Stars Get Chatty About Flat Golden Globes

Jan. 14, 2008 — -- The Golden Globe winners weren't gathered together to celebrate their victories, so USA TODAY caught up with some of them:

Joe Wright, who directed drama-film winner Atonement, said he watched the announcement with his cast, "the whole gang of us. We went to a hotel room and watched it on TV. It's a very exciting evening. A great roar went out." If there had been a ceremony, he would have thanked "all the people in the room with me right now. I would have thanked Ian McEwan (who wrote the source novel). I spent the day feeling slightly sick to the stomach with anxiety. And now, I should be spending the evening squeezing my fiancee's hand very tightly with a big smile on my face."

Julian Schnabel, who won best director for The Diving Bell and the Butterfly, found out when he turned on his cellphone at baggage claim after landing back in New York City. "It was perfect," he says. "It was very glamorous. It was one of those existential moments. I was extremely happy. I have to thank a lot of people. I need to thank (lead actor) Mathieu Amalric. He gives meaning to the whole thing. … I want to thank Miramax. I want to thank Jean-Dominique Bauby, the guy who wrote the book and died for our sins."

His more formal thanks: "I'd like to thank the Hollywood Foreign Press for this honor. It's a wonderful year for movies. I'd like to thank Paul Thomas Anderson, who made a great movie. When people make films, people put their guns down. It's an act of peace. They'll work this strike out. The writers should share in this revenue. We should be able to make some peace here. If we can't do it here, how they can they fix the Middle East?"

And now? "I'm gonna eat some spaghetti with my family. I'm home and that's good."

Marion Cotillard, best actress in a musical or comedy for La Vie En Rose, said she didn't expect to win. "We were at the hotel, watching on TV. Everyone around me yelled or shouted, and I just couldn't believe this. It took me a while to jump from the floor."

Her thanks would go to: "Olivier Dahan, of course, the director. He has the idea to write something about (Edith Piaf's) life, and he wrote that amazing script and he gave me the greatest adventure, the greatest role really. There are so many people you want to thank. I had an amazing time during the shooting. It was special and unique, the passion of the crew and the other actors. It was really something special. You could feel it on the set."

Is she thinking about the Oscars? "I'm living in the present time, and I don't want to think about this. When you think about this, you don't live in the now."

Glenn Close won best TV actress/drama for FX's Damages.

David Duchovny, TV actor/comedy for Showtime's Californication, said he went to a movie instead of watching the news conference. "It would give me a stomachache. I'm sitting in a dark hotel room now with a glass of wine by myself. It's great for the show. I'm very happy."

Who would he have thanked? "The creator of the show. I was really looking forward to thanking my kids (Madelaine, 8, and Kyd, 5) since I haven't won anything since they understood the English language. It would be nice to go on TV and thank them."

Javier Bardem won best supporting actor for No Country for Old Men.

Cate Blanchett got a Globe for her role in I'm Not There.

Contributing: Anthony Breznican