Michael B. Jordan’s mother appeared less than thrilled with Nikki Glaser’s off-color joke at the Golden Globes on Sunday (January 11).
The 83rd annual Golden Globes was eventful, featuring numerous edgy jokes from host Glaser.
The 41-year-old comedian took shots at Leonardo DiCaprio’s pattern of dating younger women and made a startling comment about Jeffrey Epstein.
Glaser’s focus also shifted to Jordan during her opening remarks, referring to his roles as twin characters Smoke and Stack in last year’s horror film, Sinners.
The host humorously remarked: “I can’t believe it, we got two Michael B. Jordans. When I saw that, I was like, Nikki B. Jerkin’, because that was awesome.”
While many in attendance laughed at the joke, it seemed that Jordan’s mother, Donna Jordan, was not amused.
When the camera focused on her, she awkwardly sipped her drink as her son laughed.
Realizing Donna was present, Glaser quickly acknowledged the tastelessness of her joke.
“I’m so sorry. That should’ve been a DM,” she said.
The clip rapidly spread online, with the joke likely being remembered as one of the most audacious ever told at the Golden Globes.
somebody check on michael b jordan’s mom #goldenglobes pic.twitter.com/GRCw1pg92d
— Cris ✨ (@lionesspike) January 12, 2026
Fans took to X to share their reactions, with one user commenting: “Somebody check on michael b jordan’s mom.”
Another noted: “Her face.”
Someone else exclaimed: “THIS IS THE FUNNIEST S**T IVE EVER HEARD.”
Before the event, Donna shared her admiration for her son with Entertainment Weekly on the red carpet.
“Just his commitment and his dedication and his persistence to his craft,” she said of Jordan. “And the messages that he tries to share with everyone with the choices that he makes and the work that he does. I’m very proud of that.”
Jordan was a nominee for Best Actor for his role in the Ryan Coogler-directed film but lost out to Wagner Moura from The Secret Agent.
Nevertheless, Sinners won two of its seven nominations – Cinematic and Box Office Achievement and Best Original Score for Ludwig Göransson.
An awards show is incomplete without a touch of controversy, often stemming from the hosts’ jokes. Here are some of the most contentious jibes from past Golden Globes…
Ricky Gervais, a five-time Golden Globes host, told the assembled celebrities in 2020: “You could binge-watch the entire first season of After Life instead of watching this show.
“That’s a show about a man who wants to kill himself cause his wife dies of cancer and it’s still more fun than this.
“Spoiler alert, season two is on the way so, in the end, he obviously didn’t kill himself. Just like Jeffrey Epstein. Shut up. I know he’s your friend but I don’t care.”
During the 2013 ceremony, host Amy Poehler targeted filmmaker James Cameron’s marriage to Kathryn Bigelow, who was nominated for Zero Dark Thirty.
Referencing the movie’s controversial portrayal of torture, Poehler quipped: “When it comes to torture, I trust the lady who spent three years married to James Cameron.”
Cameron later addressed the ‘ignorant dig’ in an interview with The New York Times.
Predictably, Gervais appears once more, this time with a jab at James Corden and Judi Dench for their roles in Cats.
In 2020, he commented: “The world got to see James Corden as a fat p*ssy. He was also in the movie Cats.
“No one saw that movie. And the reviews, shocking. I saw one that said, ‘This is the worst thing to happen to cats since dogs’.
“But Dame Judi Dench defended the film, saying it was the film she was born to play because she loves nothing better than plonking herself down on the carpet, lifting her leg and licking her own m*nge. [Coughs] Furball. She’s old-school.”
2025 host Nikki Glaser made a contentious joke about disgraced music mogul Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs, prior to his 50-month prison sentence on prostitution-related charges.
Addressing Zendaya, Glaser said: “Challengers, girl? Oh my God! That movie was more sexually charged than Diddy’s credit card, I mean, seriously. I’m sorry, I’m upset too. The afterparty is not going to be as good this year, but we have to move on.
“I know a Stanley Tucci freak-off doesn’t have the same ring to it. No baby oil this year, just lots of olive oil.”
In his 2024 opening, comedian Jo Koy was accused of delivering a ‘sexist’ joke about one of the year’s biggest films.
“Oppenheimer is based on a 721-page Pulitzer Prize-winning book about the Manhattan Project, and Barbie is on a plastic doll with big boobies,” he said in a moment that fell flat.
Barbie director Greta Gerwig later responded to the divisive comment, saying: “Well, he’s not wrong.”
Fittingly, the list concludes with another bold remark from Gervais.
While discussing Once Upon a Time in Hollywood’s long runtime, he joked about Leonardo DiCaprio’s dating history.
“Leonardo DiCaprio attended the premiere and by the end, his date was too old for him,” the comedian said in 2020, adding: “Even Prince Andrew is like, ‘Come on Leo, mate. You’re nearly 50′.”