Wanda Sykes thanks trans community while accepting Golden Globe for Ricky Gervais

Wanda Sykes delivered one of the most talked-about moments at the 2026 Golden Globe Awards on Sunday night, when she accepted the award for Best Performance in Stand-Up Comedy on Television on behalf of Ricky Gervais - and used the opportunity to make a statement about inclusion.

Gervais, who won for his Netflix special Mortality, was not present at the ceremony, leaving Sykes to step in. With her trademark wit, she opened with a jab at the absent winner: “Ricky Gervais, I love you… for not being here,” she quipped, drawing laughter from the star-studded audience.

Earlier in the evening, Sykes had teased that whoever accepted on Gervais’s behalf would need to thank “God and the trans community.” True to her word, she declared: “He would like to thank God and the trans community”.
The line earned cheers and applause, but it also carried a deeper meaning.

The remark was widely interpreted as a nod to Gervais’s history of controversial jokes about transgender people, particularly in his 2022 Netflix special SuperNature. Those jokes sparked criticism and accusations of transphobia, prompting Netflix to defend the principle of creative freedom while acknowledging the backlash.

By invoking the trans community during her acceptance, Sykes - a queer Black woman and outspoken advocate for LGBTQ+ rights - reframed the moment. Her words were not just a punchline; they were a gesture of solidarity with a group often marginalised in public discourse.

Sykes didn’t stop there. She added another sharp observation about representation in comedy: “Because you know there are some people pissed off that a queer, Black woman is doing the job of two mediocre white guys”.

The comment, delivered with her signature sass, drew laughter and applause, underscoring her ability to blend humour with social commentary.