Sacha Baron Cohen trolls Sarah Palin with Golden Globes invite — and the best reactions from the 2019 nominees

Awards season is on with Thursday’s Golden Globes nominations. And while many were “happy just to be nominated,” appropriately thanked the Hollywood Foreign Press Association, and shouted out to co-stars and fellow nominees, there were some reactions — for instance, Sacha Baron Cohen straight trolling Sarah Palin — that stand out.

Cohen crashed the Best Performance by an Actor in a Television Series — Musical or Comedy category for Who Is America?, which saw him duping politicians, broadcasters and public figures, and his reaction was very … him. Not only did he say it was a “shame” that the HFPA overlooked the “amazing performances” of two of his targets, Dick Cheney and Roy Moore (who sued Cohen for $95 million), but he went on to invite one of his nemeses, Palin, as his date to the Jan. 6 show.

“I appreciate the Hollywood Foreign Press for recognizing me, which luckily is something that none of the guests on the show did,” Cohen quipped in his statement. “This is such a special honour for me as the HFPA are always among the first to really appreciate my ever evolving humour. I am humbled to be recognised among such a wonderful group of nominees, all of whom I admire. This show was a labour of love for over two years. It is a shame they overlooked the amazing performances by the rest of the cast, particularly Dick Cheney and Roy Moore. Meanwhile Ms Palin, despite being cut from the show, I hope you will accept my invitation to be my date for the ceremony.”

Palin gave Cohen free publicity for his Showtime show before it premiered when she said that he had duped her in a “humiliating” interview, during which, she said, he claimed to be a handicapped U.S. military veteran. Showtime denied that Cohen pretended to be a vet — and we may never know because the interview never aired. Instead, Cohen gave Palin a credit in the finale — the title of “Special Publicity Consultant (Inadvertent)” — for giving his show free publicity.

Candice Bergen, nominated in the category of Best Actress in a Television Series, Musical or Comedy for her starring role in the Murphy Brown reboot, mentioned another politician, President Donald Trump, in her reaction to the news.

“It would not have been possible without the help of the President, who not only gave us the impetus for this reboot but provided us with fresh fields to plow daily that Diane English and our superb writing staff have cultivated fearlessly and with unique wit,” Bergen said in a statement to Deadline. “He is, truly, the gift that keeps on giving.”

Hugh Grant, who is nominated for A Very English Scandal, went there, making a lewd joke in his statement in reference to part of a love scene he did with Ben Whishaw in the miniseries.

Grant previously said that his own father, James Grant, who is 89, was excited to watch his work in the miniseries — and they did together “until we got as far as the Vaseline and he said: ‘I really am quite tired, I might go to bed.'”

John David Washington received his first Globe nomination for his role in BlacKkKlansman. He said he watched the nominations with his “old man,” who would be Denzel Washington. The men joyously hugged after hearing the news that Washington would be competing in the Best Performance by an Actor in a Motion Picture — Drama category. “It was a straight tear session,” the nominee said. And it continues a tradition in the fam — as it’s been exactly 30 years since Denzel received his first Globes nom.

Spike Lee, up for best director for BlacKkKlansman, said, “I found out about these Golden Globe Nominations for BlacKkKlansman in-between advising my NYU Grad School students because I teach on Thursdays. The first word that came to mind was ‘BOOM SHAKALAKA.’ Thank you to the HFPA!”

The Good Place actress Jameela Jamil also had a caps reaction to her show’s Best Television Series — Musical or Comedy nomination, starting with “HOLY FORKING SHIRTING FORKING BALLS!” and ending with thanking “my fellow cockroaches.”

Adam McKay, who directed Vice, was so excited that his film — which hasn’t been released yet — led the way in film nominations that he joked he may never release it at all. “We’re feeling so good at this point, we might not release it,” he quipped. (Don’t worry — it will be out Dec. 25.)

In case you were wondering about the expression on Best Performance by an Actress in a Television Series — Musical or Comedy nominee Debra Messing’s face when she got her good news, here it is:

The ever-charming Henry Winkler was in a “bragging” mood, so he shared a gif from Barry (he’s nominated for Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role in a Series, Limited Series or Motion Picture Made for Television) and thanked the HFPA “in all your languages.”

And there were lots of remarks related to getting “the call.” Glenn Close, nominated for The Wife, said that when she heard her phone ringing early Thursday, “I thought it was a butt-call.” And Crazy Rich Asians star Constance Wu will probably never put her phone in “Do not disturb” mode again.

Check out more reactions here. The big show will air on Jan. 6 on NBC and will be hosted by Andy Samberg and Sandra Oh.

Read more from Yahoo Entertainment:

• ‘Black Panther,’ ‘Quiet Place,’ ‘This Is Us’: Biggest snubs and surprises in the Golden Globes nominations

• Golden Globe nominations: Complete list

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