Since Emilia Pérez won Best Motion Picture, Musical or Comedy at the 2025 Golden Globes, I have seen a lot of social media posts from people expressing their disappointment. In fact, when I congratulated Demi Moore for winning Best Performance By a Female Actor in a Motion Picture, Musical or Comedy, someone quoted my post with an unnecessary comment that they believed Karla Sofia Gascón, who plays the title role of Netflix’s wild movie musical, deserved to lose to the Substance star in the category.
At the time I am writing this, I have not yet seen Emilia Pérez and have no opinion regarding its Golden Globe wins but I cannot help but admit that I am a little disappointed in this year’s edition of the long-running awards show, especially at how it handled the Best Motion Picture, Musical or Comedy category. Why? Because it chose not to acknowledge what I believe is the absolute funniest comedy out of all the best movies of 2024: Hundreds of Beavers.
Hundreds Of Beavers Deserved A Best Picture, Musical Or Comedy Nomination
It has been a long time since I have been as personally peeved by an awards snub as I am by Hundreds of Beavers being completely shut out of the Golden Globes – a ceremony that would have been the perfect platform to honor a movie like this. The under-the-radar hit comes from director Mike Cheslik, who also co-writes with the film’s star, Ryland Brickson Cole Tews. The actor plays an applejack manufacturer named Jean Kayak, who, after his distillery is destroyed, is forced to take up a career as a fur trapper in order to survive a harsh winter season in the Wisconsin wilderness.
Echoing Eric Eisenberg’s blurb about it in his personal favorite 2024 movies ranking, Hundreds of Beavers feels like The Oregon Trail – a video game that still has not been made into a movie – if it had been adapted for cinema in the Silent Era. Throw in some over-the-top, Looney Tunes-style absurdity, sight gags more ingenious than what I have seen in most classic parody movies, and a bunch of actors in animal mascot suits, and you have the highest-rated 2024 comedy on Lettrboxd, according to THR.
What It Was Up Against In The Category
Despite all the love that Hundreds of Beavers has received from critics and audiences alike, why has its praise not extended to the stage of an awards show like the Golden Globes? Well, one notable aspect to keep in mind is that the ceremony has two Best Picture categories – one dedicated to dramas and the other dedicated to both musicals and comedies, which leaves only so much room for films that qualify under these genres to share. Not to mention, the Globes tend to stretch the limits of what qualifies as comedy, having famously awarded Best Motion Picture, Musical or Comedy to the survivalist space movie The Martian in 2016.
However, when lumped with the films nominated for the category this year (including an intense, great horror movie like The Substance), Hundreds of Beavers is the only one that truly counts as an overt comedy, which I doubt hurt its chances at the Globes since they have nominated movies as ridiculous as Deadpool before. What I think it all really comes down to, however, is that the film is a low-budget cartoonish farce that was self-distributed to theaters (via AP) and received much of its attention through word-of-mouth. In other words, it is the kind of hit that rarely achieves the amount of buzz typically required for these sorts of esteemed honors, even if it deserved it, in my opinion.
How To Watch Hundreds Of Beavers
You know, Hundreds of Beavers may have been completely snubbed at the Golden Globes but awards season is not over. There is still a chance that it could make a blip on Academy voters’ radar and you can help!
If you have not seen the movie yet, log into any of the best streaming services I have listed below (including two that cost nothing), stream Hundreds of Beavers, and spread the word of its uproarious brilliance to the world. Maybe you’ll find it on the Oscar ballot soon!
How to watch Hundreds of Beavers
If not for Best Picture, I genuinely believe the use of green screen in Hundreds of Beavers is impressive enough to warrant a Best Visual Effects Oscar nomination. However, the filmmakers have made some attempt at an Oscar campaign on X, promoting Mike Wesolowski, who played “The Horse,” as a Best Supporting Actor hopeful. Eh, why not all three categories?!