecca Hall and Hannah Einbinder. The latter claimed she was microdosing Benadryl despite an allergy to the antihistamine. On the way out, one studio president bemoaned the long wait to leave — “Nobody has figured out how to do a valet in all these years” — while a filmmaker started crying when talking about a previous Spirit Awards loss. It turns out it’s not always an honor just to be nominated.

The only thing people in town for The Golden Globes want more than an encounter with the Heated Rivalry stars is probably a tuna melt at Max and Helen’s, Phil Rosenthal’s new Larchmont diner that’s courting eight-hour waits, so SiriusXM was savvy to buy out the venue for its first-ever Globes fete. Pegged to the still head-scratching choice to introduce a “best podcast” category at the awards show, the Saturday brunch hosted a who’s who of audio giants — many of whom were fed by Phil himself. Conan O’Brien was tucked in a booth with Alex Edelman, Tig Notaro and Stephanie Allynne. Strange bedfellows Alex Cooper and Mel Robbins posed for a photo with Smartless bros Jason Bateman, Sean Hayes and Will Arnett. It was heaving with folks trying to grab a bite of a BLT or a waffle, and, as one power publicist put it, “absolutely in violation of the fire code.” This crowd naturally attracted a lot of attention on the busy block. Three doors down, at Chevalier’s Books, a neighborhood man kvetched to the cashier about the sidewalk being blocked by Sebastian Maniscalco and his entourage. “I’m not familiar with him,” she replied. Bet she’s heard about that tuna melt, though.

The stars of Bugonia, Song Sung Blue, Wicked and Hamnet were among the many luminaries who turned out to kiss the ring of the most powerful woman in Hollywood. NBCUniversal Entertainment chair Donna Langley toasted her company’s many nominees on Friday night. Among them was Song Sung Blue actress Kate Hudson, emerging as one of the most shrewd campaigners this awards season, who seemed to gladhand almost everyone in the room, spending a good chunk of time talking to Langley. The Bugonia crowd and the Hamnet crowd seemed to mingle mostly among themselves, none apparently falling for the charms of Heated Rivalry’s Connor Storrie. It was Jeff Goldblum who succumbed to the ascendant actor, chatting away as guests snacked on an assortment of offerings from Even Funke’s Mother Wolf — as one person noted, the garlic on the tuna was “definitely a choice.”

Nearly 40 minutes passed before someone approached the Heated Rivalry boys for a selfie at Neon’s Friday night fete. Such restraint! But who was the first to crack? Not Sirat filmmaker and future hair model Oliver Laxe. He was milling around in the same corner of the Sunset Tower Hotel as Julie Delpy and Sandra Oh. Nor was it the taller-in-person-than-one-might-expect Ana de Armas or reigning Emmy winner Britt Lower. It was not Dave Franco, too occupied discussing the puzzling semiotics of restroom signage (why a triangle for men and a circle for women?). Not the No Other Choice crowd, either. Dashing in slim black suits, director Park Chan-wook and star Lee Byung-hun — of whom one awards strategist shyly remarked was “so handsome, but I can’t bring myself to say hello.” And it was not Awkwafina or Harvey Guillen, as much as you might think it’d be them. It was the always suave Toronto International Film Festival CEO Cameron Bailey and his wife, Carolynne Hew! You can take the tastemakers out of Canada, but you can’t take the Canada out of tastemakers.

If you wanted to hear actors speak earnestly about stylists, designers, glam squads and facialists, the second annual WWD Style Awards was the place for you. Friday night’s affair at the Regent Santa Monica Beach welcomed George Clooney, Demi Moore, Cameron Diaz, Pamela Anderson, Cindy Crawford and a videotaped appearance by Nicole Kidman. Many honors were bestowed, like the posthumous Red Carpet Visionary award for Giorgio Armani. “Richard Gere should have presented this, but he fucking couldn’t come,” said Clooney, a friend of the late Italian designer. Makeup artist and honoree Gucci Westman commented on how rare it was to get client Cameron Diaz out to an event. And after being introduced by client Emily Blunt, celebrity facialist and apparent nobleman Lord Gavin McLeod-Valentine had some sharp words for the actresses in the room. “If your PR person doesn’t know about me,” said the Red Carpet Skin Savior of the Year, “get a new PR person.” And yes, that is the real name of his award.

NPR’s daily news show Up First is nominated for best podcast opposite shows from Amy Poehler, Dax Shepard, Alex Cooper, Mel Robbins and the guys of SmartLess — and much like that category, NPR’s celebration served as a bit of counter-programming to the rest of the weekend. Hosts Leila Fadel, Steve Inskeep, Michel Martin, Ayesha Rascoe and A Martínez joined Up First producers and staff for a lunch at NPR’s West Coast studios in Culver City, where they celebrated journalism receiving a little bit of awards show shine amid funding cuts to public media. (This was evidenced by, unlike the swag-filled events that fill most of this season, cards on every table asking for donations to the radio network.) A buffet lunch, tours of the studio and toasts from NPR execs followed, as the team buzzed with excitement, having a chance to walk the Globes red carpet on Sunday; highlights already included meeting Poehler and Robbins at the THR x Spotify party earlier in the week. But the group won’t be going too hard on awards weekend, as they’re back in the studio delivering the news on Monday morning.