Bill Nye Weighs in on ‘Golden Globes’ Confusion After Jennifer Coolidge’s Speech

It was a case of mistaken identity after Bill Nye, the Science Guy, clarified that Jennifer Coolidge was referring not to him but to Bill Nighy at the 2023 Golden Globes. “When @jennifercoolidge talked about pronouncing Nighy last night, it was not about I,” he wrote on Instagram Jan. 11, along with a photo of him and Nighy and footage of Coolidge’s acceptance speech. “But a few years ago, that Nighy assured this Nye that both of our names rhyme with ‘guy.’” Presenting the award for Best Supporting Actor in a Television Series, which Tyler James Williams of Abbott Elementary won, was a hesitant one for Coolidge to accept. The White Lotus star said she was nervous she’d fall on stage or have teleprompter problems but also worried she’d mispronounce the names of the nominees.

“Once I say somebody’s name the wrong way, I’m screwed,” she said. “I am screwed. I can’t do it. Like, you hear it that one way, and you can’t undo it.” Then Coolidge told a story about sitting beside Nighy, a Golden Globe nominee for his role in Living, at a dinner party and mispronouncing his name. However, how she said his surname in the speech made some fans assume she meant Nye. Additionally, Coolidge took home the award for Best Supporting Actress in a Limited Series or TV Movie for her performance in season two of The White Lotus. Her speech began with a request for her to put down her new trophy, saying, “I don’t work out! I can’t hold it that long.”

Continuing, Coolidge thanked “the five people that kept me going for these little jobs.” “Ryan Murphy, you were one of them,” she noted. “It was like you, Ryan, and, let’s see, who else we got? It was just you, Ryan.” In the end, Coolidge’s biggest thanks went to Mike White, creator of The White Lotus. “I just want you all to know that I had such big dreams and expectations as a younger person but what happened is they get sort of fizzled by life,” she told the audience, “and I thought I was going to be queen of Monaco even though someone else did it.” Coolidge described White as giving her hope once more. “You’ve given me a new beginning,” she continued. “Even if this is the end, because you did kill me off, you changed my life in a million different ways. My neighbors are speaking to me—things like that!”