After a rocky few years and the disbanding of the Hollywood Foreign Press Association, the Golden Globes have seemingly stabilized. Now the question is: Can they still put on a good show?

The 82nd Golden Globes, beginning Sunday night at 8 p.m. EST, will hope to rekindle some of the frothy comic energy of the days when Ricky Gervais or Tina Fey and Amy Poehler hosted. Last year’s comeback edition, hosted by Jo Koy, was widely panned, but it delivered where it counted: Ratings rebounded to about 10 million viewers, according to Nielsen. CBS signed up for five more years.

This time, comedian Nikki Glaser will be emceeing the ceremony from the Beverly Hilton in Beverly Hills, California. The Globes, now owned by Todd Boehly’s Eldridge Industries and Dick Clark Productions, will be broadcast live by CBS and available to stream live for subscribers to Paramount+ with Showtime beginning at 8 p.m. Eastern.

While Glaser doesn’t have as widely seen contenders as last year, when “Oppenheimer” and “Barbie” were the headliners, the show does promise about as much star power as Hollywood can muster. Nominees including Zendaya, Timothée Chalamet, Angelina Jolie, Daniel Craig, Denzel Washington, Ariana Grande, Cynthia Erivo and Selena Gomez.

Jacques Audiard’s Netflix musical “Emilia Pérez” comes in as the lead nominee, with 10 nods, followed by Brady Corbet’s postwar epic “The Brutalist,” with seven, and Edward Berger’s papal thriller “Conclave,” with six. Among the top-nominated series are “The Bear,” “Shogun” and “Only Murders in the Building.”

Here are a few things to look for heading into Sunday’s Globes:

Will Timothée Chalamet win his first Globe?

The best actor in a drama category is a bruiser, with a field of Ralph Fiennes (“Conclave”), Adrien Brody (“The Brutalist”), Daniel Craig (“Queer”), Colman Domingo (“Sing Sing”), Sebastian Stan (“The Apprentice”) and Chalamet, for the Bob Dylan film “A Complete Unknown.” While Fiennes or Brody might take it, a win for Chalamet would be the first major award for the 29-year-old star — and surely would get the Oscar talk going.

How soon until someone mentions Hollywood’s biggest feud?

Just days before the Globes, Blake Lively sued “It Ends With Us” director Justin Baldoni and several others tied to the romantic drama, alleging harassment and a coordinated campaign to attack her reputation for coming forward about her treatment on the set. Baldoni, who has denied it, joined in a suit accusing The New York Times for libel in its story on her allegations.

Whether or not any of this gets mentioned on the Beverly Hilton Ballroom stage, it will surely be on the minds of many attendees. Among the nominees for box-office achievement is “Deadpool & Wolverine,” which star and was co-produced by Ryan Reynolds, Lively’s husband. Glaser, whose sharply barbed jokes at a roast of Tom Brady helped catapult her to this moment, isn’t known for biting her tongue.

How will ‘Wicked’ fare?

“Emilia Pérez” may have be favored over “Wicked” for the best comedy or musical award, but Jon M. Chu’s theatrical hit is also in the mix for the Globes’ nascent cinematic box office achievement award. Either, or both, of the leading ladies of “Wicked” could also win: Erivo in the leading actress category, and Grande in supporting.

Will politics play a starring role?

The Globes, taking place about two weeks before the inauguration of President-elect Donald Trump, could get very political if presenters and winners are so inclined to continue what’s been a mutually antagonistic relationship between Hollywood and Trump. That may be unlikely, though; so far in Hollywood’s awards season, most nominees have tried to stay out of the fray.

That’s with a major exception, though, in “The Apprentice,” the young Trump drama starring Sebastian Stan and Jeremy Strong. Both were nominated by the Globes. Stan was also nominated a second time for his performance in “A Different Man.”

Is there an Oscar frontrunner?

It’s been an unusually uncertain awards season so far in many respects. No one movie has really stepped forward as the leading best picture contender, though several films — including “Conclave,” “Anora,” “Wicked,” “Emilia Pérez” and “The Brutalist” — can all make a decent case. The Globes don’t typically do much to sort out the field, but a strong showing from any of the above could add fuel to their Oscar campaign.

Although actor and comedian Joel McHale has lived in Los Angeles for nearly a quarter-century, he’s quick to point out that Sunday downtime here is a rarity. “I don’t think I’ve had a leisurely Sunday in L.A. since February,” he said during a mid-December interview. “I was gone for probably eight months of the year [for work], and I’m always flying back and forth.” (His sitcom “Animal Control,” which began airing its third season on Fox on Thursday, is shot primarily in and around Vancouver, British Columbia.)

In Sunday Funday, L.A. people give us a play-by-play of their ideal Sunday around town. Find ideas and inspiration on where to go, what to eat and how to enjoy life on the weekends.

McHale brings this up as a way of underscoring that the ideal Sunday itinerary he’s about to sketch out leans very heavily on the ideal part; it’s an ambitious slate of potential things to do and places to eat across the Southland that could easily fill a month of Sundays — and not one he’s actually orchestrated. Given his busy schedule, you won’t likely see him around L.A. (or Studio City, where he currently lives with his wife, Sarah, and their two sons, Isaac and Eddie) anytime soon. But you will be able to find him battling critters (and co-workers) each week on “Animal Control” (which he also executive produces), hosting the Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy & Horror Films’ annual Saturn Awards on Feb. 5, and eventually (though not right away) reprising the role of Jeff Winger in the movie version of “Community.” (Yes, it’s going to happen,” McHale said. “We got the money, and Peacock wants it, but we haven’t started shooting.”)

This interview has been lightly edited and condensed for length and clarity.

10 a.m.: Take in a little tennis
If this is really my ideal Sunday, I’d get up and hopefully play tennis with my wife, my son and my friend Bill Hanson for a couple of hours. Tennis is the last form of a sport — a competitive sport — I can play where I can move around a lot and not collide with a person. I used to play in football and basketball leagues and [play] baseball and all that, and then I just kept seeing all my friends snap their knees and smash their faces, and I’m like, “I can’t do it anymore.”

Noon: Forage the farmers market
Then I’d ride an electric bike to the Studio City Farmers Market — I’ve got this Super73 bike with shopping bags on either side — and I’d get fresh pasta, I’d get pickles, meat, fish, tomatoes and there’s really good ice cream. That’s very vague, but I don’t know the names of the specific vendors.

1 p.m.: Cast a wide lunch net
For lunch maybe we’d head over near USC to Mercado la Paloma to a place called Holbox, which just got a Michelin star. It’s just incredible, [with] wonderful fresh fish. In that same market [ I’d get the] tacos at Komal, which has these really cool tortillas.

Before that, we might go to Proof Bakery in Atwater Village, which I think has some of the finest croissants in all the land. Or Saint, a coffee shop on Moorpark [Street] in Studio City [for] a cortado. “Cortado” doesn’t make any sense; coffee names are [generally] all scrambled now, [and] most of them are in Italian. [But the word] cortado is Spanish, and in Italy, the cortado is called a quarto — but nobody calls it a quarto here. And then the British started calling everything a … flat white, and then the Australians started calling their cappuccinos “Gibraltars.” It’s all very Paul Rudd [in that scene from “Role Models.”]

Maybe I would pick up a pie at Curtis Stone’s Pie Room in Beverly Hills because I do “Crime Scene Kitchen” with Curtis, and his pies are … amazing. His rabbit pie is one of the best things. It’s so damn good. [Even though Pie Room is usually closed on Sundays] he would open it for me to make my Sunday perfect!

Or let’s say I’m heading out there really far; there’s a taco place out in Muscoy called Tacos de Cabrito y Machito El Lagunero. It’s in the Inland Empire so you’ve got to head way out on the 210 [Freeway]. They’ll roast a goat every weekend, and they’ve got the pictures to prove it, and they always post them. They’re like, “The goat is ON!” and it’s great.

3 p.m. Run along the river
I like to run along the L.A. River, and there are certain sections between Laurel Canyon [Boulevard] and Coldwater [Canyon Avenue] where there’s actually a beautiful trail. Sure, you might have to fight a couple people, but whatever — it’s L.A. and it’s cool!

4 p.m. Check out Lost & Found
I might check out a shop called Lost & Found on Yucca [Street] if I’m going to get something for my wife. They always have this weird, wonderful stuff that she would like. I think that’s the first place I ever smelled palo santo being burned, and I was like, “I’m going to buy that!” The last thing I bought there was actually a book bag for myself — as if I’m on campus all the time, right?

5 p.m. Log some permit parent hours
[Isaac,] my 16-year-old, just got his driver’s permit, so we’ll go driving all over the place; my right foot will be just stomping into the [floor of the car] as I sit there, and he’s always like, “Calm down, dad, calm down. It’s gonna be OK.” He’s got much better reflexes than I do.

6 p.m.: Wind down at a wine bar
After my son drives me all over the place, we’d come home and he’d probably do some homework and maybe I’d go a to a wine bar with my friend Geoff Johns, the creator of [the] “Stargirl” [TV series] I was on. My favorite is Augustine Wine Bar on Ventura Boulevard. They burned down about a year and a half ago, and now they’re just about ready to reopen. They’re delightful people, and they do a really cool thing where they’ll open something like a 1976 Châteauneuf-du-Pape and [offer it] by the glass, so you can buy these crazy glasses without having to buy the whole [bottle].

7:30 p.m. Nosh at n/naka or make a beeline for Baroo
[Dinner might be at] n/naka, which is one of our favorite Japanese places. We know [chef] Niki — who started the place with her wife — from when she had a little place on Melrose and La Brea [avenues]. Or Mina Park’s restaurant, Baroo. She’s so cool and quite a character — and she talks as much as I do, which is saying a lot.

9 p.m.: Savor “Shadows”
My 16-year-old son might want to play tennis again, so it would either be late-night tennis with him or watching [FX Network’s] “What We Do in the Shadows” with my 19-year-old son. We’re very sad the show is over. We talk about it, parse it out, [discuss it] like a fine scotch. It’s just a masterpiece.

11 p.m.: Another court date
We might hit the tennis court — again — or shoot the basketball a little bit.

1 a.m.: Some early morning horror
I guess this is actually how my Sunday starts; my 16-year-old will come home from hanging out with friends and we’ll start to watch a horror film. The last one we watched was called “Stopmotion.”

4: a.m.: “The Blade” before bedtime
I’ll sleep six to seven hours — depending on my red wine intake — [and end my night by] scrolling through Instagram, watching a little more TV — I recently watched “Anatomy of Lies,” which is a documentary about a writer for “Grey’s Anatomy” and it’s wild — or listen to an audio book. I’m re-listening to “The Blade Itself” by Joe Abercrombie. He’s a genius. And with Audible you can just set it so it shuts off [after awhile] so you can just doze off.

Jeff Baena, the 47-year-old film director, screenwriter and husband of actress and producer Aubrey Plaza, was found dead at a Los Angeles residence on Friday, the Los Angeles Fire Department confirmed.

The death is currently under investigation by the Los Angeles Police Department.

Baena’s family has not confirmed the filmmaker’s death. But a medical examiner’s death certificate lists a man with Baena’s name and date of birth dying at a residence in Hollywood.

According to a spokesperson for the Los Angeles County medical examiner’s office, the cause and manner of death have yet to be determined.

Baena is best known for directing indie films including The Little Hours and for co-writing I Heart Huckabees with David O. Russell.

He frequently collaborated with actress and producer Aubrey Plaza. The couple started dating in 2011 and got married in 2021.

Plaza had not publicly commented about the death at the time of publication.

Baena was born in Miami in 1977. He graduated from New York University and worked for filmmakers Robert Zemeckis and David O. Russell.

NPR reached out to Baena’s agent, lawyer and manager for confirmation of the death and comment, as well as various close associates, including actress Alison Brie and filmmakers Jay and Mark Duplass. No one had responded or posted on social media at the time of publication.

Of their collaboration on the 2020 comedy thriller Horse Girl, Brie told Paste Magazine about going on hikes and double dates with the filmmaker. “We’d talk about every type of thing, and he’d bring up certain types of characters that I should play,” she said. “Jeff and I [are] very close friends.”