Owen Cooper took home an historic Golden Globe on Sunday night and delivered a speech that nodded to his Liverpool Football Club and his decision to take a chance on drama classes.
The 16-year-old took the world by storm with his debut acting performance in the Netflix limited series Adolescence.
The actor already clinched the Emmy and Critics’ Choice award for his performance as a child accused of murdering a classmate – putting him halfway to an EGOT before he’s even an adult.
With a new trophy to add to what is probably more than a shelf’s worth, Cooper was clearly starstruck in front of the room of famous faces on Sunday evening in Los Angeles.
Cooper beat out competition from the likes of Walton Goggins and Jason Isaacs for The White Lotus, as well as his own co-star Ashley Walters, for his moment on stage.
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He said: ‘Standing here at the Golden Globes does not feel real whatsoever. What an incredible journey me and my family have been put through.’
He continued: ‘What started off as what I thought I might be okay at, I might be awful at, I took a risk and I went to drama classes.
‘I was the only boy there, it was embarrassing but I got through it,’ he added, to laughter from the room. ‘But I’m still very much an apprentice, I’m still learning every day, I’m still learning from the people sat in front of me who inspired me. I wouldn’t be here without you guys.’
Taking stock of the moment, he said: ‘This is mad, what is going on?’
He wrapped up the speech with: ‘Bring on 2026. You’ll never walk alone,’ in reference to the anthem of Liverpool Football Club, as well as what could be another big year for the actor, with his film debut in Emerald Fennell’s highly anticipated Wuthering Heights adaptation.
Cooper was just 14 when he played Jamie Miller on the Netflix four-parter, taking on the grim, radicalising effects of the manosphere on boys, with each episode filmed in one claustrophobic continuous take.
The major wins from the 2026 Golden Globes
Film categories
Best film – drama– Hamnet
Best film – musical or comedy– One Battle After Another
Best actress – drama– Jessie Buckley for Hamnet
Best actor – drama– Wagner Moura for The Secret Agent
Best actress – musical or comedy– Rose Byrne for If I Had Legs I’d Kick You
Best actor – musical or comedy– Timothée Chalamet for Marty Supreme
Best supporting actress– Teyana Taylor for One Battle After Another
Best supporting actor– Stellan Skarsgård for Sentimental Value
Best director– Paul Thomas Anderson for One Battle After Another
Best screenplay– Paul Thomas Anderson for One Battle After Another
TV categories
Best series – drama– The Pitt
Best series – comedy or musical– The Studio
Best limited series– Adolescence
Best actress – drama– Rhea Seehorn for Pluribus
Best actor – drama– Noah Wyle for The Pitt
Best actress – comedy or musical– Jean Smart for Hacks
Best actor – comedy or musical– Seth Rogen for The Studio
Best actress – limited series– Michelle Williams for Dying for Sex
Best actor – limited series– Stephen Graham for Adolescence
Best supporting actress (television)– Erin Doherty for Adolescence
Best supporting actor (television)– Owen Cooper for Adolescence
Adolescence won big at the Golden Globes, clinching every one of the gongs it was up for, including one for Erin Doherty and Stephen Graham’s roles as well as best limited series overall.
Graham’s moment on stage, during which he paused to be starstruck by Queen Latifa’s presence in the audience, saw him read notes off his palm and congratulate his ‘outstanding’ fellow nominees.
‘This is for all of our cast and crew,’ he added. ‘Every single member of this production, you have a piece of this, because without you, this is not in my hand so from the bottom of my heart, thank you all very much, especially Christine Tremarco who played my wife, the most beautiful dance partner.
‘This is half yours, so I’ll cut it. You can have the top bit.’
Adolescence is available to stream on Netflix.
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