• "First Man" won a Golden Globe for best score on Sunday.
• The movie's composer, Justin Hurwitz ("La La Land"), spoke to Business Insider about the challenges of making one of the best scores of the year.
• Those challenges included Hurwitz composing with electronic instruments for the first time, and the detail that went into the music played during the thrilling moon landing scene.

Coming off two Oscar wins for 2016's "La La Land," composer Justin Hurwitz is back in the award season race with his latest collaboration with director Damien Chazelle, "First Man," which won a best score Golden Globe on Sunday.

The look at the life of Neil Armstrong (played by Ryan Gosling), leading up to his legendary trip to the moon on Apollo 11, received mixed reactions when it opened due its slow-burn feel. But the work of Hurwitz has been universally praised. His mixture of percussion and electronic sound is a far cry from the song-and-dance musical feel of "La La Land," but perfectly accompanies Chazelle's telling of Armstrong's intimate story.

To get the sound right, Hurwitz began work composing the score in preproduction and had to get out of his comfort zone by working with instruments he'd never used before.

Read more: Here are all the Golden Globes 2019 winners

"Damien asked me to figure out ways for the movie to sound very different from any of the other scores that we've done," Hurwitz told Business Insider after the Golden Globes nominations were announced in early December. "He wanted me to learn a lot of electronic. We had never done any kind of electronic music before."

Hurwitz said Chazelle suggested he get his hands on a Theremin, which in the past has given eerie sounds in movies like the 1951 sci-fi classic "The Day the Earth Stood Still" and Alfred Hitchcock's "Spellbound." Hurwitz kept it in his office for months, playing with it constantly, and got so into it that the demos he made with it were used in the movie.

"I thought we would hire the best person who knows how to use it to play it for the movie, but I had laid down cues so many times that by the time we got to the end of the process, Damien just liked the tracks and kept them in," Hurwitz said.

But that wasn't the only first for Hurwitz. He also created his own samples for the score. He said he recorded metal sounds, burning fire, and water running and combined them all into a sample that he used throughout the movie.

"I had never done that before, designing musical sounds," he said. "That was a challenge and exciting to learn."

Music ideas evolved out of preproduction into the shooting. Hurwitz said there would be weekly friends and family screenings in which the music was scrutinized. Over days, weeks, and months the music would change often, sometimes even the instruments were swapped for others. Hurwitz said that it wasn't until post production that the harp was found to be the right choice as a main instrument to use throughout the score. 

The Theremin is also featured in almost every music cue of the movie so it, as Hurwitz put it, "melts" into the score. But it's central during the moon landing scene in the movie, when Hurwitz's score is at its most thrilling.

Read more: The screenwriter of "First Man" spent 4 years researching Neil Armstrong to craft a true-life story even some hardcore space historians didn't know

For that part of the movie, Hurwitz said creating the music was very similar to how he did it on "Whiplash" and "La La Land" — working off of how Chazelle saw it.

The music for the moon landing scene was one of the first things Hurwitz and Chazelle came up with for the movie. After spending a few months figuring out the sound in preproduction, Chazelle took the lead in telling Hurwitz the musical beats.

"Damien sees the entire movie in his head before he makes it, down to every single shot," Hurwitz said." "So we created this landing cue based off of his own vision for the sequence. He would say, 'This part needs to grow for 40 seconds, then I want strings to enter and grow for 45 seconds.' He would talk about where exactly the camera would be in those moments. 'It's going to cut out of the craft and be a wide shot of the moon and that's where the melody has to explode, and we'll cut back inside the craft and the music will simmer down.' He was describing to me shot-for-shot what the sequence would be."

Hurwitz then went off and made a demo of the music for the sequence using string, brass, and woodwind instruments that Chazelle used to storyboard the scene. That music was also used to edit the sequence before a full orchestra was brought in to perform the finished piece that would go in the movie. 

The challenges in making "First Man" were what stuck out most for Hurwitz, he said, and he hopes they will continue going forward.

"I love the opportunity to learn new things and I like the idea of every score bringing in a couple of new tools," he said. "It depends on the project, but I like the idea of having an exploratory phase at the beginning where I can study up on some new stuff. I just want to keep evolving each time I do a movie."

SEE ALSO: John Krasinski explains how he's approaching the sequel to "A Quiet Place" and why he's against the idea of a "popular film" Oscar

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• Christian Bale on Sunday night won the Golden Globe award for best actor in a musical or comedy for playing former Vice President Dick Cheney in the movie "Vice."
• During his acceptance speech, he thanked Satan.

Christian Bale got up onstage at the Golden Globes at The Beverly Hilton in Beverly Hills, California, on Sunday night and carried out the usual thank-yous that most do upon receiving an award — spouse, kids, cast, crew, producer, Satan.

Well, that last one probably has never been thanked in an acceptance speech before, but while accepting his Golden Globe for best actor in a musical or comedy for his performance as former Vice President Dick Cheney in Adam McKay's "Vice," Bale apparently felt it was right to thank the devil.

"Thank you Satan for giving me inspiration on how to play this role," Bale jokingly said in one of the more entertaining acceptance speeches on Sunday.

He also said the only reason he got the role was that he could be "absolutely charisma-free." Admittedly, his portrayal of Cheney in the unique biopic is as rigid and stiff as most of the footage you probably have seen of the real Cheney — which is why it's so great.

Read more: Here are all the Golden Globes 2019 winners

Bale also teased playing another major Republican political figure for his next role — "So Mitch McConnell next?" calling out the Senate majority leader from Kentucky.

It's probably a joke, but given the way he transformed into Cheney for "Vice," anything is possible.

SEE ALSO: How the 'First Man' composer created the movie's powerful score, which just won a Golden Globe

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• CBS News President David Rhodes will vacate his role after a difficult year for the top network.
• He will be replaced in March by Susan Zirinsky, CBS said in a statement released late on Sunday night.
• Rhodes confirmed via a tweet later on Sunday that he will be exiting CBS.
• The network and its news division have been shedding viewers since 2017 when the first allegations of sexual misconduct against leading CBS personalities first surfaced.

CBS News President David Rhodes is stepping aside following a difficult year for the news giant, the network revealed in a statement Sunday night.

Rhodes did not long survive the turmoil that has engulfed CBS and its news division following the investigation into sexual misconduct allegations stemming from as early as 2017 against major figures at the network.

Rhodes, 46, will be succeeded in March by Susan Zirinsky, a senior executive producer who has worked out of Beijing in 1989 and has run the news show "48 Hours" for more than 20 years, the network said.

Rhodes confirmed via Twitter after the story broke Sunday night that he is stepping down in the wake of a year to forget for the network and its news division.

"It's been eight incredible years since I joined @CBS," Rhodes tweeted Sunday. "I'm pleased to announce that I'll soon be handing the reins @CBSNews to Susan Zirinsky, our Senior Executive Producer."

CBS News ratings fell down a hole last year, following the 2017 disgrace left behind by former anchor Charlie Rose.

In December CBS News settled a lawsuit with three women who accused Rose of "blatant and repeated sexual harassment" and "subsequent unlawful retaliation."

The network's flagship news show, "60 Minutes" then lost its longtime executive producer, Jeff Fager who resigned after sending a threatening email to a reporter amid allegations he fostered an atmosphere at "60 Minutes" that tolerated sexual misconduct.

But that wasn't the worst of it for CBS.

Disgraced CEO Leslie Moonves has already been stripped of his massive golden parachute and CBS staff are currently awaiting the results of a report into the company which is set to entirely revamp the network and its workplace.

Moonves left the company in September after reports detailing sexual harassment and assault allegations from six women against the media executive, an investigation found that Moonves violated company policies and refused to cooperate with the investigation.

According to Forbes Moonves was one of the highest-paid CEOs in the US, worth an estimated $700 million. 

Zirinsky will take over in March, the network said.

SEE ALSO: Les Moonves left CBS in September with a net worth of $700 million. Now, he won't get a dime of his $120 million severance

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• FX and Netflix both won three awards during Sunday's Golden Globes ceremony.
• Netflix was behind Amazon and HBO in nominations, but the latter two networks won just a single prize each.
• Amazon, HBO, and Hulu won top prizes last year.

Netflix and FX led the Golden Globes in the TV categories during Sunday's ceremony with three awards each, while other networks like HBO and Amazon failed to make much of an impression.

FX's "The Americans" won the Globe for best drama series, and "The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story" won the prize for best limited series and best actor in a limited series for Darren Criss.

Netflix's "The Kominsky Method" won the Globe for best comedy series and best actor in a comedy series for Michael Douglas. "Bodyguard," a British TV series that Netflix exclusively streamed outside the UK in 2018, picked up the award for best actor in a drama for Richard Madden.

Netflix also won two more prizes on the film side, as Alfonso Cuarón's "Roma" won best foreign language film and best director.

The Globes painted a positive picture for the future of streaming and highlighted the changing television landscape, as broadcast networks were completely shut out. NBC's "The Good Place" was nominated for best comedy series and best actress. NBC's "Will and Grace" and CBS's "Murphy Brown" were also nominated for best actress in a comedy. They all came up short.

Besides FX, streaming companies and premium cable networks — HBO, Amazon, Netflix, and Showtime — led in nominations.

Amazon and HBO led Netflix in TV nominations this year with nine while Netflix gained eight. But the latter managed to beat out its streaming competitors in wins, as Amazon and HBO both won just a single award.

Rachel Brosnahan repeated her win from last year for best actress in a comedy series for Amazon's "The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel." And HBO's "Sharp Objects" won the award for best supporting actress for Patricia Clarkson.

It was a different story last year, when "The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel" won best comedy series, Hulu's "The Handmaid's Tale" won best drama series, and HBO's "Big Little Lies" won best limited series. Hulu trailed dramatically this year with just two nominations and no wins.

Wins by network:

FX — 3

Netflix — 3

Amazon Prime Video — 1

BBC America — 1

BBC One — 1

HBO — 1

Showtime — 1

SEE ALSO: Christian Bale thanks Satan at the Golden Globes for inspiring his performance as Dick Cheney in 'Vice'

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• Grimes, who has been romantically linked to Elon Musk, tweeted "Randomly, I am in China," the same day he launched Tesla's new factory project in Shanghai.
• The pair appeared to break up last year in a tangled series of events involving a $40 million fine from the SEC, and rapper Azealia Banks.
• It isn't completely clear what kind of relationship they now have. 
• Grimes also said on Sunday: "I didnt [sic] plan to come and have arrived without a toothbrush."
• She did not say why she was in China, and asked followers for ideas of what to do.

Elon Musk's reported ex-girlfriend Grimes tweeted "Randomly, I am in China" on Monday, the same day he launched his new Tesla Gigafactory in Shanghai.

Grimes did not say what she was doing in China, or whether it was anything to do with Musk. Business Insider has contacted representatives for Grimes to ask for more details.

Grimes and Musk had a brief, high-profile relationship in 2018, which became public knowledge when they attended the Met Gala together in May. 

Business Insider has charted what we know about their relationship.

Since then, it has widely been reported in the media that they broke up. CNBC and Bloomberg have both recently referred to Grimes as Musk's ex-girlfriend, as have Tesla shareholders who recently filed a lawsuit mentioning her.

They have not spoken publicly about their relationship. They were seen together in October at a pumpkin patch near Los Angeles with Musk's children.

Earlier this week, Grimes approvingly quoted one of Musk's tweets about his SpaceX company.

On Monday Grimes said: "Randomly, I am in China. (like I didnt plan to come and have arrived without a toothbrush)."

Read more:Elon Musk and Grimes stopped following each other on social media — here's a look back on their relationship

Grimes did not say where in China she is. However, she asked followers for ideas of things to do in the capital Beijing, and also in Shanghai, where Musk was launching the Tesla factory.

In a second tweet, she asked: "What is the absolute coolest thing I can do in Beijing and Shanghai? Where is the best art?"

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• NASA's New Horizons probe flew past the giant space rock MU69 on New Year's Day.

• MU69, also called Ultima Thule, is more than 4 billion miles away from Earth, making it the farthest object ever explored.
• Queen guitarist Brian May released a new song, "New Horizons," to celebrate the historic flyby.
• This is May's first solo release in more than two decades. The guitarist has a PhD in astrophysics and also worked with NASA's New Horizons science team.

On New Year's Day, Queen guitarist Brian May released his first solo single in more than two decades.

And it celebrates an achievement of NASA's that was also many years in the making. 

The song, "New Horizons," is about NASA's successful flyby of a mysterious, mountain-sized object that's farther from Earth than anything else humanity has visited. The space rock is formally called 2014 MU69, though it's more commonly known as "Ultima Thule" (a controversial nickname — see editor's note below).

MU69 is more than 4 billion miles away from our planet and 1 billion miles beyond Pluto.

NASA's New Horizons probe, which launched toward Pluto in 2006, successfully flew past MU69 on New Year's Day. When New Horizons set off, nobody knew MU69 even existed. The object was only detected when astronauts upgraded a camera in the Hubble Space Telescope in 2009. After New Horizons completed its mission at Pluto, which it first reached in July 2015, scientists decided to send the probe to this new target.

May, who has a PhD in astrophysics, worked with the New Horizons mission's science team and was asked to write a song for the flyby. May said he was initially reluctant about the task.

The New Horizons probe's first low-resolution pictures of MU69 have revealed that the ancient object formed from two separate ones. It has reddish coloring, which scientists compared to the color of Charon, Pluto's moon.

NASA expects to receive the highest-resolution color photos of MU69 in February, though it may take two years for all of the photos and data to reach Earth.

Data acquired by New Horizons could provide new explanations about the evolution of the solar systems and how planets like Earth formed.

"Ultima is the first thing we've been to that is not big enough to have a geological engine like a planet, and also something that's never been warmed greatly by the sun," Alan Stern, who is leading the New Horizons mission, previously told Business Insider. "It's like a time capsule from 4.5 billion years ago. That's what makes it so special."

Dave Mosher contributed reporting to this story.

Editor's note: After a public campaign, the New Horizons team selected Ultima Thule as a nickname for (486958) 2014 MU69. However, we've de-emphasized it here because the Nazi party used the word "Thule" as a tenet of its ideology.

• Read more about NASA's New Horizons probe:
• NASA just pulled off humanity's farthest-ever visit to a space object — the New Horizons probe successfully flew by a mountain-size rock 1 billion miles beyond Pluto
• NASA just released the first close-up photos of the farthest object humanity has ever explored — and it looks like a giant red snowman
• Is it Planet 9 or Planet X? Scientists spar over what to call the solar system's hypothetical missing world

Join the conversation about this story »

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• "Fiji Water Girl" went viral on Sunday, after a woman in a blue dress holding Fiji Water appeared in the background of numerous red-carpet photos at the Golden Globes.
• The viral success of Fiji Water Girl at the Golden Globes is part of a long-running marketing strategy for the bottled-water brand.
• Fiji Water has featured its bottled water and "brand ambassadors" in the background of awards shows and other high-profile events for more than a decade.

Fiji Water Girl's explosive rise to fame at the Golden Globes was actually more than a decade in the making.

On Sunday evening, a woman wearing a blue dress holding Fiji Water appeared in the background of photo after photo on the red carpet at the awards ceremony.

"Before the widening eyes of the internet, Fiji Water Girl — as she has become known — morphed into the year's first show-stopping meme," Business Insider reported.

Read more:Fiji Water Girl makes a splash on the Golden Globes red carpet

Fiji Water Girl's name is Kelleth Cuthbert, and she is a Los Angeles model and a brand ambassador for Fiji Water. She was actually one of several brand ambassadors carrying Fiji Water at the Golden Globes.

While Fiji Water Girl may be Fiji's most viral success, the brand is a common presence at high-profile Hollywood events.

In many ways, the viral success of Fiji Water Girl at the Golden Globes was a long time coming.

Fiji Water made an appearance at Billboard's Women in Music event last month

Fiji Water Girls also lurked in the background of photos at the 2018 Independent Spirit Awards

In fact, you could spot Fiji Water Girls back in 2012

"For more than a decade, Fiji Water has proudly maintained a presence at high-profile events, including major award shows, international film festivals and movie premieres," Fiji said in a statement.

"As the official water sponsor of the Golden Globes, Fiji Water, along with its Fiji Brand Ambassadors, hydrated guests on the red carpet and during the star-studded show," the statement continued. "Fiji Water will continue to hydrate more of Hollywood this coming awards season."

With Fiji Water Girl going viral at 2019's first major awards event, one can only imagine the water brand is only going to get bolder as awards season continues.

SEE ALSO: Pizza Hut is going to deliver beer from hundreds of locations across the US

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NOW WATCH: Animated map shows where your bottled water actually comes from

• Director Bryan Singer thanked the Hollywood Foreign Press Association after "Bohemian Rhapsody" won the Golden Globe for best drama on Sunday.
• Fox fired Singer late into production on the film and replaced him with Dexter Fletcher because Singer was repeatedly absent from set.
• Fox's "For Your Consideration" Oscar-campaign website includes Bryan Singer for best director for "Bohemian Rhapsody."

The Queen biopic "Bohemian Rhapsody" was the unexpected big winner at Sunday's Golden Globes, taking home the prize for best drama and best actor in a drama for Rami Malek, who plays Queen frontman Freddie Mercury.

The movie's credited director, Bryan Singer, took to Instagram after the win to thank the Hollywood Foreign Press Association, the voting body that decides the Golden Globes winners. Singer posted a photo from the set of the movie, and wrote, "What an honor. Thank you #HollywoodForeignPress." 

READ MORE: Netflix and FX won big at the Golden Globes, while HBO stumbled

But the movie's sudden ascension through awards season has been met with controversy. The movie came to theaters in November after a troubled production, in which Singer was regularly absent from set to the point where Fox had to replace him with Dexter Fletcher late into filming.

However, Singer was still credited as the sole director of the movie, which has made $743 million worldwide. Director's Guild of America rules stipulate that a movie must have one director or director-team credit, and Fletcher said that he did not want to be credited.

Fox currently lists Singer for consideration for best director on its Oscars campaign website, as seen below. Fox lists all categories for its awards films on the website, but the inclusion of Singer is still puzzling considering Fox fired him.

On top of the controversy surrounding the film, Singer has also faced allegations that he sexually assaulted a 17-year-old at a party in 2003. He has denied it. Singer also responded to a yet-to-be published Esquire article in October that he claimed would "attempt to rehash false accusations and bogus lawsuits."

Neither Malek or the movie's producers mentioned Singer during their acceptance speeches at the Globes. 

SEE ALSO: Christian Bale thanks Satan at the Golden Globes for inspiring his performance as Dick Cheney in 'Vice'

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• "Bodyguard," a hit British TV series Netflix is streaming outside of the UK, won the Golden Globe award for best actor in a drama series on Sunday.
• The show stars "Game of Thrones" actor Richard Madden and has a 92% critics score on Rotten Tomatoes.
• Netflix regularly works with international production companies to nab global distribution rights, and has acquired a number of other British shows, including "The End of the F---ing World."

Netflix added to its impressive catalog of British TV series in October with "Bodyguard," a thriller starring "Game of Thrones" alum Richard Madden. It's paid off for the streaming giant, as the show won the Golden Globe award for best actor in a drama series (Madden) on Sunday. It was also nominated for best drama series.

The series debuted on Netflix on October 24 and has a 92% Rotten Tomatoes critic score. Netflix describes the series this way: "After helping thwart a terrorist attack, a war veteran is assigned to protect a politician who was a main proponent of the very conflict he fought in."

READ MORE: Fox fired 'Bohemian Rhapsody' director Bryan Singer, but he still thanked the Golden Globes for the movie's big win

Indiewire called it "a gripping and thoroughly entertaining adventure that’s emotionally deft." The Hollywood Reporter said it's "six-plus hours of pulse-pounding action and brain-bending twists."

The show originally premiered on the UK's BBC network in late August and grabbed viewers with its twists and turns. It's just one of many British series to be streamed outside of the UK by Netflix, which regularly works with international production companies to acquire global distribution rights, according to Deadline, which first reported the "Bodyguard" deal in September.

Other British shows that Netflix has acquired include cult hit "The Frankenstein Chronicles," which stars another former "Game of Thrones" actor, Sean Bean; "Collateral," starring Carey Mulligan; "Wanderlust," starring Toni Collette; and "The End of the F---ing World," which Netflix renewed for a second season.

It's a strategy that has worked in both Netflix and UK networks' favor, as Netflix is able to introduce the shows to a wider audience (and win awards). Some series don't manage to grab audiences in the UK, but once streamed on Netflix, shows like BBC's "The Last Kingdom" found success. Its third season debuted in November.

SEE ALSO: Netflix and FX won big at the Golden Globes, while HBO stumbled

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• The Golden Globes were full of surprise wins on Sunday night.
• They included "Bohemian Rhapsody" beating out "A Star Is Born" for best picture and Glenn Close beating Lady Gaga for best actress.
• In a year when the Oscar race is relatively wide open, Golden Globe wins are more important than ever.

You may have been scratching your head while watching the Golden Globes on Sunday night, perhaps wondering why a hyped movie like "A Star Is Born" didn't win any of the evening's major awards but Glenn Close took home one for a movie you probably had to visit IMDb to confirm actually existed.

But the surprise wins are just the latest sign that there will be few certainties on Oscar night on February 24. And that's great news for ABC, which airs the biggest night in Hollywood, and for those of us who watch the marathon ceremony. It will be a welcome change.

Recent Oscar nights have played out (for the most part) as the Oscar pundits said they would, and we've needed a colossal fail, like the best picture envelope mix-up, to bring any juice to the telecast.

But why is this year so different from others?

Simply put, this Oscar season has no runaway hit movie, so it looks as if it will be a pack of titles sprinting to the finish (especially in the best picture category) — and spending a lot of money campaigning along the way.

Since September, when the Venice, Telluride, and Toronto film festivals set the foundation for the movies that would be in the conversation this awards season — such as Netflix's "Roma," Warner Bros.' "A Star Is Born," Universal's "Green Book," Fox Searchlight's "The Favourite," and Annapurna's "If Beale Street Could Talk" — the contenders have only increased in number with Fox's "Bohemian Rhapsody" and Annapurna's "Vice."

And unlike most years, there was also a crop of pre-September movies that have had legitimate Oscar campaigns. That is rare. These include Disney's "Black Panther" (opened in February), Paramount's "A Quite Place" (April), and Warner Bros.' "Crazy Rich Asians" (August). All of these could be nominated in multiple major categories, including best picture.

With this mix of titles, it has been a bloated race to handicap this year (and shows why 2018 was such a successful year for movies). But until the Golden Globes, most of the "experts" had been confident that "A Star Is Born" was still the frontrunner when it came to best picture.

But then the Golden Globes happened Sunday night.

Historically, the industry has thought of the Globes as a fun night — but not the best indicator of what will happen at the Oscars. There are about 90 members who make up the Hollywood Foreign Press Association, which votes on the Golden Globe winners, and none of them are Oscar voters. But in a year when it seems all conventional wisdom on Oscar season has gone out the window (I mean, Netflix has a legitimate chance for the first time to win multiple Oscars in major categories with "Roma"), what happened at the Globes on Sunday night could have big ramifications.

Surprise wins for "Green Book" in the categories of best musical or comedy as well as best screenplay (Mahershala Ali winning for best supporting actor was pretty likely) gave the movie an extra push as we enter the home stretch for Oscar season. And "Bohemian Rhapsody" getting the win for best drama over favorites like "A Star Is Born" and "Black Panther" took it from a title on the bubble to a real contender for a best picture nomination.

Read more: Netflix and FX won big at the Golden Globes, while HBO stumbled

And what made Sunday's wins all the more important was that Oscar voting for nominations opened Monday (voting closes on January 14, with nominations announced on January 22). It's hard to imagine that what happened at the Globes won't affect the way some Academy members vote.

But if you still believe that this year is like any other, and that the Globes don't mean squat, let's look at the Producers Guild Awards. The PGA, like many of the guild nominations (Screen Actors Guild, Directors Guild, and Writers Guild), holds a lot more weight in the eyes of award-season pundits because those members are also mostly Academy voters.

If you look at the 10 movies nominated for its top prize, "Bohemian Rhapsody" and "Green Book" are among them. With Golden Globe wins and PGA nominations, these two titles look certain to receive best picture Oscar nominations.

With the best picture category most likely going with the full 10 nominees this year, we are looking at the first year in a while when you can make a case that more than two films have a real shot.

And that goes for the lead actor and actress categories as well.

After Glenn Close's surprise win for her performance in "The Wife" at the Globes on Sunday, there's now a three-way race for best actress. The other favorites are Lady Gaga for "A Star Is Born" and Olivia Colman for "The Favourite" (who won a Globe for best actress in a musical or comedy). And over on the best actor side, Bradley Cooper for "A Star Is Born" and Christian Bale for "Vice" (who won best actor in a musical or comedy at the Globes) now have competition from Rami Malek thanks to his win Sunday in the category of best actor in a drama for playing Freddie Mercury in "Bohemian Rhapsody."

Perhaps it will be a good thing if there isn't an Oscar host this year, because it will bring more focus to the exciting races that some of the big categories of the evening will have. For once!

SEE ALSO: Fox fired "Bohemian Rhapsody" director Bryan Singer, but he still thanked the Golden Globes for the movie's big win

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• "Chopped" host Ted Allen gives us a taste of what it's like on the set of the Food Network's intense cooking competition.
• After 10 years of making "Chopped," they've got it down to a science.
• There are around 12 camera operators capturing every square inch of the studio.
• Each round is scrupulously timed, and the mystery basket ingredients are a complete surprise to the contestants.

Ted Allen: We are throwing them into the deep end of the pool, and we wanna see what happens. And that's where the excitement comes from. Our show is totally real.

My name is Ted Allen, I'm the host of the show "Chopped" on the Food Network. I had never been on camera before I was on Queer Eye, and somehow, I know that TV cameras freak a lot of people out, it's just never bothered me. When I'm doing "Chopped," I'm just being me.

We have a rotating array of nine judges, who have become just fast friends, we're all so close. We're so passionate about food. All we have to do is show up on time, and talk about cooking techniques, and ingredients that we love, and ingredients that we don't love, and how things might be put together best. And the proof is on the plate, you know. So, if it's good, it's good, and it's not, see ya.

The casting actually is quite a complicated process. We're looking for chefs who are interesting and colorful, and that have great skills. We want people from all over the country, every possible walk of life, different ages. We wanna have plenty of women and plenty of men. And it's harder than it might seem. As difficult as it is to do the show, to compete on the show, it never ceases to amaze me how many people wanna do it.

TV is a little more complicated to make than it is to watch, and TV that involves food is particularly complicated because, obviously, everything has to be safe, and fresh. It's about a 12-hour day to make a 46-minute show.

Someone has to decide what ingredients are going into the baskets. Every basket has a riddle in it, that is known to the people who make the basket. I doubt that in a 20-minute cooking round, many of the chefs figure out that riddle. They just start chopping. But, if we give you say, silken tofu, and lavash bread, and tomatillos, maybe we're looking for a riff on grilled cheese and tomato soup. Good luck figuring that out.

I get picked up at 6:30 in the morning, which is much too early. So we get there, we have a little breakfast, I get into wardrobe, I read my script, and make sure I'm happy with it and change a few things here and there. For a regular episode, I'm up there by about eight.

The first round is 20 minutes, the second and third rounds are each 30 minutes, but there are a whole lot of shots that have to be shot before those rounds can begin. There are so many different angles that we have to shoot. We've got something like 10, 12 cameras going.

Some of the most dramatic moments in a competition like "Chopped" happen unexpectedly. For example, let's say somebody drops a steak on the floor, and they decide to go ahead and serve it anyway. We need to make sure that we have a shot of that steak hitting the floor, and that's why we need the coverage from so many cameras because we don't reenact things. We don't stage things, and we have to capture everything.

The rounds are scrupulously, strictly timed, and people have exactly 20 or 30 minutes to get done. If they're not done, too bad. There are actually laws about shooting game shows that have cash prizes. There are strict rules about the way these shows are run, and you have to live by those rules. First of all, the chefs do not know what's in the mystery baskets. Scrupulously, that is kept from them. They open the basket, they typically have about two minutes before they have to start cooking.

With the ingredients that are in each mystery basket, we're looking for variety, we're looking for, we wanna represent different ethnic cuisines, we wanna represent American favorites. I think the audience likes it best when the basket ingredients are horrifying. We've had pickled pig lips on.

We're lucky enough to be shooting in New York City, which has markets that sell absolutely everything. There is at least one shop in Chinatown that sells nothing but mushrooms. New York is such a great food capital that we can get anything we need.

Once in a while, we'll give people a basket that looks like it's a slam dunk, you know, New York strip steak, and potato, and some cheddar cheese. And it seems like the easier the basket, the worse the dishes. It seems like the chefs almost need to be challenged with, you know, something really scary like a whole chicken in a can.

We have to base our decisions on what is on the plate. Sometimes, the winner of a "Chopped" competition is not our favorite person. You can't base the decision on who is popular, who is charming, who is cute. You can't. The rules sort of save us from that. If somebody omits a mystery basket ingredient, that's a huge mistake, but somebody else maybe could burn two of the ingredients, or undercook one of the ingredients, and burn another, and we find ourselves asking all the time, "What is the greater crime?"

Cooking can definitely be dangerous. There are flames, there are sharp edges, there's a small amount of counter space. We have surprisingly few injuries, and what we've had have always been minor.

I've been doing this for 10 years, and I never get bored with it. The only problem I have with hosting "Chopped" is that my feet hurt. Whenever you start a show, there's no guarantee of success, and so they typically will order a modest number of episodes, I think our first order was 13 episodes. We had no way of knowing what our longevity was gonna be, or whether people would embrace it.

I think "Chopped" succeeds in part because of the excitement and the tension. We're forcing them to cook with ingredients that they didn't get to choose. But I also think that all of us who cook have had those nights when the kids are screaming for something, and you haven't had a chance to go to the market, and you open up the fridge, and you have to make do with what you have.

I love working at Food Network for a lot of reasons. I think probably my favorite aspect is — the relationships that I've built with all these really, really talented chefs. And, I mean, I have Alex Guarnaschelli's phone number. If I have a problem with a recipe, I can text her. I also think that our judges are super knowledgeable, very entertaining, funny.

We've had a little bit of foment in our judges' ranks and our most recent acquisition, Martha Stewart, I think is a very, very exciting one. I've been a fan of hers for 25 years, and now I get to work with her, it's amazing. I'm super grateful, super proud, I love our team, it's a well-oiled machine, really great people, and led almost entirely by women, which I think is exciting in television, and we're happy to keep making them as long as you wanna watch 'em.

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• On Friday, MoviePass posted a job listing for a human resources position. 
• The company has not had a dedicated HR department since its two-person staff was fired in November.
• Business Insider reported in December that some MoviePass employees had made allegations of inappropriate behavior.

After trying to operate a productive workplace without a dedicated human resources department since November, MoviePass is looking for some help. 

On Friday, the movie-ticket subscription startup posted a job listing for a "HR Generalist" which would, according to the job description, "partner with Management team to champion our culture and values."

"Your focus will be on partnering with the members of our team, creating exciting career paths, and fostering a community of high performance, innovation, and teamwork," the listing, which was posted on LinkedIn, continued.

The job listing went up on the same day Business Insider posted excerpts of a 704-word resignation letter by a former MoviePass product manager, Eric Jeng. Jeng sent the email resignation to the whole company on Wednesday. In that letter, Jeng implored MoviePass to get a "functional and qualified HR department."

Read more: Christian Bale thanks Satan at the Golden Globes for inspiring his performance as Dick Cheney in "Vice"

"When leadership decided to fire our only qualified HR employees, they sent a very clear message that they care very little about employee safety and security," Jeng wrote. "There currently is no effective outlet for employees to discuss issues about their comfort and safety in the workplace."

MoviePass was not immediately available to comment about the job listing to Business Insider.

In November, MoviePass' two-person HR team was fired, leaving the duties to Jake Petersen, a senior vice president at the company. Since then, there was one instance when payroll was delayed a few hours getting to employees, according to an all-hands email obtained by Business Insider. (MoviePass told Business Insider "there was never any likelihood it would not" pay employees on pay day.) MoviePass also had to deal with employee reaction to Business Insider's reporting in December on employee allegations of inappropriate behavior by marketing consultant Bob Ellis toward some female staffers.

In Jeng's letter, he wrote that he was "disappointed" in the company's response to allegations of inappropriate behavior. Though it's unclear what allegations Jeng was referring to, or whom they were against, four current and former MoviePass employees told Business Insider they believed Jeng was referring to Ellis.

"It is clear to me that our work environment has become simply too dangerous and toxic," Jeng wrote in his resignation letter, also saying that team morale at MoviePass "worsens and worsens, with no end in sight."

In addition to full health, dental, and vision package, the benefits listed by the job posting included a MoviePass card. 

SEE ALSO: A bootleg version of hit Japanese zombie movie "One Cut of the Dead" showed up on Amazon Prime Video and insiders worry it has put a US release in jeopardy

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NOW WATCH: Bernie Madoff was arrested 10 years ago today — here's what his life is like in prison

• Netflix's "Roma," "Bodyguard," and "The Kominsky Method" took home prizes at the Golden Globes on Sunday.
• "Bodyguard" shows that Netflix's strategy of acquiring streaming rights to British shows is paying off.
• "Roma" further positioned itself as an awards contender with two wins.

Netflix flexed its awards muscles on Sunday in the face of heavy competition to win five Golden Globes across TV and film categories.

The streaming company, which has long positioned itself as an industry disrupter, entered the night behind its rivals HBO and Amazon in TV nominations. But thanks to surprise wins for its new comedy, "The Kominsky Method," and its hit British series, "Bodyguard," Netflix left the Globes ahead.

Netflix has built an impressive catalog of British shows by acquiring exclusive rights to stream the shows outside of the UK. The strategy has benefited both Netflix and British TV networks, as the shows are introduced to a wider audience and can reel in subscribers. "The End of the F------ World" and "The Last Kingdom" are two other British shows that have become hits thanks to Netflix.

Read more: Shocking Golden Globe winners like 'Green Book' and Glenn Close confirmed we're in for a wild Oscar night

It wasn't just a good night on the TV side, though. Alfonso Cuarón's "Roma" won two film awards, further cementing it as a formidable awards player ahead of the Oscars.

In an effort to heighten its awards chances, "Roma" was one of several movies that Netflix released exclusively in theaters before making them available to stream. It was an unusual move for the streaming giant, which usually releases content using a day-and-date schedule (releasing content in theaters and on streaming on the same day).

But Netflix had very specific demands for "Roma," and numerous theaters, including Alamo Drafthouse, passed on showing it because Netflix wanted the movie to play a full, four-week run in 70 mm, Business Insider reported in November.

Now that "Roma" has overcome those hurdles to win two Golden Globes, the real test will be the Oscars next month. Netflix's reputation for disrupting the industry still doesn't sit well with some in Hollywood, and it has never been a fierce Oscar contender until now.

It will need to win over 8,000 members of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences who vote on the Oscars, as opposed to the 90 members of the Hollywood Foreign Press Association who vote on the Globes.

Below are all of Netflix's Golden Globe wins this year:

• Best Foreign Language Film — "Roma" Watch it here
• Best Director — Alfonso Cuarón, "Roma"
• Best Comedy Series — "The Kominsky Method" Watch it here
• Best Actor in a Comedy Series — Michael Douglas, "The Kominsky Method"
• Best Actor in a Drama Series — Richard Madden, "Bodyguard" Watch it here

SEE ALSO: Fox fired 'Bohemian Rhapsody' director Bryan Singer, but he still thanked the Golden Globes for the movie's big win

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NOW WATCH: The true story behind the name 'Black Friday' is much darker than you may have thought

• LG's absurdly thin "Signature" series of TVs is getting even more absurd: The latest model is a "rollable" TV.
• When not being used, the skinny TV rolls down into a box that also doubles as a soundbar.
• There's no price or release date just yet, but LG says the rollable TV will ship in 2019.

Before reading any further, you have to see this new television in action:

Pretty impressive, right?

That's the rollable TV from LG. With the press of a button, it disappears into a relatively small rectangular box.

But the LG Signature OLED TV R, as it's officially known, is more than just novel trickery — it's a unique, impressive approach to new TV design. It was unveiled on Monday during the opening day of the annual Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, and it's already a standout of the event.

Here's what we know about it thus far:

SEE ALSO: The futuristic LG TV that rolls itself in and out of a box could hit living rooms in 2019 — check it out in action

The first wallpaper-thin, rollable TV from LG was shown during a stage presentation on Monday at the annual Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas:

As you can see above, there are varying levels of openness to the rollable TV from LG — this was actually shown previously, last year when LG debuted a prototype at the 2018 Consumer Electronics Show. 

The difference in this case is that the proof of concept has become a reality: The LG Signature OLED TV R is the next step in the evolution of its "Signature" edition TVs — announcing for the first time a consumer version of the rollable TV concept.

The thinness of the Signature series gets put to good use in a rollable format, and the gimmick of a rollable TV becomes a genuinely useful feature. 

It's a gorgeous display capable of top-of-the-line visuals:

LG's Signature series boasts 4K Ultra HD / HDR capability that's as good or better than the competition, and it does it on an OLED screen that's less than a quarter-inch thick. 

With the LG Signature OLED TV R, LG is putting that capability into a 65-inch screen that rolls into a relatively slim, attractive piece of furniture when you're not using it.

Here's what that might look like if you lived in an impossibly nice Manhattan apartment with remote-operated windows and a supervillain-like view of the New York City skyline:

The idea is simple and logical: To hide the massive black rectangles — screens— that are prevalent in the modern home.

LG's solution is to roll it into an austere rectangular box that's easily mistaken for modernist furniture. 

The TV can also be used as a slimmer screen for simple functions, like listening to music or seeing the weather and time:

One benefit of the design of LG's rollable TV is that it can be used in more ways than a standard TV. In "Line" mode, it's got a dedicated user interface that enables music playback and conveys information like time and weather. You can even use the built-in Amazon Alexa assistant to command it with your voice.

Better still: Even when the display is all the way closed, the soundbar built into the base can be used as a speaker. And for you audio heads out there, LG describes the soundbar as a, "4.2-channel, 100W front-firing Dolby Atmos audio system."

• Solider 76 is one of the original heroes of "Overwatch," the massively popular first-person shooter that debuted in May 2016.
• "Overwatch" creator Activision Blizzard recently released an official short story that describes a romantic relationship between Soldier 76 and a man named Vincent.
• The revelation was largely met with an enthusiastic response. 
• Solider 76 is the second "Overwatch" character to be identified as queer. Tracer, a British hero, was confirmed to be a lesbian in an official comic book from 2016.

A short story tie-in to one of the most popular games in the world revealed that one of the game's most recognizable characters is gay — generating an enthusiastic response from fans, many of whom had already suspected as much. 

On Monday, "Overwatch" creator Activision-Blizzard released the short story titled "Bastet," which focuses on two of the game's heroes, Solider 76 and Ana. As the characters discuss their shared history, Ana comes across a picture of a young Soldier 76 alongside another man. It's revealed that the other man, Vincent, was once a love interest for Soldier 76, but they ultimately broke up.

While the relationship is just a small anecdote in the larger story, it served as confirmation for long-held speculation about Solider 76's sexuality. Some fans were confident that the character was gay based on his relationships with the game's other heroes, while others felt that he took on an asexual role as the patriarch of "Overwatch." Michael Chu, the lead writer of "Overwatch," later confirmed on Twitter that Solider 76, a super-soldier once known as Jack Thompson, identifies as gay.

LGBTQ fans seem to have embraced the news and welcomed Soldier 76 as the game's second gay character. Another of the original "Overwatch" heroes, Tracer, was revealed to be a lesbian in an official 2016 comic book. Fans have shared jokes and memes across social media as they celebrate the news.

One fan pointed out that the picture of Jack and Vincent was present in the same comic featuring Tracer's lesbian relationship:

Another bisexual fan showed off his Soldier 76 jacket with pride:

Well-known esports champion Dominique "SonicFox" McLean, who is gay, made an affectionate (but slightly risqué) joke on his Twitter, too. 

While the response to the reveal of Soldier 76's sexuality has been overwhelming positive, not everybody is happy with how Blizzard has handled it. A few skeptical Overwatch players have questioned why Blizzard waited so long to address the character's sexuality. Others have openly wondered whether if Blizzard will make the queerness an active part of these characters' identities, or if their sexuality will ultimately become trivia.

"I mean, that's great that #Soldier76 is gay but let's be f**king real. #Overwatch is never going to do anything with it," wrote one Twitter user. 

SEE ALSO: Eight teams paid more than $30 million each to join the Overwatch League – here's everything you need to know before the new season starts

SEE ALSO: The newest 'Overwatch' character is a deadly gunslinger with a grudge to bear

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NOW WATCH: How Singapore solved garbage disposal

• It's time to start looking ahead to this year's big games!
• Things kick off soon with the launch of a long-awaited sequel, "Kingdom Hearts 3," in late January.
• Some major games are expected in 2019: "The Last of Us: Part II" on PlayStation 4 and a brand new "Pokémon" game for the Nintendo Switch are highlights of the year.

With 2018 in the past, we're hurriedly preparing for 2019's major video game launches. 

What does the new year bring? Plenty! The year starts with a trip into the worlds of Disney with the long-awaited arrival of "Kingdom Hearts 3" in January. Not too long after that, the folks behind "Mass Effect" have a brand-new series launching in February: "Anthem." 

And that's just the first two months of the year! Here's a look at 2019 in games:

SEE ALSO: Forget about 'Fortnite' — the new 'Call of Duty' makes 6 brilliant changes to the Battle Royale formula

1. "Resident Evil 2" (re-mastered)

The long-awaited remake of fan-favorite horror classic "Resident Evil 2" is nearly ready — it's set to arrive early in 2019, just like so many other great games currently in development.

"Resident Evil 2" introduced the world to Leon S. Kennedy (seen above) — the main character in "Resident Evil 4." Kennedy and Claire Redfield find themselves in the middle of a surprise zombie outbreak in the fictional town of Raccoon City. It's an action-packed introduction to many of the major themes of the "Resident Evil" franchise, and it's getting gorgeously remade for modern consoles.

Release Date: January 25, 2019

Platform(s): Xbox One, PlayStation 4, PC

2. "Kingdom Hearts 3"

Woody, Buzz, Rex and the rest of the "Toy Story" gang are moving from film to video games with "Kingdom Hearts 3," an upcoming Xbox One and PlayStation 4 action-adventure game.

The game is the long-anticipated third entry in the "Kingdom Hearts" series — the last major entry, "Kingdom Hearts 2," launched all the way back in 2005 on the PlayStation 2. In "Kingdom Hearts," various Disney characters and their worlds are mashed up with characters that would be right at home in a "Final Fantasy" game.

Alongside the cast of "Toy Story" (and their Earth-like setting), "Kingdom Hearts 3" also stars Goofy and Donald Duck. You may've noticed a third character here — that's "Sora," the main character of "Kingdom Hearts 3" and who you'll play as.

Release Date: January 29, 2019

Platform(s): PlayStation 4, Xbox One

3. "Far Cry New Dawn"

A new "Far Cry" game? Didn't one of those come out, like, in 2018?

Yep! That game was "Far Cry 5," and it came out back in late March on PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and PC. The open-world first-person shooter was set in America for the first time ever, and featured a new antagonist: a maniacal cult leader with nuclear ambitions.

"Far Cry New Dawn" is a sequel to that game, set in a post-apocalypse Montana 17 years after the events of "Far Cry 5." The trailer alludes to a period of extreme weather following a nuclear detonation, eventually leading to a new world — a world where people shoot sawblades from crossbows, apparently.

Release Date: February 15, 2019

Platform(s): Xbox One, PlayStation 4, PC

• Sony's PlayStation 4 has now sold over 91 million units.
• The PlayStation 4 is, by far, the most popular console in the world.
• Over 5.6 million PlayStation 4 consoles were sold during the 2018 holiday season.

Sony's PlayStation 4 continues to dominate Microsoft's Xbox One and Nintendo's Switch.

As of December 31, the PlayStation 4 surpassed 91.6 million consoles sold. That puts Sony in the lead by a mile.

More specifically, Sony's PlayStation 4 sales are more than double that of the closest competition — the "closest competition," of course, being Microsoft's Xbox One.

Though Microsoft no longer reports sales numbers for its Xbox One console, estimates put the Xbox One somewhere in the realm of 30 - 60 million units sold.

During just the holiday season ending December 31, Sony sold over 5.6 million PlayStation 4 consoles. Doesn't sound like a lot? Even Nintendo's hot new console, the Switch, sold just 4.7 million units in its first four months.

And just one of Sony's big PlayStation 4 exclusives, "Marvel's Spider-Man," sold nearly 10 million copies since it launched in September.

The continued success of the PlayStation 4 is due to several different factors:

• The PlayStation 4 was the less expensive console when it launched in 2013, coming in at $100 less than Microsoft's Xbox One.
• The PlayStation 4 is an attractive box that easily fits into your home, and using it as more than a game console is a snap.
• A lineup of killer blockbuster games, from "Uncharted 4: A Thief's End" to "Horizon Zero Dawn" to "Bloodborne," made the PlayStation 4 a must-have console. All three of those games are only playable on PS4.
• The exclusives have gotten even better over time: Both "Spider-Man" and "God of War" arrived in 2018, and they were both excellent.
• Success begets success — the PlayStation 4 has overtaken the zeitgeist as "the" game console to own if you're going to buy a game console.
• There were incredible sales on the PlayStation 4 during the holiday season, with some retailers offering the console and a game for as low as $200.

Though Sony's exclusive game lineup isn't full of bangers in the coming months, an impressive array of major exclusives are currently in the works: "Ghost of Tsushima," "Death Stranding," and "The Last of Us: Part II" are all standouts coming exclusively to the PlayStation 4.

And if you're looking for a way to enjoy more 4K content on your new 4K TV, the PlayStation 4 Pro offers an upgrade path to even prettier games.

All of which is to say one thing: Sony's PlayStation 4 isn't showing any signs of slowing down.

SEE ALSO: The 10 best PlayStation 4 games for your new console

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NOW WATCH: China made an artificial star that's 6 times as hot as the sun, and it could be the future of energy

• A "Venom" sequel is in the works with writer Kelly Marcel, a writer of the first movie, according to Variety.
• With the stunning success of "Venom," and "Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse" winning a Golden Globe on Sunday, Sony's Spider-Man movie universe shows no signs of slowing down.
• Sony owns the rights to 900 Marvel characters, and has several other Marvel movies in development.

"Venom" was one of 2018's most surprising success stories.

It broke the October opening weekend box-office record with $80 million, and went on to score $855 million worldwide. Tom Hardy's bizarre comic-book movie, which is based on one of Spider-Man's most popular enemies, shattered expectations, so it's no surprise that a follow up is on the way.

Sony is developing a "Venom" sequel with Kelly Marcel, a writer on the first movie, set to write the script. Variety first reported the news on Monday, citing anonymous sources, and was followed by multiple outlets, including Entertainment Weekly and The Hollywood Reporter.

In November, Sony dated two Marvel releases for 2020 on July and October 2. The latter was described as an "untitled Sony/Marvel sequel," which is most likely "Venom 2."

Sony did not immediately return a request for comment.

Read more: 'Venom' gives Sony an edge over Disney in its fight to keep Spider-Man, according to industry experts

Just a few years ago, Sony's Spider-Man plans appeared to be dead. After "The Amazing Spider-Man 2" failed to excite critics and audiences in 2014, Sony struck a deal with Marvel Studios in which the latter could use Spider-Man in its Marvel Cinematic Universe, while Sony retained distribution rights and creative control.

But now, a "Venom" sequel is being fast-tracked and "Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse" has won the Golden Globe for best animated feature. With 900 Marvel characters that Sony owns the film rights to, its Spider-Man movie universe now shows no signs of slowing down. It's even referred to as "Sony's Universe of Marvel Characters" internally, or SUMC, according to Vanity Fair.

"If they consistently make films audiences want to see, Disney [which owns Marvel] will have to buy Sony to get 'Spider-Man' back," Jeff Bock, a senior box-office analyst for Exhibitor Relations, told Business Insider in November.

Besides a "Venom" sequel, Sony is also developing a Morbius movie, with Jared Leto playing Spider-Man's vampire villain; a movie about Black Cat, who is a regular love interest of Spider-Man in the comics; and a Kraven the Hunter movie, starring another of Spider-Man's biggest enemies. An all-female spin-off of "Into the Spider-Verse" is also in the works, according to The Hollywood Reporter.

"Amazing Spider-Man 2" tried setting up a "Sinister Six" movie that "Cabin in the Woods" director Drew Goddard was attached to direct. That never came to be, but Amy Pascal, the top producer behind the Spider-Man movies and spin-offs, still has hope in light of the recent success of the SUMC.

"I’m just waiting for Drew to be ready to direct it," Pascal told Vanity Fair in December. "I would do anything with Drew Goddard. I’m just waiting for him to tell me he wants to."

SEE ALSO: 9 Hollywood movies that dominated the Chinese box office in 2018, including some that underperformed in the US

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NOW WATCH: A drag ballet troupe has been performing around the world for nearly 50 years

• Netflix's new series, "The Kominsky Method," won two Golden Globes on Sunday, including best comedy series.
• The show flew under the radar until the Globes, and data from Parrot Analytics suggests it's not a major hit so far from an audience reach perspective.
• But those who have seen it seem to like it, as besides its Globes wins, it has an 80% Rotten Tomatoes critics score, and a 94% audience score.

Netflix's "The Kominsky Method," starring Michael Douglas and Alan Arkin, won two Golden Globes on Sunday, despite flying mostly under the radar. Data from research company Parrot Analytics suggests that the show hasn't been a major hit for Netflix from an audience reach perspective.

The new series, which debuted in November on the streaming giant, snagged three nominations and two wins at this year's Golden Globes, including best comedy series and best actor in a comedy (Douglas).

But it didn't have much buzz going into the award show. Parrot told Business Insider that the show was ranked "just below" its top 100 streaming shows in the US in the week leading up to the Globes (December 31 to January 6).

READ MORE: Netflix won 5 Golden Globes for TV shows and movies including some surprise victories

Parrot Analytics measures "demand expressions," its globally standardized TV demand measurement unit. Audience demand reflects the desire, engagement, and viewership weighted by importance, so a stream or download is a higher expression of demand than a "like" or comment on social media.

Parrot's findings track with social-media reaction during the Golden Globes. After the show's two wins, many Twitter users joked about how they had never heard of "The Kominsky Method." In the comedy category, the show was up against last year's winner, Amazon's "The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel"; HBO's "Barry"; NBC's "The Good Place"; and Showtime's "Kidding," starring Jim Carrey.

Netflix describes the series like this: "Acting coach Sandy Kominsky and best friend Norman Newlander keep each other laughing as they navigate the ups and downs of getting older."

Critics have been positive about the show, but not blown away. It has an 80% Rotten Tomatoes critic score. Those who did like it praised the acting of Douglas and Arkin, two giants in the industry.

"Seeing these two Oscar-winning actors play off each other is like an acting workshop in itself," Jana Monji wrote for RogerEbert.com.

Viewers who have seen it have been more enthusiastic than critics, and the show currently has a 94% audience score from over 100 user ratings on Rotten Tomatoes.

SEE ALSO: Netflix's hit British series, 'Bodyguard,' won a Golden Globe and has a 92% on Rotten Tomatoes

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• AT&T is introducing new data tools that allow advertisers to pull together set-top box data, stats from Turner, and data from Xandr, its ad and analytics division.
• Xandr wants other networks and publishers to adopt its technology, including Open A.P., a consortium among Viacom, Turner, NBCUniversal, and Fox that lets advertisers create cross-network targeting segments.
• But both NBCUniversal and Viacom have their own data tools for advertisers.
• Buyers say they want to see networks work together on more long-term efforts like measurement and attribution.

When AT&T acquired Time Warner's properties including Turner, HBO, and Warner Bros., the media giant promised advertisers access to troves of valuable telecom data to target and measure TV ads as they do with digital ads on Facebook and Google.

For decades, TV advertisers have bought advertising through upfront, negotiated deals. In turn, networks have pitched advertisers on specific programming and shows, promising them prominent placements within premium content. But a rise in cord-cutting and concerns about how effective TV advertising is for driving sales has some marketers concerned that the TV industry cannot keep pace with changes in how digital ads are purchased and targeted with sophisticated technology.

Now, advertisers are starting to get a peek at AT&T's lofty goal of shaking up TV advertising, specifically when it comes to matching up AT&T's first-party set-top box data, Turner's own audience demographic data, and Xandr, AT&T's new advertising and analytics division.

"Clients are coming to us and choosing the audience targets that they would like to buy on Turner across our entire portfolio," Donna Speciale, the president of Turner ad sales, told Business Insider.

Read more:AT&T has lofty ambitions to change the way TV advertising is sold, but ad buyers worry it will become a walled garden like Facebook and Google

AT&T is rolling out a few new ways for advertisers to buy and eventually measure TV ads:

• Advertisers can pull data from AT&T's 40 million set-top boxes and Xandr's mobile data to set up audience segments (like people in the market for a car or horror movie buffs) for TV ad targeting.
• Xandr's first-party data can be plugged into Turner's digital advertising on its sites like CNN and Bleacher Report.
• Branded content campaigns purchased with Turner can be distributed across Xandr's addressable TV market to more than 15 million homes.

AT&T wants to speed up how long it takes advertisers to run targeted TV ads

One of the challenges with running targeted TV campaigns is that it can take weeks or even months to organize the data that an advertiser is using (like CRM or third-party data) before a campaign runs, meaning that deals are often labor-intensive and specific for one brand. Turner's goal is to get the turnaround down to a couple weeks.

"The challenge and opportunity with this is that each client has their own individual audience segments that they want to target," Speciale said.

While still limited to a wide group of advertisers, the initial results have been promising. In a test with a campaign for AT&T Mobility, the brand's ads zeroed in on military homes using the combo of set-top box, Xandr and Turner data. Turner says that AT&T Mobility reached 30% more of its audience than it did through a traditional advertising buy.

David Campanelli, co-chief investment officer at Horizon Media, has heard Turner's pitch in recent weeks and said that it could speed up how clients experiment with data-based targeting.

"Theoretically, it's a much more streamlined process and they're not going to a third party to do it," he said. "The promise of the new Xandr and Turner set-up is that they have a matching ability to their database of information and it becomes much quicker, easier and flexible."

AT&T also seems to be willing to fork over plenty of data for advertisers to play with, he said.

"It sure sounded like it was all available," he said.

Some buyers warn that if ad buying fully moves towards programmatic buying, the TV industry risks the brand-safety and transparency challenges that advertisers face when buying digital ads through programmatic technology.

"There's a lot that the tools and the data can tell us, but because it's new, networks and agencies need to really understand how the sauce is made," said Mike Law, EVP and managing director of U.S. media investment at Dentsu Aegis Network. "If we go down the road of associating audience-based buying with automation, I'm afraid that we will run into a lot of things that make consumers and brands say, 'Whoa, that's not what I wanted to get out of this.'"

AT&T wants the rest of the TV industry to adopt its tools

Turner's Speciale also suggested that her network's data play could eventually be licensed by rival networks.

"This needs to be scalable — it cannot just live within Turner's walls," she said.

Along with Fox, Viacom and NBCUniversal, Turner is part of a network consortium called Open A.P. that pools together some of networks' resources to help marketers manage their spend across multiple networks — like the ability for an advertiser to fine-tune audience segments using for targeting with all of the networks' data.

Open A.P. is a media-buying platform that buyers log into to set up campaigns. Buyers first create audience segments using the tool and the software then recommends which networks and time slots their ads should run in.

Xandr has big ambitions to use its data outside of AT&T and plug into competing networks. Some advertisers are skeptical that Xandr will treat all networks equally because of its ties to AT&T, but its initial tests with AT&T could be intriguing to other networks.

"We want to make it easier for sellers — in this case programmers — to achieve better yield, better results for their advertising inventory," said Mike Welch, Xandr's SVP of corporate strategy and development. "We would love for Open A.P. to be a part of that and would welcome that. Our goal is to build this marketplace for all publishers."

In theory, advertisers could use the data that Xandr collects on AT&T phone users' location and web browsing to see if a TV ad that ran on any TV network that was seen by the mobile user actually drove the user to a store, for example.

"It's very compelling," Dentsu Aegis Network's Law said. "It's about this opportunity to increase the fidelity of the data, the personalization of the data and to be that much more accurate with our targeting on a mass platform like television."

AT&T's pitch to sell rival networks on its technology could be easier said than done. NBCUniversal and Viacom already have similar analytics technology that they pitch to clients.

At the same time that AT&T is beginning to tap into its set-top box data, NBCUniversal has used similar data from Comcast set-top boxes for ad targeting for several years. NBCUniversal is in the process of making Comcast data available to its rival networks through Open A.P. by the middle of this year. Similar to AT&T, Comcast allows advertisers to match the first-party data collected from set-top boxes to marketers' own data.

"The audience graph and Comcast set-top box data were things that we held closely for the first few years in terms of building out that innovation, but now that we believe that it has benefitted our own portfolio, we believe that additional scale through the ecosystem will pay a dividend back to us," said Krishan Bhatia, EVP of business operations and strategy at NBCUniversal.

Bhatia did not say if Open A.P. is open to working with Xandr but said that the group is currently "in the process of selecting technology partners that we're agreeing to."

Viacom also has its own technology called Vantage that helps marketers find audiences and then buy ads against them through TV, OTT and digital ads. Fox became the first network to license Vantage in August.

According to Gabe Bevilacqua, Viacom's SVP of product management and advanced advertising, Open A.P.'s work to share audience segments is a "bigger driver in increasing overall advertiser investment" than selling or licensing the technology behind advertising.

"There is a lot of value in partnering with folks that you used to think were your competitors, coming together around standards and looking at how do we draw the line between how we compete and partner."

Advertisers want the TV industry to band together

Given how competitive networks are with each other, some advertisers are skeptical that their promises to work together will come to fruition.

"I think they consider each of their datasets the competitive advantage to the marketplace," said Lisa Herdman, SVP and director of national video investment and branded content. "In this day and time with linear TV, any sort of advantage is something that they capitalize on."

Horizon Media's Campanelli said that his agency hasn't done much testing with Open A.P. because the agency brings its own ad-targeting data from clients directly to the networks. Plus, major networks like ABC and CBS that agencies buy ads on are not part of Open A.P.

"You need everyone. Even if it's three quarters of the marketplace and you still have a quarter of the marketplace that's not connected, it's still hard for the agencies," he said. "At the end of the day, they're competitors, and I can't envision a report from Open A.P. saying 'Viacom worked, Turner didn't,' and Turner being OK with that."

Up until now, the networks have focused on pooling data to create segments for campaigns before they run. While the tests are still new, Campanelli said buyers are equally interested in better understanding attribution and whether or not the targeting was effective in persuading someone to buy a product.

"We're at that tipping point where the networks need to put skin in the game in terms of proving that this additional targeting that we're paying a premium for is actually working," he said.

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