Tonight’s 71st annual Golden Globe awards, hosted by Tina Fey and Amy Poehler, was no stranger to surprise wins. One film that was surprising in its lack of abundant wins, however, was “12 Years A Slave.” Despite being nominated seven times, the film only took home one award, and the biggest one of all: Best Film, Drama.

‘Slave’ was also a nominee in Best Director (Steve McQueen), Best Actor (Chiwetel Ejiofor), and Best Screenplay (John Ridley), amongst others.

The slavery drama was picked as an early favorite by critics and viewers alike when it was first released in October. Yet, the film slipped as other strong contenders such as “Gravity” championed the box office. Also, the NY Times notes that some viewers called the film “tough to watch because of its explicit scenes of violence in the Old South.”

Despite being mostly overlooked in its other categories, ‘Slave” still did take away the night’s biggest honor, which has always been an indicator of a film’s potential Oscar performance. So, for now, ‘Slave’ is the film to beat for when the Academy Awards air in March.

The cast posed backstage for the Globes’ Instagram account moments after the big win:

If you’re unfamiliar with the night’s big winner, you can check out the trailer for ‘Slave’ below:

Image via YouTube