Golden Globes: Joaquin Phoenix's Acceptance Speech Dominates Social Media

The best motion picture drama win for '1917' was a top moment on Twitter, while Ricky Gervais' opening monologue was the most talked about moment of the night on Facebook.

1917 and Once Upon a Time in Hollywood may have won big during the 2020 Golden Globes on Sunday, but Joaquin Phoenix's acceptance speech took over social media.

Phoenix's win in the best actor in a motion picture - drama category for his role in Joker earned the top spot on Twitter as the most tweeted about moment of the night and was the second most talked about moment on Facebook. During his acceptance speech, Phoenix encouraged viewers to help with climate change issues in light of the ongoing bushfires in Australia. "Hopefully, we can be unified and actually make some changes. It's great to vote, but sometimes we have to take that responsibility on ourselves and make changes and sacrifices in our own lives. We don't have to take private jets to Palm Springs for the awards," the actor said.

Ricky Gervais' opening monologue won over Facebook users and was the most talked about moment of the night on the social media platform. During the expletive-filled speech, the host took shots at Felicity Huffman, Jeffrey Epstein and Cats. He also told the nominees to not get political during their acceptance speeches: "You're in no position to lecture the public about anything, you know nothing about the real world. Most of you spent less time in school than Greta Thunberg. So, if you win, come up, accept your little award, thank your agent and your God and fuck off. OK?"

The third most talked about moment on Facebook was Brad Pitt's win in the best supporting actor in a motion picture category for Once Upon a Time in Hollywood. After acknowledging the other contenders in the category, Pitt thanked his co-star Leonardo DiCaprio. "Before The Revenant, I used to watch, year after year, his co-stars accept awards, get up and thank him profusely," he said during his acceptance speech. "I know why — he’s an all-star, he’s a gent and I wouldn’t be here without you."

Patricia Arquette's win in the best supporting actress in television category for her role as Dee Dee Blanchard in The Act was the fourth most popular moment of the night on Facebook. During her acceptance speech, Arquette encouraged others to vote in the 2020 presidential election. "I beg of us all to give [our children] a better world," the actress said. "We have to ... plead for everyone we know to vote in 2020."

Michelle Williams' acceptance speech after being named best actress in a limited series for her role on Fosse/Verdon was the fifth most talked about moment on Facebook. She spoke about women's rights and encouraged all female viewers to vote in the upcoming election. "I've tried my very best to live a life of my own making and not just a series of events that happened to me, but one that I could stand back and look at and recognize my handwriting all over it," said Williams. "I wouldn't have been able to do this without employing a woman's right to choose." She added, "So women, 18 to 118, when it is time to vote, please do so in your own self-interest. It's what men have been doing for years."

Over on Twitter, 1917's win in the best motion picture - drama category was the second most talked about moment of the night behind Phoenix's acceptance speech. "This is a huge, huge thing for this movie," said director Sam Mendes during his acceptance speech. "It opens in a week wide. It's difficult to make movies without big movie stars in the leads and get people to come and see it in a cinema, and I really hope this means people will turn up and see it on the big screen, for which it was intended."

The third most tweeted about moment was Laura Dern's acceptance speech for best supporting actress in a motion picture - drama for Marriage Story. She described the film's director and screenwriter Noah Baumbach as "brilliant" and added, "Thank you for your seamless perfection, your guidance, your mentorship — forever."

Pitt's acceptance speech followed as the fourth most tweeted about moment from the ceremony.

Awkwafina's win in the best actress in a comedy or musical motion picture category for The Farewell rounded out the list of the most popular moments on Twitter. She made history as the first woman of Asian descent to win in this category at the Globes. Upon hearing about this, the actress shared her reaction backstage. "I actually just heard that fact and it was pretty mind-blowing. It is incredible, but there is this other feeling that you want there to be more," Awkwafina told reporters.

Meanwhile, Gervais was the most tweeted about star of the night. Phoenix earned the No. 2 spot, followed by Tom Hanks, Pitt and Beyonce.

The most tweeted about TV shows were Chernobyl, Fleabag and Succession, while Once Upon a Time in Hollywood, Parasite and Joker were the top three tweeted about movies.

Dick Clark Productions, which produces the Golden Globes, shares a parent company with The Hollywood Reporter.