Jo Koy Responds to Taylor Swift's Unamused Reaction After Golden Globes Joke

Jo Koy, Taylor Swift

While host Jo Koy's opening monologue at the 2024 Golden Globes got backlash for a few different reasons, one of the most-talked-about moments of the speech was his joke about Taylor Swift and the NFL's extensive coverage of the star.

Koy said, "The big difference between the Golden Globes and the NFL? We have fewer camera shots of Taylor Swift," leading to a shot of the woman in question sipping a drink with an unamused expression on her face.

Many fans rallied behind Swift and her response to the joke before Koy finally got to react to the whole situation after the show's broadcast.

While speaking with ET on the red carpet for Billboard's after-party, Koy defended his joke to reporter Denny Directo, saying, "Aww, man, it was cute. I was just saying it was cute. I was just saying it's less cutaways, that's all."

In response, Directo quipped, "Maybe she was thirsty? Maybe she just needed to drink the champagne." Luckily, the comedian—who got the job as host last-minute in mid-December—appeared to smoothly laugh it off, moving on to celebrate the success of the night.

On the morning of Jan. 8, Koy further addressed the backlash to his hosting gig on Good Morning America, admitting that the Swift joke was “a little flat.”

"It was a weird joke, I guess," he continued. "But it was more on the NFL…I was trying to make fun of the NFL using cutaways and how the Globes didn’t have to do that. So it was more of a jab toward the NFL. But it just didn’t come out that way.”

He added of the overall backlash, "I’d be lying if [I said] it doesn’t hurt. I hit a moment there where I was like, ‘Ah.’ Hosting is just a tough gig...I feel bad, but I got to still say I loved what I did.”

Swift allegedly left the Golden Globes soon after her concert film, Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour, lost in the Cinematic and Box Office Achievement category to Barbie. Fans noticed her absence later in the broadcast, discussing it on social media. One Swiftie joked, "taylor actually left? asjdhfdsf shes so funny."

Despite the loss, she seemed to have a good night hanging out with friends like Keleigh Sperry, Selena Gomez, and Emma Stone, the last of which took home an award for Actress in a Musical or Comedy Motion Picture for her movie Poor Things. Swift gave the actress a standing ovation as she accepted her award, while Stone shared a cheeky comment joking about her close friend after the show.

Swift also stunned on the red carpet, rocking a bright green sparkling dress for the star-studded gathering.

Next: The Best, Worst and Wildest Moments from the 2024 Golden Globe Awards