These Three Female Directors Just Made Golden Globes History

Female directors are making history with Golden Globes nominations this year.

For the first time in the nearly 78 years that the Golden Globe Awards have been doled out, three women were nominated for best director, taking the majority of the category and marking the first time that more than one woman has been recognized in the category.

The female nominees are Chloe Zhao for “Nomadland,” Emerald Fennell for “Promising Young Woman,” and Regina King for “One Night in Miami.” The two men in the category include David Fincher for “Mank” and Aaron Sorkin for “Trial of the Chicago 7.”

Zhao and King’s nominations are particularly momentous. Zhao is the first woman of Asian descent to be nominated for Best Director, and King is the second Black woman in history to be nominated for Best Director. 

Prior to King, Ava DuVernay was nominated in the category for “Selma” in 2015.

Zhao, Fennell and King are the sixth, seventh and eighth women to be nominated for Golden Globes in directing on the heels of DuVernay, Barbra Streisand, Jane Campion, Sofia Coppola, and Kathryn Bigelow.

Fans couldn’t help but share in the excitement of the history-making moment:

The Globes have been criticized for their lack of diversity and consistent shutting out of female directors. In 2018, actor Natalie Portman called out the show when announcing the winner for the Best Director category. “And here are the all-male nominees ,” the actor said while on stage with co-presenter Ron Howard.

The Golden Globes ceremony will happen virtually this year and air on Feb. 28 with hosts Amy Poehler and Tina Fey.