The Golden Globes debuted a new award for best podcast this year — but hugely popular host Joe Rogan claimed he declined to participate, saying he refused to pay the awards org’s $500 submission fee.
Rogan was among the list of top 25 most popular podcasts that were eligible to be nominated, based on listenership data. But “The Joe Rogan Experience” was not among the six shows that received nominations. Comedian and actor Amy Poehler ended up winning the inaugural Golden Globes podcast award for her talk show “Good Hang.”
On Thursday’s episode of “The Joe Rogan Experience,” Rogan said he declined to pay the $500 submission fee to the Golden Globes, saying he turned it down because “I don’t want to be a part of that.”
“A lot of people say, ‘Why wasn’t Joe Rogan nominated for the Golden Globes? Why did Amy Poehler win?’ I didn’t submit,” Rogan said on the show. “They asked me to submit to be nominated for the Golden Globes and you had to pay $500. And the $500 is like for paperwork or whatever. I said, ‘No.’”
Rogan said he has not seen Poehler’s podcast but said, “I’m sure it’s good. It won. I’m sure someone must love it. If it sucked, they would give it to someone else, right?”
He continued, “I just know that Amy Poehler won and a lot of people are upset. ‘She’s had a podcast for six months and she won. Great, you gave it to a famous person.’ Which, you know, in that world that’s what they do.”
“I just know that I didn’t submit” for the Golden Globes award, Rogan said. “I don’t want to be a part of that. I don’t care. You’re just a group of people that just decide, all of a sudden, that you’re going to give an award out? ‘I get a trophy’? Fuck off!”
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In discussing the Globes’ podcast award with his guest Bert Kreischer, Rogan claimed, “I already won,” citing his regular position at the top of podcast rankings. The comedian’s interview podcast has been the No. 1 podcast on Spotify for five straight years and also topped the Apple Podcast and YouTube rankings for 2025.
“You can’t tell me I didn’t win. I’ve been number one for six years in a row,” Rogan said. “All of sudden, you’re going to have a contest in front of all these people wearing tuxedos and you’re going to say now I’m not number one? Fuck off — I don’t care that I’m number one, but I am, in fact, number one,” he said.
Other podcasts that were eligible for Golden Globes consideration included “The Megyn Kelly Show.” Reps for Kelly said she also declined to formally submit her show for consideration for the award.
The 2026 Golden Globes nominees for best podcast were “Good Hang With Amy Poehler”; “SmartLess,” co-hosted by Poehler’s ex-husband Will Arnett, alongside Jason Bateman and Sean Hayes; “Armchair Expert With Dax Shepard”; Alex Cooper’s “Call Her Daddy”; “The Mel Robbins Podcast”; and NPR’s “Up First.”
Disclosure: The Golden Globe Awards and Dick Clark Prods. are owned by Penske Media Corp., parent company of Variety.
From Variety US