A promising young woman, no, not Maria Bakalova, meets Borat. It’s not the plot of the next subsequent movie film. It’s what happened at the 2021 Writers Guild Awards when Borat Subsequent Moviefilm and Promising Young Woman took the top screenplay honors.
It was yet another virtual awards ceremony, one that is normally held concurrently in New York and Los Angeles but this time was hosted from Toronto by actor and comedian Kal Penn.
Gone was the convivial cocktail chat that took place before the ceremony, which saw West Coast participants drinking at the unlikely hour of 2:30 p.m.
Instead, invited guests were treated to yet another at-home version of acceptance speeches. Unlike other shows where some of the nominees dressed in designer duds, hoodies and baseball caps were more the order of the day.
The humor still ran thick through the ceremony as it always has in the past, although everything was more subdued.
Baron Cohen joked about how most of the WGA’s membership worked on his movie which featured the infamous scene of Rudy Giuliani putting his hands down his pants in a hotel room with Bakalova, as she impersonated a reporter.
Emerald Fennell, Promising Young Woman’s screenwriter—and director– also remarked on the importance of the WGA but to her own career during her acceptance speech from London. This is indeed a banner year for her. She is racking up nominations for directing from the DGA and the Motion Picture Academy for the upcoming Oscars, one of the few women in history to be so recognized.
Fennell had another reason to celebrate. The Crown, in which she portrays Camilla Parker Bowles won the WGA for outstanding drama series.
The new Apple TV + comedy series Ted Lasso scored two WGA trophies for best new series and for outstanding comedy series – major wins out of the gate for both the show and the streamer, which is less than 18 months old.
Here is a complete list of nominees, with the winners denoted:
SCREENPLAY NOMINEES
ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY she is racking up nominations
Judas and the Black Messiah, Screenplay by Will Berson & Shaka King, Story by Will Berson & Shaka King and Kenny Lucas & Keith Lucas; Warner Bros.
Palm Springs, Screenplay by Andy Siara, Story by Andy Siara & Max Barbakow; Hulu
Promising Young Woman, Written by Emerald Fennell; Focus Features – WINNER
Sound of Metal, Screenplay by Darius Marder & Abraham Marder, Story by Darius Marder & Derek Cianfrance; Amazon Studios
The Trial of the Chicago 7, Written by Aaron Sorkin; Netflix
ADAPTED SCREENPLAY
Borat Subsequent Moviefilm, Screenplay by Sacha Baron Cohen & Anthony Hines & Dan Swimer & Peter Baynham & Erica Rivinoja & Dan Mazer & Jena Friedman & Lee Kern, Story by Sacha Baron Cohen & Anthony Hines & Dan Swimer & Nina Pedrad, Based on Characters Created by Sacha Baron Cohen; Amazon Studios – WINNER
Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom, Screenplay by Ruben Santiago-Hudson, Based on the Play Written by August Wilson; Netflix
News of the World, Screenplay by Paul Greengrass and Luke Davies, Based upon the Novel by Paulette Jiles; Universal Pictures
One Night in Miami, Screenplay by Kemp Powers, Based on the Stage Play “One Night in Miami” by Kemp Powers; Amazon Studios
The White Tiger, Screenplay by Ramin Bahrani, Based on the Book “The White Tiger” by Aravind Adiga; Netflix
DOCUMENTARY SCREENPLAY
All In: The Fight for Democracy, Written by Jack Youngelson; Amazon Studios
The Dissident, Written by Mark Monroe and Bryan Fogel; Briarcliff Entertainment – WINNER
Herb Alpert Is…, Written by John Scheinfeld; Abramorama
Red Penguins, Written by Gabe Polsky; Universal Pictures
Totally Under Control, Written by Alex Gibney; Neon
TELEVISION, NEW MEDIA, AND NEWS NOMINEES
DRAMA SERIES
Better Call Saul, Written by Ann Cherkis, Vince Gilligan, Peter Gould, Ariel Levine, Heather Marion, Thomas Schnauz, Gordon Smith, Alison Tatlock; AMC
The Boys, Written by Eric Kripke, Ellie Monahan, Anslem Richardson, Craig Rosenberg, Michael Saltzman, Rebecca Sonnenshine; Amazon Studios
The Crown, Written by Peter Morgan, Jonathan Wilson; Netflix – WINNER
The Mandalorian, Written by Rick Famuyiwa, Jon Favreau, Dave Filoni; Disney+
Ozark, Written by Laura Deeley, Bill Dubuque, Paul Kolsby, Miki Johnson, Chris Mundy, John Shiban, Ning Zhou, Martin Zimmerman; Netflix
COMEDY SERIES
Curb Your Enthusiasm, Written by Larry David, Justin Hurwitz, Steve Leff, Carol Leifer, Jeff Schaffer; HBO
The Great, Written by Vanessa Alexander, Tony McNamara, Tess Morris, Amelia Roper, Gretel Vella, James Wood; Hulu
PEN15, Written by; Alyssa DiMari, Maya Erskine, Anna Konkle, Josh Levine, Gabe Liedman, Rachele Lynn, Vera Santamaria, Diana Tay, Sam Zvibleman; Hulu
Ted Lasso, Written by Jane Becker, Leann Bowen, Brett Goldstein, Brendan Hunt, Joe Kelly, Bill Lawrence, Jamie Lee, Jason Sudeikis, Phoebe Walsh, Bill Wrubel; Apple TV+ – WINNER
What We Do in the Shadows, Written by Jake Bender, Jemaine Clement, Zach Dunn, Joe Furey, Shana Gohd, Sam Johnson, Chris Marcil, William Meny, Sarah Naftalis, Stefani Robinson, Marika Sawyer, Paul Simms; FX Networks
NEW SERIES
Dave, Written by Dave Burd, Vanessa McGee, Saladin Patterson, Luvh Rakhe, Alex Russell, Jeff Schaffer, Max Searle, Yamara Taylor; FX Networks
The Flight Attendant, Written by Kara Lee Corthron, Michael Foley, Ryan Jennifer Jones, Ticona S. Joy, Meredith Lavender, Jess Meyer, Daniele Nathanson, Marcie Ulin, Ian Weinreich, Steve Yockey; HBO Max
The Great, Written by Vanessa Alexander, Tony McNamara, Tess Morris, Amelia Roper, Gretel Vella, James Wood; Hulu
Lovecraft Country, Written by Misha Green, Shannon Houston, Jonathan Kidd, Kevin Lau, Ihuoma Ofordire, Wes Taylor, Sonya Winton; HBO
Ted Lasso, Written by Jane Becker, Leann Bowen, Brett Goldstein, Brendan Hunt, Joe Kelly, Bill Lawrence, Jamie Lee, Jason Sudeikis, Phoebe Walsh, Bill Wrubel; Apple TV+ – WINNER
ORIGINAL LONG FORM
Dirty John: The Betty Broderick Story, Written by Aaron Carew, Alexandra Cunningham, Lex Edness, Kevin J. Hynes, Juliet Lashinsky-Revene, Stacy A. Littlejohn, Katherine B. McKenna; USA
Hollywood, Written by Ian Brennan, Janet Mock, Ryan Murphy, Reilly Smith; Netflix
Mrs. America, Written by Tanya Barfield, Joshua Griffith, Sharon Hoffman, Boo Killebrew, Micah Schraft, April Shih, Dahvi Waller; FX Networks – WINNER
Safety, Written by Nick Santora; Disney+
Uncle Frank, Written by Alan Ball; Amazon Studios
ADAPTED LONG FORM
Bad Education, Written by Mike Makowsky, Based on the New York Magazine article ” The Bad Superintendent” by Robert Kolker; HBO
Clouds, Screenplay by Kara Holden; Story by Casey La Scala & Patrick Kopka and Kara Holden, Based on the book entitled “Fly A Little Higher’ by Laura Sobiech; Disney+
The Good Lord Bird, Written by Jeff Augustin, Ethan Hawke, Erika L. Johnson, Mark Richard, Kristen SaBerre, Lauren Signorino, Based on the Novel by James McBride; Showtime
Little Fires Everywhere, Written by Harris Danow, Rosa Handelman, Shannon Houston, Attica Locke, Raamla Mohamed, Amy Talkington, Liz Tigelaar, Nancy Won, Based on the book by Celeste Ng; Hulu
The Queen’s Gambit, Written by Scott Frank, Allan Scott, Based on the novel by Walter Tevis; Netflix – WINNER
ORIGINAL & ADAPTED SHORT FORM NEW MEDIA
#FREERAYSHAWN, Written by Marc Maurino; Quibi – WINNER
Better Call Saul Employee Training: Legal Ethics with Kim Wexler, Written by Ariel Levine; AMC Digital on YouTube
Most Dangerous Game, Written by Nick Santora, Josh Harmon, Scott Elder; Quibi
* Per Writers Guild Awards submission rules, if there are insufficient entries in any category, those entries may be placed in another category.
ANIMATION
“A Springfield Summer Christmas For Christmas” (The Simpsons), Written by Jessica Conrad; Fox
“Bart The Bad Guy” (The Simpsons), Written by Dan Vebber; Fox
“I, Carumbus” (The Simpsons), Written by Cesar Mazariegos; Fox
“Prank You for Being A Friend” (Bob’s Burgers), Written by Katie Crown; Fox
“Three Dreams Denied” (The Simpsons), Written by Danielle Weisberg; Fox
“Xerox of a Xerox” (BoJack Horseman), Written by Nick Adams; Netflix – WINNER
EPISODIC DRAMA
“Bad Choice Road” (Better Call Saul), Written by Thomas Schnauz; AMC
“Fire Pink” (Ozark), Written by Miki Johnson; Netflix – WINNER
“JMM” (Better Call Saul), Written by Alison Tatlock; AMC
“Raised by Wolves” (Raised by Wolves), Written by Aaron Guzikowski; HBO Max
“Something Unforgivable” (Better Call Saul), Written by Peter Gould & Ariel Levine; AMC
“Trouble Don’t Last Always” (Euphoria), Written by Sam Levinson; HBO
EPISODIC COMEDY
“Grandma & Chill” (Awkwafina Is Nora from Queens), Written by Kyle Lau; Comedy Central
“The Great” (The Great), Written by Tony McNamara; Hulu – WINNER
“It’s Not You, It’s Me” (Dead to Me), Written by Liz Feldman & Kelly Hutchinson; Netflix
“Pilot” (Ted Lasso), Teleplay by Jason Sudeikis & Bill Lawrence, Story by Jason Sudeikis & Bill Lawrence & Brendan Hunt & Joe Kelly; Apple TV+
“The Tank” (Grace & Frankie), Written by Alex Kavallierou; Netflix
“Trick” (High Maintenance), Written by Isaac Oliver; HBO
COMEDY/VARIETY TALK SERIES
Desus & Mero, Writers: Daniel “Desus Nice” Baker, Claire Friedman, Ziwe Fumudoh, Josh Gondelman, Robert Kornhauser, Joel “The Kid Mero” Martinez, Heben Nigatu, Mike Pielocik, Julia Young; Showtime – WINNER
Full Frontal with Samantha Bee, Writers: Kristen Bartlett, Samantha Bee, Pat Cassels, Sean Crespo, Mike Drucker, Mathan Erhardt, Joe Grossman, Miles Kahn, Sahar Rizvi, Chris Thompson, Holly Walker, Alison Zeidman, Special Materials by: Michael Rhoa; TBS
Last Week Tonight with John Oliver, Writers: Johnathan Appel, Ali Barthwell, Tim Carvell, Liz Hynes, Greg Iwinski, Mark Kramer, Daniel O’Brien, John Oliver, Owen Parsons, Charlie Redd, Joanna Rothkopf, Chrissy Shackelford, Ben Silva, Seena Vali; HBO
Late Night with Seth Meyers, Head Writer: Alex Baze Writing Supervised by: Seth Reiss Closer Look Writing Supervised by: Sal Gentile Writers: Jermaine Affonso, Karen Chee, Bryan Donaldson, Matt Goldich, Dina Gusovsky, Jenny Hagel, Allison Hord, Mike Karnell, John Lutz, Seth Meyers, Ian Morgan, John Mulaney, Amber Ruffin, Mike Scollins, Mike Shoemaker, Ben Warheit, Jeff Wright; NBC
The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, Head Writers: Ariel Dumas, Jay Katsir Writers: Delmonte Bent, Michael Brumm, River Clegg, Aaron Cohen, Nicole Conlan, Stephen T. Colbert, Paul Dinello, Glenn Eichler, Django Gold, Gabe Gronli, Barry Julien, Michael Cruz Kayne, Eliana Kwartler, Matt Lappin, Felipe Torres Medina, Opus Moreschi, Asher Perlman, Tom Purcell, Kate Sidley, Brian Stack, John Thibodeaux, Steve Waltien; CBS
COMEDY/VARIETY SPECIALS
30 Rock: A One-Time Special, Written by Tina Fey & Robert Carlock; NBC
Father of the Bride Part 3 (ish), Written by Nancy Meyers; YouTube
Stephen Colbert’s Election Night 2020: Democracy’s Last Stand: Building Back America Great Again Better 2020, Head Writers: Ariel Dumas, Jay Katsir Writers: Delmonte Bent, Michael Brumm, River Clegg, Aaron Cohen, Stephen T. Colbert, Nicole Conlan, Paul Dinello, Glenn Eichler, Django Gold, Gabe Gronli, Barry Julien, Michael Cruz Kayne, Eliana Kwartler, Matt Lappin, Felipe Torres Medina, Opus Moreschi, Asher Perlman, Tom Purcell, Kate Sidley, Brian Stack, John Thibodeaux, Steve Waltien; Showtime – WINNER
Yearly Departed, Head Writer: Bess Kalb Writers: Karen Chee, Akilah Green, Franchesca Ramsey, Jocelyn Richard; Amazon Studios
COMEDY/VARIETY SKETCH SERIES
At Home with Amy Sedaris, Writers: Jeremy Beiler, Cole Escola, Peter Grosz, Amy Sedaris; truTV – WINNER
How To with John Wilson, Writers: Alice Gregory, Michael Koman, John Wilson; HBO
The Amber Ruffin Show, Head Writer: Jenny Hagel Writers: Demi Adejuyigbe, Shantira Jackson, Dewayne Perkins, Amber Ruffin; Peacock Originals
QUIZ AND AUDIENCE PARTICIPATION
Hollywood Game Night, Head Writers: Ann Slichter, Grant Taylor Writers: Michael Agbabian, Allie Kokesh, Dwight D. Smith; NBC
Jeopardy!, Writers: Matthew Caruso, John Duarte, Harry Friedman, Mark Gaberman, Debbie Griffin, Michele Loud, Robert McClenaghan, Jim Rhine, Mike Richards, Billy Wisse; ABC
Weakest Link, Head Writer: Ann Slichter Writers: Chip Dornell, Paul Greenberg, Joyce Ikemi, Stuart Krasnow, Jon Macks, Mona Mira, Scott Saltzburg, Aaron Solomon, Chris Sturgeon, Grant Taylor; NBC – WINNER
Who Wants to Be a Millionaire Celebrity Season, Head Writer: Bobby Patton Writers: Alan Bailey, Josh Halloway, Seth Harrington, Shawn Kennedy; Disney/ABC Syndication
DAYTIME DRAMA
Days of Our Lives, Head Writer: Ron Carlivati Writers: Lorraine Broderick, Joanna Cohen, Carolyn Culliton, Richard Culliton, Rick Draughon, David Kreizman, Rebecca McCarty, Ryan Quan, Dave Ryan, Katherine D. Schock, Elizabeth Snyder; NBC – WINNER
General Hospital, Head Writers: Dan O’Connor, Christopher Van Etten Associate Head Writer: Anna Theresa Cascio Writers: Barbara Bloom, Suzanne Flynn, Charlotte Gibson, Lucky Gold, Kate Hall, Elizabeth Korte, David Rupel, Lisa Seidman, Donny Sheldon, Scott Sickles; ABC
CHILDREN’S EPISODIC, LONG FORM AND SPECIALS
“Countdown” (The Astronauts), Written by Dan Knauf; Nickelodeon
“Mo Willems And The Storytime All Stars Present: Don’t Let The Pigeon Do Storytime,” Written by Mo Willems, Based on the children’s books and published by Hyperion: Leonard the Terrible Monster; Knuffle Bunny: A Cautionary Tale; A Busy Creature’s Day Eating!; Elephant and Piggy’s Waiting is Not Easy!; and Don’t Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus; HBO Max
“The Not Too Late Show with Elmo,”
Writers: Geri Cole, Scott Gray, Benjamin Lehmann, Wendy Marston, Andrew
Moriarty, Ken Scarborough, Moujan Zolfaghari; HBO Max
“The Power of We: A Sesame Street Special,” Written by Geri Cole; HBO
Max
“The Sleepover,” Written by Sarah Rothschild; Netflix – WINNER
“Speaking of Cancer” (Alexa & Katie), Written by Leo Chu & Eric S. Garcia & Julia Miranda; Netflix
DOCUMENTARY SCRIPT – CURRENT EVENTS
“Agents of Chaos, Part I,” Written by Alex Gibney & Michael J. Palmer; HBO Documentary Films – WINNER
“Agents of Chaos, Part II,” Written
by Alex Gibney & Michael J. Palmer; HBO Documentary Films
“The Choice 2020: Trump vs. Biden” (Frontline), Written by Michael
Kirk & Mike Wiser; PBS
“Whose Vote Counts” (Frontline), Written by Jelani Cobb, June Cross & Tom Jennings; PBS
DOCUMENTARY SCRIPT – OTHER THAN CURRENT EVENTS
“Opioids, Inc” (Frontline), Written by Tom Jennings; PBS – WINNER
“The Poison Squad” (American Experience), Written by John Maggio; PBS
“The Violence Paradox” (Nova), Written by Michael Bicks and Anna Lee Strachan; PBS
NEWS SCRIPT – REGULARLY SCHEDULED, BULLETIN, OR BREAKING REPORT
“Anger in America” (World News Tonight with David Muir), Written by Dave Bloch, David Muir, Karen Mooney, David Schoetz; ABC News – WINNER
“Critical Condition” (60 Minutes), Written by Katie Kerbstat Jacobson, Scott Pelley, Nicole Young; CBS News
“Gale Sayers Obit,” Written by Joe McLaughlin; WCBS-TV
“The Wild West of Covid Testing” (60 Minutes), Written by Sharyn Alfonsi, Oriana Zill de Granados, Emily Gordon; CBS News
NEWS SCRIPT – ANALYSIS, FEATURE, OR COMMENTARY
“Exhume the Truth” (60 Minutes), Written by Katie Kerbstat Jacobson, Scott Pelley, Joe Schanzer, Nicole Young; CBS News
“Juneteenth: A Celebration of Overcoming,” Written by Dave Bloch; ABC News – WINNER
“The African Basketball Trail” (60 Minutes), Written by Oriana Zill de Granados, Emily Gordon, Jon Wertheim; CBS News
DIGITAL NEWS
“Pornhub Doesn’t Care,” Written by Samantha Cole and Emanuel Maiberg; Vice.com
“This Week Has Happened Before,” Written by Julia Craven; Slate.com
“The Store That Called the Cops on George Floyd,” Written by Aymann Ismail; Slate.com – WINNER
“Why Did the Government Separate This Family?” Written by Jeremy Stahl; Slate.com
RADIO/AUDIO NOMINEES
RADIO/AUDIO NEWS SCRIPT – REGULARLY SCHEDULED, BULLETIN, OR BREAKING REPORT
“CBS News on the Hour with Norah O’Donnell, March 10, 2020,” Written by James Hutton; CBS New Radio
“Changemakers: Leaders Who Made a Difference,” Written by Gail Lee; CBS News Radio – WINNER
“World News This Week, November 13, 2020,” Written by Joan Harris; ABC News Radio/WNTW Podcasts
RADIO/AUDIO NEWS SCRIPT – ANALYSIS, FEATURE, OR COMMENTARY
“Instrument of Hope,” Written by Christopher Barry; ABC News Audio
“Against Those Thugs: Delores Tucker and Bill Bennett” (Slow Burn) Written by Joel Anderson, Christopher Johnson; Slate Podcasts – WINNER
“The Gist: Spiel, April 3, 2020,” Written by Mike Pesca; Slate Podcasts
PROMOTIONAL WRITING NOMINEES
ON AIR PROMOTION
“Can You See It?” Written by Meghana Reddy and Angad Bhalla; Facebook
“Get Out The Vote – Check Out Those Moves,” Written by Meghana Reddy and Angad Bhalla; Facebook, Instagram, YouTube – WINNER
“Launch Trailers,” Written by Molly Neylan; CBS/CBS All Access
