Red rules on Globes red carpet

Actors Lupita Nyong'o and Chiwetel Ejiofor, director Steve McQueen, actors Sarah Paulson and Michael Fassbender celebrate winning Best Motion Picture - Drama for "12 Years a Slave" in the press room during the 71st Annual Golden Globe Awards in Beverly Hills, California, January 12, 2014. Red ruled the Golden Globes red carpet on Sunday as Hollywood's A-list stars bared their shoulders in eye-popping gowns for the first major awards show of the season. PHOTO/AFP

What you need to know:

  • "American Hustle" star and best musical/comedy actress winner Amy Adams chose a two-tone burgundy-red Valentino halter dress with the same only-if-you-dare plunging neckline seen in the 1970s-era crime caper.
  • Lupita Nyong'o, a best supporting actress nominee for her searing turn in "12 Years A Slave," stunned in a red Ralph Lauren column dress with matching cape, all off the shoulder.
  • "Scandal" star Kerry Washington, glowed in pale flowing Balenciaga, and had perhaps the best accessory -- a baby bump.

LOS ANGELES,

Red ruled the Golden Globes red carpet on Sunday as Hollywood's A-list stars bared their shoulders in eye-popping gowns for the first major awards show of the season.

A sprinkler malfunction almost rained on the fashion parade at the Beverly Hilton, but Tinseltown's top film and television actors successfully strutted their stuff after workers scrambled to mop up the mess.

"American Hustle" star and best musical/comedy actress winner Amy Adams chose a two-tone burgundy-red Valentino halter dress with the same only-if-you-dare plunging neckline seen in the 1970s-era crime caper.

The key to pulling off the wide V neck? "Good posture," Adams quipped to E! television's Ryan Seacrest.

Lupita Nyong'o, a best supporting actress nominee for her searing turn in "12 Years A Slave," stunned in a red Ralph Lauren column dress with matching cape, all off the shoulder.

Host Tina Fey wore several gowns throughout the night, but all of them had at least a hint of red. On the red carpet, she donned a strapless black Carolina Herrera ball gown with a long train, sprinkled with red flowers.

During the broadcast, she wore a sleeveless burgundy dress with a jeweled V-neckline, and another strapless frock in fire-engine red.

Julia Louis-Dreyfus, a nominee for her work in romantic comedy "Enough Said," also wore bright red -- a curve-hugging Narciso Rodriguez number.

Pop starlet Taylor Swift also wore Herrera: a strapless gown with a black bodice and a flowing red skirt.

Other bright colors were seen -- "Girls" star Lena Dunham sported a strapless canary yellow Zac Posen frock with a sweetheart neckline, and "Orange Is The New Black" star Taylor Schilling wore an emerald Thakoon dress with spaghetti straps and a lacy neckline.

And best supporting actress winner Jennifer Lawrence of "American Hustle" again wore Dior -- this time, a tiered gauzy white gown with two black bands.

Basic black, always a red carpet staple, of course had its place at the Globes.

Australian actress Cate Blanchett, who won the best drama actress prize for "Blue Jasmine," wowed in a lacy Armani number. Rock star Bono called her "a goddess."

Fey's co-host Amy Poehler -- a winner for best TV comedy actress for "Parks and Recreation" -- sported a sleek black Stella McCartney gown with a stomach cutout, and "August: Osage County" star Julia Roberts chose a black and white belted dress from Dolce and Gabbana.

"I just didn't want to break her," Roberts said of her epic fight scene with Meryl Streep in the film about a dysfunctional family harboring secrets in Oklahoma.

Hollywood's A-list men did not disappoint: "Wolf of Wall Street" star Leonardo DiCaprio -- a winner for best actor in a comedy -- wore an Armani tuxedo, while "Hustle" star Bradley Cooper sported Tom Ford.

"Good Wife" star Julianna Margulies -- a nominee for best actress in a television drama -- chose a black Andrew Gn gown with cap sleeves and gold accents.

One of her rivals, "Scandal" star Kerry Washington, glowed in pale flowing Balenciaga, and had perhaps the best accessory -- a baby bump.