As if I couldn’t love Ayo Edebiri even more, she just delivered the most chaotic and adorably awkward speech at the 2024 Golden Globes. The 28-year-old star took home the award for Best Actress In A Comedy Series Or Musical for her role as Sydney Adamu in FX’s The Bear. 2023 was truly her year, and she solidified herself as a powerhouse actress and Gen Z icon. The often scattered and concerned characters she plays are highly relatable, and it looks like her charm doesn’t end on the screen.
Unlike many other award-winning comedy actors who stroll up to the podium with an arsenal of calculated jokes on hand, Edebiri seemingly stumbled into her speech, clearly shocked by her win. But, her raw, unfiltered adoration for her The Bear costars that followed was nothing short of heart-warming and refreshingly honest.
“Everybody at The Bear, that’s my family, I love you guys so much,” Edebiri said in her speech. “It’s an honor to work with you and grow alongside you.”
But the relatable, flustered, acceptance speech didn’t stop there. Edebiri let out a sarcastically passive “thank you” to her real family as well, before letting out a wide-eyed laugh that was contagious among the whole audience. Then, she made mention of her fellow nominees, who were (no big deal) Quinta Brunson, Selena Gomez, Elle Fanning, Rachel Brosnahan, and Natasha Lyonne. Her gratitude seemed to spill out of her, alongside unintentional gleams of humor and silliness.
Before wrapping up the speech, she made a unique shoutout that usually doesn’t make it up to the podium — to her agents’ and managers’ assistants. “Y’all are real ones. Thank you for replying to my crazy, crazy emails.”
And to that, the crowd erupted with applause, and a moment of laughable solidarity was felt among everyone who’s ever been at the bottom of the barrel, chugging along by answering emails and swallowing their pride. Her recognition of those whose hard work is typically undervalued showed that, even though she’s a star, Edebiri is grounded as hell and just like us.
She ended the speech by apologizing to those whom she left out before quickly adding, “Unless you were mean or something. OK, bye thank you.” She’s just like me, for real.
Personally, this speech left me absolutely obsessed and I have no choice but to watch every single interview of her that exists on the internet. And, I’ll be watching out for the Emmy Awards on Jan. 15 and hoping to be graced with another delightfully awkward speech from Edebiri.