Rose Byrne Humorously Poked Fun At A Common Golden Globe Criticism In Her Acceptance Speech

The 2026 Golden Globes are humming along, and CinemaBlend's live blog is catching all the highlights. We're also drilling down on some great moments from the celebrities who go from nominees to winners, and Rose Byrne's speech was one to remember. Her win was well-deserved, especially after she took a playful jab at a common criticism surrounding her category.

Byrne took the stage after winning Best Actress in a Musical or Comedy for her delightfully out-there movie If I Had Legs I'd Kick You. It's at times as traumatizing as it is hilarious, but Byrne had to make one thing clear as she took the stage and delivered her speech:

It's true, she didn't sing in the movie. Despite that, the award goes to people who were in a comedy or a musical, which has always been odd. As an example, someone can be nominated for the category if they were in a dramatic musical, even though "comedy" is on the award.

It doesn't make a lot of sense, and others, like director Judd Apatow, further touched on it later in the evening. Will Rose Byrne and Apatow's jabs be enough to spark some real change in the system, and will the Golden Globes start giving more respect to create separate awards for comedies and musicals? I'm not sure about all that, but I have to share her whole speech because the bit about her longtime partner Bobby Cannavale being at a reptile convention was hilarious as well:

Rose Byrne didn't seem to think she'd win the award, as she mentioned she hadn't prepared anything ahead of time. The fact that she had Cannavale go to a reptile show instead almost feels like further evidence she wasn't convinced she'd win the award.

I believe Rose Byrne that she didn't expect to win, but that might be because she hasn't been tracking the awards race that heavily. She's already predicted by Variety to be nominated for Best Actress at the 2026 Oscars, but will be up against some stiff competition, like Emma Stone and Jessie Buckley, for the win.

Rose Byrne's speech remains one of the memorable moments of the show, but not the only standout of the night so far. Teyana Taylor's speech for the evening was also a favorite, and I'm still thinking about that wild necklace Julia Roberts rocked on the red carpet. Overall, it's been a great night for Hollywood, one weird cross-promotion from UFC aside.

Continue to stick with CinemaBlend as we continue to highlight all the highs and lows of the 2026 Golden Globes, as well as cover the other major award shows throughout the 2026 TV schedule.