Everything you need to know before Sunday's Golden Globes

Meyers signed on for the job after the scandal broke in the fall, so he knew what he was getting into.

"And my first instinct was, 'Oh this is probably not the most fun year to do this,'" he said.

But the creative team at "Late Night with Seth Meyers" excels at addressing current events with humor and accuracy, he said, and they're working with him to write material for the Globes.

The 45-year-old comedian talked with The Associated Press about how he's preparing to strike the ultimate balance between celebratory and serious at the ceremony, which will be broadcast live on NBC at 8 p.m. ET.

The following interview has been edited for clarity and brevity.

___

AP: How do you balance tough subjects with the need to be funny and light?

Meyers: That's, I think, the conversation we will continue to focus in on as we get closer. We don't want this night to be a session where we're just scolding everything that happened, because it is really important for us to remember that great movies came out of this year; great television shows came out of this year. A lot of people worked really hard. A lot of people, we're realizing, worked really hard in environments that were not that conducive to working really hard. So the goal is to have people have a wonderful night and an enjoyable party in a year which everyone deserves it.

AP: Is writing jokes a way of decompressing from the news?

Meyers: I've found the news harder on our hiatuses than it is on show weeks. There's something very cathartic about processing the news stories through our system here, where you write jokes about it and talk about it with people who make you laugh, and that is just a healthier way of dealing with it... I think that's part of what we'll be trying to do at the Globes, is: Hey, ideally we wouldn't be talking about this stuff, but hopefully we can talk about it in a way that will make us feel better about it as opposed to reminding us how terrible it all was, is, continues to be.

AP: Is it helpful to watch past Globes shows?

Meyers: I pitched in jokes when Amy (Poehler) and Tina (Fey) hosted, so I was backstage for those three years. I will certainly go back and revisit their monologues, because I felt as though they were as good as they get. And I think the same can be said for what Ricky (Gervais) did for the show, because I don't think the show was even perceived this way until he took it over. So I think going back and watching those three hosts will be probably about all the education we'll need.

AP: How do you find time to watch all the nominated movies and TV shows?

Meyers: It's pretty great, because now we have a 20-month-old and another on the way, and I'm just so looking forward to telling my pregnant wife that I have to go watch these movies for work.

AP: Do you have any rituals to calm your nerves before hosting a big show like this?

Meyers: There is alcohol on the premises, which is great. Usually I have to sneak it in. And it helps — you know, I've presented a couple times at the Globes, and one of the things that I do like about the Globes versus, say, the Emmys, is it's just such a shorter walk from the wings to the microphone. That is really important, because that long walk when people are watching you and you have a very long way to the microphone, that's when I feel like self-doubt really has a time to fester.

AP: What are you most looking forward to about hosting the Golden Globes?

Meyers: I imagine we'll go out afterward, so I'm kind of looking forward to that part.

AP: You're looking forward to being done?

Meyers: Yeah. I think being done will be awesome. No, I like telling jokes, and ultimately, when someone like me ends up doing something like this, all I can pretty much bring to it is jokes. I have so few other skills. There won't be a big number; there won't be any singing or dancing. So I will say it is nice to know it'll only be as good as the jokes.

List of nominees for 75th Golden Globe Awards

MOTION PICTURE

—Picture, Drama: "Call Me By Your Name," ''Dunkirk," ''The Post," The Shape of Water" and "Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri."

—Picture, Musical or Comedy: "The Disaster Artist," ''Get Out," ''The Greatest Showman," ''Lady Bird" and "I, Tonya."

—Director: Guillermo Del Toro, "The Shape of Water," Martin McDonagh, "Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri," Christopher Nolan, "Dunkirk," Ridley Scott, "All the Money in the World," Steven Spielberg, "The Post."

—Actress, Drama: Jessica Chastain, "Molly's Game," Sally Hawkins, "The Shape of Water," France McDormand, "Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missiouri," Meryl Streep, "The Post," Michelle Williams, "All the Money in the World."

—Actor, Drama: Timothee Chalamet, "Call Me by Your Name," Daniel Day-Lewis, "Phantom Thread," Tom Hanks, "The Post," Gary Oldman, "Darkest Hour."

—Actress, Musical or Comedy: Judi Dench, "Victoria & Abdul," Helen Mirren, "The Leisure Seeker," Margot Robbie, "I, Tonya," Saoirse Ronan, "Lady Bird," Emma Stone," Battle of the Sexes."

—Actor, Musical or Comedy: Steve Carell, "Battle of the Sexes," Ansel Elgort, "Baby Driver," James Franco, "The Disaster Artist," Hugh Jackman, "The Greatest Showman," Daniel Kaluuya, "Get Out."

—Foreign Language: "A Fantastic Woman," ''First They Killed My Father," "In the Fade," ''Loveless" and "The Square."

—Animated Film: "The Boss Baby," ''The Breadwinner," ''Coco," ''Ferdinand," ''Loving Vincent."

—Supporting Actress: Mary J. Blige, "Mudbound," Hong Chau, "Downsizing," Allison Janney, "I, Tonya," Laurie Metcalf, "Lady Bird," ''Octavia Spencer, "The Shape of Water."

—Supporting Actor: Willem Dafoe, "The Florida Project," Armie Hammer, "Call Me by Your Name," Richard Jenkins, "The Shape of Water," Christopher Plummer, "All the Money in the World," Sam Rockwell, "Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri."

—Screenplay: Guillermo del Toro, Vanessa Taylor, "The Shape of Water," Greta Gerwig, "Lady Bird," Liz Hannah, Josh Singer, "The Post," Martin McDonagh, "Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri," Aaron Sorkin, "Molly's Game."

—Original Score: Carter Burwell, "Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri," Alexandre Desplat, "The Shape of Water," Jonny Greenwood, "Phantom Thread," John Williams, "The Post," Hans Zimmer, "Dunkirk."

—Original Song: "Home," from "Ferdinand," music by Nick Jonas, Justin Tranter, Nick Monson, lyrics by Nick Jonas, Justin Tranter; "Mighty River," from "Mudbound," music by Raphael Saadiq, lyrics by Mary J. Blige, Raphael Saadiq, Taura Stinson; "Remember Me," from "Coco," music by Kristen Anderson-Lopez, Robert Lopez, lyrics by Kristen Anderson-Lopez, Robert Lopez; "The Star," from "The Star," music by Mariah Carey, Marc Shaiman, lyrics by Mariah Carey, Marc Shaiman; "This is Me," from "The Greatest Showman," music by Benj Pasek, Justin Paul, lyrics by Benj Pasek, Justin Paul.

TELEVISION

—Series, Drama: "The Crown," ''The Handmaid's Tale," ''This Is Us," ''Stranger Things" and "Game of Thrones."

—Series, Musical or Comedy: "black-ish," ''The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel," ''Master of None," ''SMILF," ''Will & Grace."

—Movie or Limited Series: "Big Little Lies," ''Fargo," ''Feud: Bette and Joan," ''The Sinner," ''Top of the Lake: China Girl."

—Actress, Drama: Caitriona Balfe, "Outlander," Claire Foy, "The Crown," Maggie Gyllenhaal, "The Deuce," Katherine Langford, "13 Reasons Why," Elisabeth Moss, "The Handmaid's Tale."

—Actor, Drama: Jason Bateman, "Ozark," Sterling K. Brown, "This is Us," Freddie Highmore, "The Good Doctor," Bob Odenkirk, "Better Call Saul," Live Schreiber, "Ray Donovan."

—Actor, Movie or Limited Series: Robert De Niro, "The Wizard of Lies." Jude Law, "The Young Pope," Kyle MacLachlan, "Twin Peaks," Ewan McGregor, "Fargo," Geoffrey Rush, "Genius."

—Actress, Movie or Limited Series: Jessica Biel, "The Sinner," Nicole Kidman, "Big Little Lies," Jessica Lange, "Feud: Bette and Joan," Susan Sarandon, "Feud: Bette and Joan," Reese Witherspoon, "Big Little Lies."

—Actress, Musical or Comedy: Pamela Adlon, "Better Things," Alison Brie, "Glow," Rachel Brosnahan, "The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel," Issa Rae, "Insecure," Frankie Shaw, "SMILF."

—Actor, Musical or Comedy: Anthony Anderson, "black-ish," Aziz Ansari, "Master of None," Kevin Bacon, "I Love Dick," William H. Macy, "Shameless," Eric McCormack, "Will & Grace."

—Supporting Actress, Series, Limited Series or TV Movie: Laura Dern, "Big Little Lies," Ann Dowd, "The Handmaid's Tale," Chrissy Metz, "This is Us," Michelle Pfeiffer, "The Wizard of Lies," Shailene Woodley, "Big Little Lies."

—Supporting Actor, Series, Limited Series or TV Movie: David Harbour, "Stranger Things," ''Alfred Molina, "Feud: Bette and Joan," Christian Slater, "Mr. Robot," Alexander Skarsgard, "Big Little Lies," David Thewlis, "Fargo."

Who will present?

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Halle Berry, Gal Gadot and Chris Hemsworth are among the first presenters announced for next month's Golden Globe Awards.

Other presenters announced Thursday by the Hollywood Foreign Press Association include Carol Burnett, Shirley MacLaine, Hugh Grant, Kerry Washington, Emma Watson, Ricky Martin, Sarah Jessica Parker, Seth Rogan and Sharon Stone.

Oprah Winfrey also will be on hand, but she's accepting a trophy. She was previously announced as the recipient of the association's annual Cecil B. DeMille Award, which recognizes an outstanding contributor to entertainment.

When, where, how to watch

When: Sunday, Jan. 7 at 8 p.m. ET (5 p.m. PT or 7 p.m. CT)

Where: The International Ballroom of the Beverly Hilton in Beverly Hills, California

How: The awards will air live on NBC

___

Follow AP Entertainment Writer Sandy Cohen at twitter.com/APSandy.