# Tom Hanks' Golden Globe Grimace

Tom Hanks' Golden Globe Grimace is a reaction image capturing the actor wincing in the audience during Ricky Gervais' opening monologue at the 2020 Golden Globe Awards[1]. The camera caught Hanks mid-grimace after Gervais ribbed celebrities about political acceptance speeches, and Twitter users spent that night pairing the still with awkward-moment captions[2].

## Origin
On January 5, 2020, at the 77th Golden Globe Awards, British comedian Ricky Gervais opened the NBC broadcast with a monologue warning celebrities to skip political acceptance speeches, telling them they knew nothing about the real world[3]. As Gervais wrapped that bit, the broadcast cut to Tom Hanks sitting in the audience and pulling a tight, pained wincing expression[6].

The full monologue clip, uploaded to Twitter that night by @bennyjohnson with the caption claiming Gervais 'DESTROYED Hollywood,' picked up more than 212,600 likes and 65,700 retweets within a day[6]. The grimace still was screenshotted from that broadcast moment and circulated on its own within hours.

- **Platform:** NBC broadcast / Twitter (viral spread)
- **Creator:** Unknown
- **Date:** 2020

## Overview
Posts using the Tom Hanks' Golden Globe Grimace format pair the wincing still with text describing a cringeworthy, hypocritical or socially painful moment[2]. A typical caption sets up a scenario where someone says something tone-deaf, and Hanks' face supplies the reaction. The image reads as the facial equivalent of a quiet 'oof.'

Early edits took two tracks: single-image macros and photoshop remixes. Twitter user @UScertainty swapped the reaction into a Buzz Lightyear speaking to Woody template, with Buzz calling Ricky Gervais' speech 'legendary'[4]. Others stuck with straight caption jokes, like @JulesO2312's version about a friend with bad hygiene calling out somebody else's smell[5].

## How to Use
Captioners typically pair the Tom Hanks' Golden Globe Grimace still with a one-line setup describing something cringeworthy, hypocritical or tone-deaf that someone said or did. The common convention is a 'when...' or 'that face when...' caption, with the grimace standing in for the viewer's second-hand embarrassment[5].

## Frequently Asked Questions
### What is Tom Hanks' Golden Globe Grimace?
It is a reaction image of actor Tom Hanks wincing in the audience during Ricky Gervais' opening monologue at the 2020 Golden Globe Awards[3].

### Where did Tom Hanks' Golden Globe Grimace come from?
The still was captured during NBC's January 5, 2020 Golden Globes broadcast, when the camera cut to Hanks as Gervais mocked celebrity political speeches[6].

### What does Tom Hanks' Golden Globe Grimace mean?
Captioners use the image to signal second-hand embarrassment, cringe or disapproval in reaction to something tone-deaf or hypocritical[5].

### How do you use Tom Hanks' Golden Globe Grimace?
People typically pair the grimace still with a 'when...' setup describing a socially painful moment, such as @JulesO2312's bad-hygiene joke[5].

### Is Tom Hanks' Golden Globe Grimace still popular?
Most captioned versions appeared in the 48 hours after the January 5, 2020 broadcast, and the image is now treated as a classic awards-show reaction entry[1][3].

## References
1. [https://twitter.com/MTVNEWS/status/1213993762667536385](<https://twitter.com/MTVNEWS/status/1213993762667536385>)
2. [https://twitter.com/mmpadellan/status/1213992025172955136](<https://twitter.com/mmpadellan/status/1213992025172955136>)
3. [https://knowyourmeme.com/memes/tom-hanks-golden-globe-grimace](<https://knowyourmeme.com/memes/tom-hanks-golden-globe-grimace>)
4. [https://twitter.com/UScertainty/status/1214061074754015232](<https://twitter.com/UScertainty/status/1214061074754015232>)
5. [https://twitter.com/JulesO2312/status/1214070070995046400](<https://twitter.com/JulesO2312/status/1214070070995046400>)
6. [https://x.com/i/status/1214003226938351617](<https://x.com/i/status/1214003226938351617>)

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Source: https://meme.com/memes/tom-hanks-golden-globe-grimace
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