HFPA sues Penske Media for $150M over Golden Globes fraud

The Hollywood Foreign Press Association filed a major lawsuit on Tuesday, July 28, 2026, alleging a fraudulent scheme to seize control of the Golden Globe Awards and create an entertainment industry monopoly. The reactivated organization, which founded the Globes, is seeking at least $150 million in damages from media mogul Jay Penske, his Penske Media Corporation, the Golden Globe Foundation, and the foundation's CEO, Gregory Goeckner.

Filed in the United States District Court for the Central District of California, the 113-page complaint accuses Penske and billionaire investor Todd Boehly of orchestrating a clandestine plan to devalue and acquire the 80-year-old awards show. The lawsuit claims the defendants secretly instigated the 2022 boycott of the Globes, using Penske-owned trade publications like Variety and The Hollywood Reporter to fuel the campaign and weaken the HFPA. The organization was already under intense scrutiny following a 2021 Los Angeles Times investigation that revealed it had no Black members among its then-87 voters, leading to a widespread industry boycott.

According to the suit, Boehly then infiltrated the HFPA as its interim chief executive while...