HFPA Antitrust Suit: Kasowitz Sues Penske Over Golden Glob

July 28, 2026

The Hollywood Foreign Press Association just dropped a legal bombshell that could shake the glitter off the Golden Globes. In a move that reads less like a red-carpet drama and more like a corporate thriller, the HFPA has filed an antitrust lawsuit against Jay Penske, his Penske Media Corporation, the Golden Globe Foundation, and its top exec Gregory Goeckner. The suit, brought by powerhouse law firm Kasowitz, alleges that Penske and his allies illegally monopolized the acquisition and control of the Golden Globe Awards - and they want the whole deal unwound.

At its core, this is a fight over who gets to hold the gavel at one of Hollywood’s most dysfunctional parties. For decades, the HFPA - that famously eccentric group of international journalists - was the sole owner and operator of the Globes. Then, in 2023, amid a flurry of reforms and a very public reckoning over diversity and ethics, the group sold its commercial assets to a new entity called the Golden Globe Foundation. The foundation, in turn, handed the day-to-day reins to Dick Clark Productions, a subsidiary of Penske Media. On paper, it looked like a clean handoff: the HFPA kept its non-profit mission, the Globes got a shiny new corporate engine, and everyone moved on.

But according to the lawsuit, that handoff was anything but clean. The HFPA now claims that Penske, PMC, and their allies used strong-arm tactics and anticompetitive behavior to lock up the Globes for themselves - essentially freezing out any other potential buyers or partners. The complaint, obtained by MovieBuzz News, paints a picture of a takeover that went from friendly to hostile, with the HFPA allegedly being pressured into a deal that funneled all the power (and money) to a single media conglomerate.

“This isn’t about sour grapes - it’s about a monopoly,” a source close to the HFPA’s legal team told us, speaking on condition of anonymity. “The Globes are a crown jewel of awards season, and they should be accessible to the widest possible field of bidders and broadcasters. What Penske and his group allegedly did was rig the system so that only their machine could touch it.”

The lawsuit names Penske personally, accusing him of using his influence across multiple media properties - including Variety, Deadline, and Dick Clark Productions - to create an ecosystem where the Globes could only thrive under PMC’s roof. It also goes after Gregory Goeckner, the former HFPA insider who now serves as the foundation’s secretary. The HFPA alleges that Goeckner, who once worked for the association, crossed a line by helping to steer the deal toward Penske while still holding fiduciary duties to the HFPA.

“This is a classic case of a former friend turning into a gatekeeper,” added our source. “Goeckner knew where all the bodies were buried - metaphorically - and allegedly used that knowledge to lock the HFPA into a lopsided arrangement.”

The timing is brutal, too. Just as the Globes are trying to claw back prestige after the infamous diversity scandal of 2021 - which led NBC to drop the broadcast for a year - this lawsuit throws the whole future of the ceremony into doubt. The 2026 Golden Globes were successfully held in January, but the next edition, scheduled for early 2027, now carries a massive legal question mark. If the HFPA wins, the entire ownership structure could be dismantled, potentially forcing the awards to go dark or find an entirely new home.

Naturally, the defendants are pushing back hard. Penske Media Corporation issued a statement calling the lawsuit “baseless and revisionist,” arguing that the 2023 transaction was thoroughly vetted and approved by California regulators. “The Golden Globe Foundation operates independently,” the statement read, “and the HFPA’s attempts to rewrite history are a transparent effort to grab back control after they themselves chose to sell.”

Jay Penske, a notoriously private mogul who rarely engages in public feuds, has reportedly been furious about the suit, seeing it as an attack on his reputation as a steward of Hollywood awards. Meanwhile, Gregory Goeckner has not commented publicly, but his lawyer described the HFPA’s allegations as “a desperate distraction from their own internal dysfunction.”

For entertainment insiders, this lawsuit is the latest twist in a saga that has turned the Globes from a boozy, fun-loving awards show into a high-stakes legal battlefield. The HFPA’s own membership has shrunk dramatically in recent years, with many longtime journalists eyeing the exits. The foundation, for its part, has promised to keep the Globes “independent and inclusive” - but if the court sides with the HFPA, that independence might come at the cost of a total reboot.

One thing is certain: when the 2027 Golden Globe nominations are announced, the red carpet won’t be the only thing under scrutiny. Antitrust law, monopolization claims, and the ghost of a media empire will all be sitting in the front row, waiting for their close-up.

Source: PR Newswire