When Kathy Bates attends an awards show, you can count on two things: stellar acting nominations and moments that deserve their own awards. The 2025 Golden Globes on Sunday (January 5) at the Beverly Hilton Hotel in Beverly Hills, Calif., delivered both in spades.
The 76-year-old acting legend was up for Best Performance by a Female Actor in a Television Series, Drama, thanks to her work on CBS’s Matlock. Sadly for Team Bates, the award went to Anna Sawai for her role in Shogun. But did Kathy sulk quietly in her seat like the rest of us mere mortals would? Absolutely not.
As the camera panned to the nominees post-announcement (because who doesn’t love a live reaction shot?), Kathy took center stage in the most Kathy Bates way possible. Clapping with the enthusiasm of someone who definitely didn’t just lose, Kathy held a piece of paper—likely her acceptance speech—and delivered a chef’s-kiss-worthy bit of impromptu comedy.
With a nod to the camera, she ripped the paper dramatically, as if saying, “Well, guess this was a waste of ink!” Somewhere, a printer sighed in solidarity. Social media immediately went wild, with fans calling it the “Best Supporting Performance by Paper” and “A Masterclass in Losing Gracefully (and Hilariously).”
Meanwhile, Anna Sawai took the stage to accept her shiny new Globe, but she couldn’t resist paying homage to her fellow nominee. “Thank you to the voters for voting for me, even though I would vote for Kathy Bates any day,” Anna gushed, clearly understanding the universal rule that everyone votes for Kathy Bates when given the chance.
Anna kept her speech short and sweet, giving credit to the writers for crafting a script so good it practically won the award itself. “Without a good script, it’s impossible to give a performance to our fullest full potential,” she added, cementing her status as a class act.
As for Kathy, we can only assume she’s plotting her next awards-show viral moment. Stay tuned, this is one drama queen who knows how to entertain on and off the screen.
Catch the video of Kathy’s epic paper-shredding below—and maybe grab a notepad to jot down some tips on how to lose in style.
Kathy Bates immediately ripping up her acceptance speech after she lost the Golden Globe LOL I love her pic.twitter.com/gjtHvwW8Nk
— Spencer Althouse (@SpencerAlthouse) January 6, 2025