The 75th Emmy Awards got underway on Fox, with Anthony Anderson hosting, and his mother Doris helping out. It being a milestone anniversary, the telecast celebrated several classic shows, including Cheers, Dynasty, Mad Men, Grey's Anatomy and The Carol Burnett Show, that have made a lasting impact on American culture. 

When it was over, HBO drama Succession and FX comedy The Bear dominated with six wins apiece, while Netflix limited series Beef picked up five more. The three series were also big winners at the Golden Globes earlier this month. 

Anderson brought Christina Applegate onstage to present the first award, saluting Applegate for being on TV at age 1, on Days of Our Lives, when he said he was merely watching TV. 

Applegate presented best supporting actress in a comedy to Ayo Edebiri of FX show The Bear on Hulu. Edebiri called it “a show about family and found family and real family,” and saluted her parents in the audience. She thanked them for letting her “feel beautiful and Black and proud.”

Next out to present was Carol Burnett, who talked about running a variety show in a different era. “Progress has been made and it truly warms my heart to see how well men are doing in comedy,” she quipped. 

Presenting the lead actress in a comedy award, it went to Quinta Brunson of ABC’s Abbott Elementary. An emotional Brunson admitted she had not prepared anything, but noted, “I love making Abbott Elementary.”  

Lorraine Bracco and Michael Imperioli from The Sopranos saluted the best supporting actress in drama. It went to Jennifer Coolidge from The White Lotus on HBO. 

“Mike White, thank you for this,” Coolidge said to the creator. “Thank you for giving me this opportunity to play this incredible character.”

Pedro Pascal came out to award the best supporting actor in a drama, which went to Matthew Macfadyen of HBO’s Succession. He thanked “the entire Succession family,” including the show’s “peerless crew.”

He then thanked his “on-screen wife,” played by Sarah Snook, and his other on-screen wife, he joked, portrayed by Nicholas Braun. Macfadyen then saluted his “actual wife,” Keeley. 

Jon Cryer and Holland Taylor handed out the trophy for best supporting actor in a comedy. Ebon Moss-Bachrach of The Bear got the prize. 

“This job is such a gift,” he said. “It’s such a privilege to work with these incredible actors.”

He added, “Thank you, [creator] Chris Storer, for trusting me with this part.”

The cast of Martin, Tisha Campbell, Carl Anthony Payne, Martin Lawrence and Tichina Arnold, was out next to give out best actor in a comedy. 

Jeremy Allen White of The Bear got it. He said he is “so full of gratitude to be standing in front of you all,” and saluted the show’s “beautiful cast and beautiful crew that I get to share a space and stage with.”

He said of his friends, “Thank you for believing in me when I had trouble believing in myself.”

Taylor Tomlinson, host of new late-night show After Midnight on CBS, and Stephen Colbert were out next to give out the prize for best scripted variety series. 

HBO’s Last Week Tonight with John Oliver got the nod. Oliver thanked HBO and its lawyers, who he said “are angry with us all the time.”

Oliver said he promised his kids Pokémon cards, and didn’t know where to find them in Los Angeles. 

Marla Gibbs and Brunson presented best supporting actress in a limited series, which went to Niecy Nash-Betts of Netflix’s Dahmer–Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story. She thanked “my better half, who picked me up when I was gutted from this work.”

She thanked herself for “doing what they said I couldn’t do.”

Nash-Betts also saluted “every Black and Brown woman who has gone unheard.”

The Cheers cast, including Ted Danson, Kelsey Grammer and Rhea Perlman, presented the outstanding directing in a comedy series award. Danson named Christopher Storer from The Bear. Storer was not at the event. 

Storer then won the next prize, for writing in a comedy series. 

Joel McHale and Ken Jeong strode out next to present the outstanding reality competition program award. RuPaul’s Drag Race on MTV won.  

“You guys are just pure lovely for honoring our show,” RuPaul said. 

RuPaul spoke of “releasing to the wild hundreds of drag queens.” Referencing a recent news story in New York, RuPaul said, if a drag queen wants to read to you in a library, “listen to her. Because knowledge is power.”

Arsenio Hall was out to award outstanding writing in a variety series. He spoke of getting to host the show that he once did in his basement as a kid, and the thrill of competing with the late-night icons. The award went to Last Week Tonight. 

Kaitlin Olsen, Charlie Day, Rob McElhenney, Glenn Howerton and Danny Devito from It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia next presented outstanding talk series to The Daily Show with Trevor Noah on Comedy Central. 

“We did it!” Noah said. ”We got rid of John Oliver!” 

Noah addressed Jon Stewart. “Thank you for asking me to join you on this crazy journey!” he said. 

Juno Temple and Brett Goldstein of Ted Lasso were out to award the best directing for a limited series or movie trophy. The Emmy went to Lee Sung Jin for Netflix’s Beef.

“It’s really a testament to the amazing people I’ve been so blessed to be around,” he said, adding, “This really means a lot.”

Anderson saluted Grey’s Anatomy, whose cast, past and present, including Ellen Pompeo and Katherine Heigl, joined him onstage. Season 20 is set to start. 

The cast named best supporting actor in a limited series or movie. The Emmy went to Paul Walter Hauser, who plays Larry on Apple TV Plus series Black Bird. His rhyming speech praised the late Ray Liotta, among others, and his wife Amy. 

“You make my heart strong and my knees weak,” he said of his wife. 

Jon Hamm of Mad Men was out next to give out the prize for outstanding writing for a drama series, which his old show won a few times. Jesse Armstrong of Succession came up for the trophy. He singled out “my extraordinary writers’ room” and thanked the show’s cast and crew. 

He also thanked America for its “tradition of being very welcoming to outsiders … I’m very grateful for the generosity I’ve been shown."

Tom Hiddleston and Ke Huy Quan then came out to name the winner of outstanding writing for a limited series. Lee Sung Jin of Beef got the award. 

He spoke of the writers’ room working over Zoom. “Thank you for powering through that,” he said. 

Jason Bateman gave out the prize for directing in a drama series after making some quips about his childhood stint on Little House on the Prairie. Mark Mylod of Succession claimed the prize. He thanked the “cast and crew and the total joy of working with them for four seasons,” calling it “an absolute life highlight.”

To Jesse Armstrong, he said, “My thanks to you beyond even your brilliant words.”

Tina Fey and Amy Poehler then sat at the Weekend Update desk to name the outstanding live variety special. It went to Elton John Live: Farewell From Dodger Stadium on Disney Plus. Elton could not attend, but the producers credited the singer-songwriter for having “created the soundtrack to all our lives.” 

Dylan McDermott of American Horror Story saluted the best lead actor in a limited series. It went to Steven Yeun of Beef. He called the prize “an immense honor and blessing.”

He mentioned Beef photographer Andrew Cooper addressing him when the actor said it was difficult to live in character Danny’s skin. 

“Never bail on Danny,” Yeun said Cooper told him. 

Yeun thanked his character for “teaching me that judgement and shame is a lonely place. But compassion and grace is where we can all meet.”

Jenna Ortega and Sheryl Lee Ralph then came out to award best lead actress in a limited series. Ali Wong of Beef got the trophy. 

“I wouldn’t be standing here without my amazing parents,” she said, saluting her late “hilarious father who loved me unconditionally.”

Dame Joan Collins of Dynasty and Taraji P. Henson presented outstanding limited series. 

Beef won yet again, its fifth win of the night. Lee Sung Jin returned to the stage. 

He said everyone who reached out to the show to share their own struggles has been “very life affirming.”

He added, “The greatest joy of working on Beef is working with the folks up here who love so unconditionally.”

Colman Domingo and Hannah Waddingham presented the 2023 Governors Award to GLAAD. GLAAD president/CEO Sarah Kate Ellis said the world “urgently” needs more stories about transgender people. 

“When you don’t know people it’s easy to demonize them,” she added. “Visibility creates understanding.”

Remembering Norman Lear

Rob Reiner and Sally Struthers of All in the Family were out next, saluting the late Norman Lear and his “groundbreaking television,” Reiner said. The pair introduced the In Memoriam segment, with The War and Treaty and Charlie Puth singing “See You Again.” Angela Lansbury, Stephen ‘Twitch’ Boss, Bob Barker, Ron Cephas Jones, Andre Braugher, Matthew Perry, Suzanne Somers and Treat Williams were among the deceased who were celebrated.  

Calista Flockhart was out next, with her old Ally McBeal castmates Greg Germann, Gil Bellows and Peter MacNicol. She gave best lead actor in a drama series to Kieran Culkin of Succession. A tearful Culkin thanked Jesse Armstrong, who he called “a brilliant writer, showrunner and gentleman,” and his mother, for “giving me life and my childhood, which was great.”

Jodie Foster came out to award top lead actress in a drama. The Emmy went to Sarah Snook of Succession. “We all put our all into it,” she said of the family drama. 

Snook thanked her parents “for having a dress-up box as a kid. This is where it gets you!” 

Tracee Ellis Ross and Natasha Lyonne did a black-and-white homage to I Love Lucy, working on the candy conveyor belt, before giving out the trophy for outstanding comedy. The Bear, Abbott Elementary, Barry, Jury Duty, The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, Only Murders in the Building, Ted Lasso and Wednesday were in the running. 

The presenters’ mouths full of chocolates, they gave the Emmy to The Bear. 

Cast member Matty Matheson accepted an enormous kiss from Ebon Moss-Bachrach along with the trophy, then saluted the hospitality industry. 

“I just love restaurants so much, the good, the bad,” he said. 

He added, “There’s so many people that make this show happen every day, and it’s really beautiful.”

Moss-Bachrach thanked FX and comms chief John Solberg. 

Peter Dinklage then came out to award the top drama, with Succession, Andor, Better Call Saul, The Crown, House of the Dragon, The Last of Us, The White Lotus and Yellowjackets on the shortlist. 

The Emmy went to Succession. 

Armstrong addressed the crowd once again. He thanked HBO and Casey Bloys, Francesca Orsi and other executives, along with the cast and producers on stage, and cast member Jeremy Strong, off making a movie, and exec producer Lucy Prebble, off making a baby. 

Armstrong singled out Brian Cox, who played Logan Roy, and “who the show has revolved around.”

And with that, the 75th Emmys concluded. 

The Television Academy and Fox announced that the 75th Emmy Awards will air January 15, 2024, on Fox.

The awards show had originally been scheduled for September 18. 

Holding the award show during the Writers Guild of America and SAG-AFTRA strikes would have been a nonstarter, but there was no official announcement that the show was being postponed until now.

There were reports that vendors were told that the Emmys would not take place in September, but the September 18 date was still on the Television Academy’s website as of Wednesday.

It is not known what would happen if actors and writers were still picketing as the new year started.

The announcement from the Television Academy and Fox did not address the industry’s labor situation. Nor did it say why it was holding the award show on Martin Luther King Jr. Day.

Fox and the academy said they were planning to put on the show live from the Peacock Theater at L.A. Live. 

The Emmy Awards will be executive produced by Jesse Collins, Dionne Harmon and Jeannae Rouzan-Clay of Jesse Collins Entertainment. 

Nominees for the 2023 Emmys were announced last month, with HBO’s Succession getting 27 nominations, the most of any show.

The Creative Arts Emmy Awards will take place at the Peacock Theater over January 6 and 7. An edited presentation will be aired, January 13, 2024, at 8:00 PM ET/PT on FXX.

Kenan Thompson hosted last year’s 74th Annual Emmy Awards on NBC. 

A new trailer for the HBO's Emmy-winning drama series Succession promises more drama for the Roy family in the show's fourth season.

Succession, which won a 2022 Emmy Award for best drama series, follows the exploits of the Roy family, including the patriarch Logan Roy (Brian Cox) and his four grown children, Kendall (Jeremy Strong), Siobhan (Sarah Snook), Roman (Kieran Culkin), and Connor (Alan Ruck).

Also: Emmys: 'The White Lotus,' 'Ted Lasso,' 'Succession' Win Big 

According to HBO, the fourth season picks up after the proposed sale of the family-owned media company Waystar Royco, and how the prospect of the seismic sale provokes existential angst and familial division among the Roys as they anticipate what their lives will look like once the deal is completed. A power struggle ensues as the family weighs up a future where their cultural and political weight is severely curtailed, said the network.

The series also stars Matthew Macfadyen, Nicholas Braun, J. Smith-Cameron, Peter Friedman, David Rasche, Fisher Stevens, Hiam Abbass, Justine Lupe, Scott Nicholson, Zoë Winters, and Jeannie Berlin.

Succession is executive produced by Jesse Armstrong, Adam McKay, Frank Rich, Kevin Messick, Jane Tranter, Mark Mylod, Tony Roche, Scott Ferguson, Jon Brown, Lucy Prebble, Will Tracy and Will Ferrell. ■ 

Multichannel News/Broadcasting + Cable Senior Content Producer R. Thomas Umstead talks to veteran TV/film/Broadway actor J. Bernard Calloway about his starring role in BET Plus' Emmy-nominated series The Ms. Pat Show as part of a special Emmys edition of the Multicultural Perspectives podcast.

More Podcasts with Emmy Nominees: From Dreamgirl to President: Sheryl Lee Ralph Continues to Shine | W. Kamau Bell on Why 'We Need to Talk About Cosby'

In an era when there’s more content to watch than ever before — whether that’s on linear networks, streaming services, YouTube, Twitch or what have you — the TV Academy still tends to heap Emmy Awards nominations on just a few shows. 

This year, the HBO drama Succession had the biggest haul with 25 nominations, including nods for almost the entire cast. Succession, which follows the venal Roy family in their quest for corporate power, was named best drama in 2020.  

Succession was followed by a tie for 20 each between HBO limited series The White Lotus and Apple TV Plus’s Ted Lasso. Ted Lasso won best comedy last year. The sheer number of nominations — with essentially all of the main cast scoring mentions — makes the Jason Sudeikis-starrer a good bet to repeat, though HBO Max’s Hacks and Hulu’s Only Murders in the Building also have to be considered comedy contenders with 17 nominations apiece. 

“I do think we gave the audience an unexpectedly satisfying 10-episode run,” Only Murders in the Building executive producer John Hoffman said. “The characters are pretty dimensional and complicated and viewers fell for these people beyond the leads. If you took the ride for the first 10, you were talking about it or thinking about it. That’s what keeps the conversation going.” 

HBO’s Euphoria, for which star and executive producer Zendaya became the youngest-ever best actress in a drama in 2020, pulled in 16 nominations for its sophomore season but is likely to be overshadowed by Succession for the Emmy. HBO also  got 14 nominations for season three of Bill Hader’s dark comedy Barry.

Once again, HBO/HBO Max led all networks and services by far with 140 total Emmy nominations, while Netflix had 105. Netflix scored the first-ever best drama nomination for a foreign-language show with Squid Game.

Up-and-comer Hulu scored 58 nominations for such shows as Only Murders in the Building, Dopesick, The Dropout and Pam & Tommy, with the last three of those telling stories about real-life events.

“The shows are very reflective of the times we live in,” Craig Erwich, president of Hulu Originals and ABC Entertainment, told B+C Multichannel News. “These are the shows at the center of the conversation and they are also generating conversation.”

Apple TV Plus, with a serious lift from Ted Lasso and buzzy new drama Severance (14 nominations), had 52 total nominations. 

“Tonally, this show couldn’t have happened without other shows from the so-called … new golden age of TV with Breaking Bad and Mad Men,” Dan Erickson, Severance’s creator, said. Severance got a pre-Emmy lift on August 14, when the Hollywood Critics Association named it best streaming drama. Severance, paired with Ted Lasso’s win as best streaming comedy, gave Apple TV Plus a big night at the HCA TV Awards.  

Apple TV Plus’s nomination haul was followed by Disney Plus with 34, most of which fell into the Creative Arts categories to be handed out on Saturday and Sunday, September 3 and 4, the weekend before the televised Primetime Emmys. 

Amazon Prime Video got 30 Emmy nominations, including 12 for the fourth season of The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel starring Rachel Brosnahan. CBS scored 29, NBC 28, ABC and FX 23, and Showtime 17, including seven for rookie drama Yellowjackets. Paramount Plus had 11, VH1 had 10, Bravo and YouTube tied with eight each, and AMC had seven. 

Emmy’s Promotional Punch

Succession and Ted Lasso have already won their categories and are well-known to voters and watchers of premium TV. Emmy nominations can be the biggest help to new shows, such as Yellowjackets and Severance, piquing people’s interests, potentially leading them to check out and subscribe to new streaming platforms.

“The nominations generate publicity,” Erwich said. “There’s certainly a segment of the audience that uses nominations as a way to figure out what to watch next.”

A broadcast standout this year is ABC comedy Abbott Elementary, with seven Emmy nominations for its freshman season — including three for series creator and star Quinta Brunson — and momentum from four awards from the Television Critics Association in August. 

“It starts with Quinta [Brunson], who is a true original,” Erwich said. “She’s a generational voice that the audience has taken incredible joy in discovering and adopting as their own.”  ▪️

Kenan Thompson will host the 74th Annual Emmy Awards on NBC September 12. The three-hour event happens at the Microsoft Theater in Los Angeles. Thompson will start his 20th season on Saturday Night Live in the fall. 

“Kenan is well-regarded as one of the funniest, likeable and accomplished performers of the last two decades and his tenure on Saturday Night Live speaks for itself,” said Jen Neal, executive VP of live events for NBCUniversal Television and Streaming. “We know he’ll bring an excitement and professionalism to the Emmy Awards that a show of this stature deserves.”  

Thompson executive produced and starred in the NBC comedy Kenan, which lasted two seasons. He was a producer and judge on NBC competition series Bring the Funny. He got his start on Nickelodeon’s Kenan and Kel in 1996.   

“Being a part of this incredible evening where we honor the best of the television community is ridiculously exciting, and to do it on NBC–my longtime network family–makes it even more special,” Thompson said. “Like all TV fans, I can’t wait to see the stars from my favorite shows.”      

Done+Dusted will produce the Emmys in association with Hudlin Entertainment.

CBS had the broadcast last year, with Cedric the Entertainer the host. 

The Emmys will stream live on Peacock for the first time. ■

Broadcasting + Cable's Kent Gibbons and Michael Malone chat about the 2022 Emmy nominations, The Bear on Hulu, Discovery's Shark Week, and more in this edition of Busted Pilot.

HBO’s Succession was the big winner among a list of Emmy Awards nominations that offered few surprises but a lot of intrigue.

Succession led all shows with 25 nominations, followed by Apple TV Plus’s Ted Lasso and HBO’s The White Lotus with 20 nominations each. HBO Max’s Hacks and Hulu’s Only Murders In the Building drew 17 nominations each, while HBO’s Euphoria garnered 16 nods, according to the TV Academy during a Tuesday-morning online ceremony hosted by J.B. Smoove and Melissa Fumero. 

All of last year’s winners in the major comedy categories will be back to defend their crown. Apple TV Plus’ Ted Lasso will look to fend off challenges from ABC’s Abbott Elementary, HBO’s Barry and Curb Your Enthusiasm, HBO Max’s Hacks, Hulu’s Only Murders in the Building and FX’s What We Do In the Shadows. 

Ted Lasso’s Jason Sudeikis will look to defend against previous category winner Donald Glover (FX’s Atlanta), as well as Bill Hader (Barry); Only Murders In the Building’s Steve Martin and Martin Short; and Nicholas Hoult (Hulu’s The Great).

Hacks’ Jean Smart takes on former category winner Rachel Brosnahan (Amazon Prime Video’s The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel), Quinta Brunson (Abbott Elementary), Kaley Cuoco (HBO Max’s The Flight Attendant), Elle Fanning (Hulu’s The Great) and Issa Rae (HBO’s Insecure).

The absence of Netflix’s The Crown, which won 2021 Emmys in most of the major drama categories, provided a wide-open competition for best drama series, led by Succession along with three Netflix series — Ozark, Stranger Things and Squid Game — as well as Better Call Saul, Euphoria, Apple TV Plus’s Severance and Showtime’s Yellowjackets.

Killing Eve’s Jodie Comer and Sandra Oh earned Lead Actress in a Drama Series nods along with Ozark’s Laura Linney, Yellowjackets’ Melanie Lynskey, The Morning Show’s Reese Witherspoon and Euphoria's Zendaya. 

Succession’s Brian Cox and Jeremy Strong lead a best actor in a drama series category that also features Ozark’s Jason Bateman, Squid Game’s Lee Jung-Jae, Better Call Saul’s Bob Odenkirk and Severance’s Adam Scott.

NBC will air live the 74th Emmy Awards on September 12. ▪️

In the Running

Here‘s a partial list of Emmy-nominated shows: 

OUTSTANDING DRAMA SERIES
Better Call Saul (AMC)
Euphoria (HBO)
Ozark (Netflix)
Severance (Apple TV Plus)
Squid Game (Netflix)
Stranger Things (Netflix)
Succession (HBO)
Yellowjackets (Showtime)

LEAD ACTRESS IN A DRAMA SERIES
Jodie Comer (Killing Eve, BBC America)
Laura Linney (Ozark, Netflix)
Melanie Lynskey (Yellowjackets, Showtime)
Sandra Oh (Killing Eve, BBC America)
Reese Witherspoon (The Morning Show, Apple TV Plus)
Zendaya (Euphoria, HBO)

LEAD ACTOR IN A DRAMA SERIES
Jason Bateman (Ozark, Netflix)
Brian Cox (Succession, HBO)
Lee Jung-jae (Squid Game, Netflix)
Bob Odenkirk (Better Call Saul, AMC)
Adam Scott (Severance, Apple TV Plus)
Jeremy Strong (Succession, HBO)

SUPPORTING ACTRESS IN A DRAMA SERIES
Patricia Arquette (Severance, Apple TV Plus)
Julia Garner (Ozark, Netflix)
Jung Ho-Yeon (Squid Game, Netflix)
Christina Ricci (Yellowjackets, Showtime)
Rhea Seehorn (Better Call Saul, AMC)
J. Smith-Cameron (Succession, HBO)
Sarah Snook (Succession, HBO)
Sydney Sweeney (Euphoria, HBO) 

SUPPORTING ACTOR IN A DRAMA SERIES
Nicholas Braun (Succession, HBO)
Billy Crudup (The Morning Show, Apple TV Plus)
Kieran Culkin (Succession, HBO)
Park Hae-soo (Squid Game, Netflix)
Matthew Macfadyen (Succession, HBO)
John Turturro (Severance, Apple TV Plus)
Christopher Walken (Severance, Apple TV Plus)
Oh Yeong-Su (Squid Game, Netflix) 

OUTSTANDING COMEDY SERIES
Abbott Elementary (ABC)
Barry (HBO)
Curb Your Enthusiasm (HBO)
Hacks (HBO)
The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel (Amazon Prime Video)
Only Murders in the Building (Hulu)
Ted Lasso (Apple TV Plus)
What We Do in the Shadows (FX)

LEAD ACTRESS IN A COMEDY SERIES
Rachel Brosnahan (The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, Amazon Prime Video)
Quinta Brunson (Abbott Elementary, ABC)
Kaley Cuoco (The Flight Attendant, HBO)
Elle Fanning, (The Great, Hulu)
Issa Rae (Insecure, HBO)
Jean Smart (Hacks, HBO Max)

LEAD ACTOR IN A COMEDY SERIES
Donald Glover (Atlanta, FX)
Bill Hader (Barry, HBO)
Nicholas Hoult (The Great, Hulu)
Steve Martin (Only Murders in the Building, Hulu)
Martin Short (Only Murders in the Building, Hulu)
Jason Sudeikis (Ted Lasso, Apple TV Plus) 

SUPPORTING ACTRESS IN A COMEDY SERIES
Alex Bornstein (The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, Amazon Prime Video)
Hannah Einbinder (Hacks, HBO Max)
Janelle James (Abbott Elementary, ABC)
Kate McKinnon (Saturday Night Live, NBC)
Sarah Niles (Ted Lasso, Apple TV Plus)
Sheryl Lee Ralph (Abbott Elementary, ABC)
Juno Temple (Ted Lasso, Apple TV Plus)
Hannah Waddingham (Ted Lasso, Apple TV Plus)

SUPPORTING ACTOR IN A COMEDY SERIES
Anthony Carrigan (Barry, HBO)
Brett Goldstein (Ted Lasso, Apple TV Plus)
Toheeb Jimoh (Ted Lasso, Apple TV Plus)
Nick Mohammed (Ted Lasso, Apple TV Plus
)Tony Shalhoub (The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, Prime Video)
Tyler James Williams (Abbott Elementary, ABC)
Henry Winkler (Barry, HBO)
Bowen Yang (Saturday Night Live, NBC) 

OUTSTANDING LIMITED ANTHOLOGY SERIES OR MOVIE
Dopesick (Hulu)
The Dropout (Hulu)
Inventing Anna (Netflix)
Pam & Tommy (Hulu)
The White Lotus (HBO)

LEAD ACTOR IN A LIMITED TV SERIES OR MOVIE
Colin Firth (The Staircase, HBO Max)
Andrew Garfield (Under the Banner of Heaven, FX)
Oscar Isaac (Scenes from a Marriage, HBO Max)
Michael Keaton (Dopesick, Hulu) 
Himesh Patel (Station Eleven, HBO Max)
Sebastian Stan (Pam & Tommy, Hulu) 

LEAD ACTRESS IN A LIMITED TV SERIES OR MOVIE
Toni Collette (The Staircase, HBO Max)
Julia Garner (Inventing Anna, Netflix) 
Lily James (Pam & Tommy, Hulu)
Sarah Paulson (Impeachment: American Crime Story, FX)
Margaret Qualley (Maid, Netflix)
Amanda Seyfried (The Dropout, Hulu) 

OUTSTANDING REALITY/COMPETITION SERIES 
The Amazing Race (CBS)
Lizzo’s Watch Out for the Big Grrrls (Amazon Prime Video)
Nailed It! (Netflix)
RuPaul’s Drag Race (VH1)
Top Chef (Bravo)
The Voice (NBC)

OUTSTANDING VARIETY TALK SERIES
The Daily Show with Trevor Noah (Comedy Central)
Jimmy Kimmel Live! (ABC)
Last Week Tonight with John Oliver (HBO)
Late Night with Seth Meyers (NBC)
The Late Show with Stephen Colbert (CBS)

VARIETY SKETCH SERIES
A Black Lady Sketch Show (HBO)
Saturday Night Live (NBC)

HBO will bring back its Emmy-winning comedy series Barry for a fourth season, the network said Thursday.

The series, which is currently airing new, third-season episodes on HBO, will return for a fourth season with series star Bill Hader directing all eight episodes. The series will continue to follow the exploits of a contract killer looking to make a career change to become an actor.

Along with Hader, the series also stars Emmy winning actor Henry Winkler, Stephen Root, Sarah Goldberg, Anthony Carrigan and Sarah Burns.

Barry is executive produced by Hader, Alex Berg, Aida Rodgers and Liz Sarnoff.

Also: Warner Bros. Discovery Touts Content Portfolio Strength at Upfront Presentation

“Bill, Alec and the entire cast and crew delivered an exquisite third season of Barry, it’s a masterful blend of laughs and suspense,” Amy Gravitt, executive VP, HBO Programming in a statement. “I’m so happy to announce that we are picking up the fourth season.” ■

HBO Thursday offered a teaser trailer for its highly-anticipated Game of Thrones prequel series House of the Dragon, which debuts Aug. 21. 

The 10-episode series, based on George R.R. Martin’s Fire & Blood, takes place 200 years before the events of Game of Thrones that tells the story of House Targaryen, said the network.

The series stars Paddy Considine, Matt Smith, Olivia Cooke, Emma D’Arcy, Steve Toussaint, Eve Best, Fabien Frankel, Sonoya Mizuno, and Rhys Ifans.

House of the Dragon is executive produced by George R.R. Martin, Ryan Condal, Miguel Sapochnik, Sara Hess, Jocelyn Diaz, Vince Gerardis and Ron Schmidt.

The series is the first of several potential spinoffs of Game of Thrones, which during its eight-season run on HBO won a record 59 Emmy Awards.  ■ 

Also: George Carlin Documentary From Judd Apatow on HBO 

NBC will host the Emmy Awards Monday, September 12 at 8 p.m. ET and 5 p.m. PT. The event goes for three hours. 

It is the 74th Emmy Awards. No host has been named. 

NBC has Sunday Night Football on Sundays, a factor in the event happening on a Monday this year. 

Nominations for the September Emmys are announced July 12. 

The 2022 Creative Arts Emmy Awards happen September 3-4. An edited presentation will be broadcast on FXX September 10. 

CBS had the Emmys in September 2021. Cedric the Entertainer hosted from a tent near the Microsoft Theater, at LA Live, in downtown Los Angeles. 

ABC aired the Emmys in 2020, with Jimmy Kimmel hosting at an empty Staples Center in Los Angeles. Fox had it the year before, with no host. 

In 2018, NBC had the Emmys, with Michael Che and Colin Jost hosting. 

The Television Academy gives out the Emmys to the finest in television. ■

HBO was the big draw at Sunday’s Critics Choice Awards event, garnering more wins than any other distributor.

The ceremony, simulcast live on TBS and The CW, saw HBO/HBO Max win 10 Critics Choice Awards, topping Netflix’s seven wins and Apple TV Plus’s five statuettes, said the Critics Choice Association. 

Apple TV’s Ted Lasso continued its strong TV awards season, winning four Critics Choice Awards to top all series. The show matched its Emmy Award for best comedy with a Critics Choice win in the category, along with wins for best actor (Jason Sudeikis) best supporting actor (Brett Goldstein) and best supporting actress (Hannah Waddingham).

HBO's Succession added the Critics Choice Award for best drama to its 2022 Golden Globe and Screen Actors Guild Awards wins in the category. Series stars Kieran Culkin and Sarah Snook took home Critics Choice Award statuettes in the best supporting actor and actress categories, respectively. 

Netflix original film The Power of the Dog took home best picture honors, along with a best director statuette for Jane Campion.

Winners from the 27th annual Critics Choice Awards in the television category are as follows:

BEST DRAMA SERIES

Succession (HBO)

BEST ACTOR IN A DRAMA SERIES

Lee Jung-jae – Squid Game (Netflix)  

BEST ACTRESS IN A DRAMA SERIES

Melanie Lynskey – Yellowjackets (Showtime)  

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR IN A DRAMA SERIES

Kieran Culkin – Succession (HBO)

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS IN A DRAMA SERIES

Sarah Snook – Succession (HBO)  

BEST COMEDY SERIES

Ted Lasso (Apple TV Plus)

BEST ACTOR IN A COMEDY SERIES

Jason Sudeikis – Ted Lasso (Apple TV Plus)

BEST ACTRESS IN A COMEDY SERIES

Jean Smart – Hacks (HBO Max)

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR IN A COMEDY SERIES

Brett Goldstein – Ted Lasso (Apple TV Plus)

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS IN A COMEDY SERIES

Hannah Waddingham – Ted Lasso (Apple TV Plus)

BEST LIMITED SERIES

Mare of Easttown (HBO)

BEST MOVIE MADE FOR TELEVISION

Oslo (HBO)

BEST ACTOR IN A LIMITED SERIES OR MOVIE MADE FOR TELEVISION

Michael Keaton – Dopesick (Hulu)

BEST ACTRESS IN A LIMITED SERIES OR MOVIE MADE FOR TELEVISION

Kate Winslet – Mare of Easttown (HBO)

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR IN A LIMITED SERIES OR MOVIE MADE FOR TELEVISION

Murray Bartlett – The White Lotus (HBO)

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS IN A LIMITED SERIES OR MOVIE MADE FOR TELEVISION

Jennifer Coolidge – The White Lotus (HBO)

BEST FOREIGN LANGUAGE SERIES

Squid Game (Netflix)

BEST ANIMATED SERIES

What If … ?  (Disney Plus)

BEST TALK SHOW

Last Week Tonight with John Oliver (HBO)

BEST COMEDY SPECIAL

Bo Burnham: Inside (Netflix)

Hollywood Friday paid tribute to iconic actor/director and civil rights activist Sidney Poitier, who died Thursday night at the age of 94. 

Poitier’s prolific movie career features such groundbreaking films as In The Heat of the Night, Raisin in the Sun, The Defiant Ones, To Sir, With Love and Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner that helped paved the way for Black actors in the 1950s and 1960s. Poitier was the first Black man to win the Academy Award for best actor for his role in the 1963 film Lilies of the Field.

Poitier also directed several hit films, including Buck and the Preacher starring Harry Belafonte, Uptown Saturday Night with Bill Cosby and Stir Crazy with Richard Pryor and Gene Wilder. In 2009, Poitier was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom by President Barack Obama.

On TV, Poitier was nominated for Emmy Awards for his portrayals of Nelson Mandela in Showtime’s Mandela and De Klerk, and Thurgood Marshall in ABC’s Separate But Equal.

In tribute to Poitier, OWN on January 9 will present a day-long, Poitier programming tribute including re-airings of The Oprah Winfrey Show episodes in 2000 and 2007 and Oprah Winfrey Presents: Legends Who Paved the Way from 2015; and the 1967 film To Sir, With Love, said the network.

Weigel Broadcasting's retro services Movies! network and Decades network will feature Poitier-themed programming blocks over the next two months. Movies! will air Poitier’s first credited screen role in No Way Out on February 7, as well as three of his films -- No Way Out, Edge of the City and Blackboard Jungle on February 28, said network officials. 

Decades Network will air a 1972 episode of The Dick Cavett Show on January 10 featuring Poitier and Belafonte discussing their movie Buck and the Preacher, said the network.

Industry celebrities from Oprah Winfrey and Morgan Freeman as well as cable networks BET and TV One also paid tribute to Poitier on social media.

Netflix Thursday offered the official trailer for part one of the fourth and final season of its Emmy-winning drama series Ozark, which debuts January 21.

The series’ final season, which will be released in two parts consisting of seven episodes each, continues to follow the Byrde family’s journey from their normal, suburban Chicago life to their dangerous criminal enterprise in the Ozarks, according to Netflix.

Ozark stars Jason Bateman, Laura Linney, Julia Garner, Sofia Hublitz, Skylar Gaertner, Charlie Tahan and Jessica Frances Dukes. The series, produced by MRC Television, is executive produced by Chris Mundy, Bateman, Mark Williams, John Shiban, Patrick Markey and Bill Dubuque. ■ 

HBO will move forward with a fourth season of its drama series Succession, the network said Tuesday.

The Emmy award-winning drama is currently in its third season run on HBO. The Jesse Armstrong-created series drew more than 1.4 million viewers during its Oct. 17 season debut across all HBO platforms, said the company.

Succession, which explores themes of power and family dynamics through the eyes of patriarch Logan Roy (Brian Cox) and his four grown children, Kendall (Jeremy Strong), Siobhan (Sarah Snook), Roman (Kieran Culkin), and Connor (Alan Ruck).

“With each season of Succession, Jesse Armstrong has continued to surpass our wildest expectations, pulling us deeper into the Roy family’s inner sanctum with indelible wit, humanity, and precision,” Francesca Orsi, HBO programming executive VP, said in a statement. “This season is undoubtedly no exception, and we couldn’t be more excited for all that’s in store in this next season ahead.”

Also starring in the series are Nicholas Braun, Matthew Macfadyen, Peter Friedman, J. Smith-Cameron, Dagmara Dominczyk, Justine Lupe, David Rasche, Fisher Stevens, Hiam Abbass, Arian Moayed, Harriet Walter, James Cromwell, Natalie Gold, Juliana Canfield, Annabelle Dexter-Jones, Zoë Winters and Jeannie Berlin returning. Additional cast includes Alexander Skarsgård, Sanaa Lathan, Linda Emond, Jihae, Adrien Brody, Hope Davis and Dasha Nekrasova.

FX will once again team with The Americans creators Joel Fields and Joe Weisberg on a new psychological thriller that will star Steve Carell.

The new series, The Patient, stars Carell as psychiatrist Alexander Strauss, who finds himself being held prisoner by a serial killer with an unusual request: to curb his homicidal urges, FX said. Having recently lost his wife, Strauss has yet to plumb the depths of his own pain and loss, creating a journey that is perhaps as treacherous as his captivity, said the network.  

Carell, who was nominated for 11 Emmys for his role as Michael Scott in The Office and currently appears in Apple TV Plus’s The Morning Show, will serve as executive producer of the 10-episode series along with Fields, Weisberg, Caroline Moore and Victor Hsu.

“We are excited that Joe and Joel are back with their next series for FX after the great experience of working with them on six amazing seasons of The Americans,” said FX Entertainment president Eric Schrier in a statement. “Their creative instincts and mastery of plot and character are on display again with The Patient, which will showcase Steve Carell’s remarkable talents as an actor, producer and creative collaborator.” 

The Crown won Netflix’s first ever Emmy Award for best drama series, leading a streaming services sweep of the major awards categories during Sunday night’s Primetime Emmy Awards telecast. 

Along with The Crown, wins by Apple TV Plus’s Ted Lasso for best comedy series and Netflix’s The Queens Gambit for best limited, anthology series or movie certified the digital platform as this year's dominant source for quality content on the small screen, according to Television Academy voters.  

The Crown won seven Emmy statuettes -- the biggest of which was for best drama series -- to top all shows. The Crown's win marks only the second Emmy best drama series win for a streaming service, following Hulu’s 2017 win for The Handmaid’s Tale.

Along with winning best drama series, The Crown’s Josh O’Connor and Olivia Colman won Emmys for lead actor and actress, respectively. Also The Crown’s Tobias Menzies and Gillian Anderson won best supporting actor and best supporting actress Emmys, respectively.

Emmys 2021: 'Ted Lasso' Gets Top Comedy, 'The Crown' Named Best Drama, 'The Queen's Gambit' Best Limited Series

Apple TV Plus’s Ted Lasso was the big winner in the comedy category, winning four awards including best comedy series and outstanding lead actor in a comedy series for Jason Sudeikis. The soccer-themed series also won Emmys in the outstanding supporting actor in a comedy series category for Brett Goldstein, and outstanding supporting actress in a comedy series for Hannah Waddingham. 

Actress Jean Smart kept Ted Lasso from sweeping the major Emmy comedy acting awards with a win in the lead actress category for her role in HBO Max's Hacks.

Netflix’s The Queen’s Gambit was the top choice in the Limited or Anthology Series or Movie category. Kate Winslet won lead actress in a limited or anthology series or movie for her role in Mare of Easttown, while Ewan McGregor won lead actor in the category for his role in Halston.

Overall Netflix won 10 Primetime Emmy Awards during CBS’ live telecast, besting HBO/HBO Max’s nine awards. Apple TV Plus finished third with four awards during the telecast, which was hosted by Cedric The Entertainer. 

Together with the Creative Arts Emmys, Netflix finished with a total of 44 Emmy Awards, easily besting second place HBO/HBO Max's 19 awards. Disney Plus (14 award wins) and Apple TV Plus (10 wins) were the only other distributors with double figure win totals, according to the Television Academy. NBC topped all broadcast networks with eight Emmy wins.  

One of the few surprises during the primetime ceremony was Michaela Coel’s win in the Outstanding Writing for a Limited or Anthology Series or Movies for her work on HBO’s I May Destroy You.   

HBO’s Last Week Tonight With John Oliver won the Outstanding Variety Talk Series category for the sixth year in a row, while VH1’s RuPaul Drag Race was the winner in the Outstanding Competition Program for the fourth consecutive year.

Emmys 2021: Photos From the 73rd Annual Emmy Awards

The complete list of the 73rd annual Primetime Emmy Awards winners are as follows: 

Outstanding Comedy Series

"Ted Lasso” (Apple TV Plus)

Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series

Jean Smart, "Hacks" (HBO Max)

Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series

Jason Sudeikis, “Ted Lasso” (Apple TV Plus)

Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series

Brett Goldstein, "Ted Lasso" (Apple TV Plus)

Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series

Hannah Waddingham, "Ted Lasso" (Apple TV Plus)

Outstanding Writing for a Comedy Series

"Hacks" (There Is No Line), Written by Lucia Aniello (HBO Max)

Outstanding Directing for a Comedy Series

"Hacks" (There Is No Line), Directed by Lucia Aniello (HBO Max)

Outstanding Drama Series

"The Crown" (Netflix)

Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series

Olivia Colman, "The Crown" (Netflix)

Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series

Josh O'Connor, "The Crown" (Netflix)

Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series

Tobias Menzies, "The Crown" (Netflix)

Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series

Gillian Anderson, "The Crown" (Netflix)

Outstanding Writing for a Drama Series

"The Crown" (War), written by Peter Morgan (Netflix)

Outstanding Directing for a Drama Series

"The Crown" (War), Directed by Jessica Hobbs  (Netflix)

Outstanding Limited or Anthology Series

"The Queen's Gambit" (Netflix)

"Outstanding Lead Actor in a Limited or Anthology Series or a Movie

Ewan McGregor, "Halston" (Netflix)

Outstanding Lead Actress in a Limited or Anthology Series or a Movie

Kate Winslet, "Mare of Easttown" (HB0)

Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Limited or Anthology Series or Movie

Evan Peters, "Mare of Easttown" (HBO)

Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Limited or Anthology Series or Movie

Julianne Nicholson, "Mare of Easttown" (HBO)

Outstanding Directing for a Limited or Anthology Series or Movie

"The Queen's Gambit," Directed by Scott Frank (Netflix)

Outstanding Writing for a Limited or Anthology Series or Movie

"I May Destroy You," Written by Michaela Coel (HBO)

Outstanding Variety Sketch Series

"Saturday Night Live" (NBC)

Outstanding Variety Special (Live)

"Stephen Colbert's Election Night 2020: Democracy's Last Stand Building Back America Great Again Better 2020" (Showtime)

Outstanding Variety Special (Pre-Recorded)

"Hamilton" (Disney Plus)

Outstanding Writing for a Variety Series

"Last Week Tonight with John Oliver" (HBO)

Outstanding Variety Talk Series

"Last Week Tonight with John Oliver" (HBO)

Outstanding Competition Program

"RuPaul's Drag Race" (VH1)

Obliterating any remaining doubt about which companies now control the television business, Netflix and other leading subscription streaming service providers utterly dominated this year's Primetime Emmy Awards, winning 24 of the 27 major trophies.

Netflix was the biggest winner, capturing its first ever series trophy with The Crown, which also won for lead drama actress (Olivia Colman, who plays Queen Elizabeth II), lead drama actor (Josh O'Connor's portrayal of Prince Charles) ,dramatic supporting actress (Gillian Anderson, who played Margaret Thatcher in the most recent season), and dramatic supporting actor (Tobias Menzies, who plays the late Prince Philip). 

Netflix won 10 total Primetime Emmys Sunday, a haul that also included an Outstanding Limited or Anthology Series win for The Queen's Gambit. Factoring its 34 previously awarded Creative Arts wins, the world's top streaming service won 44 Emmys this year. Both The Crown and The Queen's Gambit totaled 11 Emmy wins. 

HBO Max, meanwhile, took home a very strong nine Primetime Emmys, with Mare of Easttown winning Limited or Anthology Series acclaim for lead actress (Kate Winslet as Detective Mare Sheehan) and supporting actor and actress (Julianne Nicholson as Lori Ross and Evan Peters as Detective Colin Zabel). Also, Jean Smart won Outstanding Actress in a Comedy Series for her lead role in HBO's Hacks.

Disney Plus finished in third place in the overall trophy race, with Star Wars spinoff The Mandalorian capturing seven of the streaming service's 14 overall Emmy wins. Disney Plus only won one Primetime Emmy (Hamilton won Prerecorded Special). 

Apple TV Plus finished in fourth place with 10 overall Emmys, and Ted Lasso, not surprisingly, won seven of them, including Best Comedy Series, Best Actor in a Comedy Series (Jason Sudeikis as the title charactor), Best Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series (Hannah Waddingham as Rebecca Welton) and Best Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series (Brett Goldstein as the lovably foul-mouthed Roy Kent). 

Notably, Amazon came away totally bereft of Emmy love this year, as did Hulu, which saw original series A Handmaid's Tale come up short on all 23 of its nominations this year. That's actually record. 

And companies operating on traditional linear platforms had limited success. 

NBC won an Outstanding Variety Sketch Series Emmy for its venerable Saturday Night Live franchise; VH1's Rupaul's Drag Race won Outstanding Competition Program; and Showtime won Outstanding Variety Special for Stephen Colbert's Election coverage.

But that was it for the non-streamers.

Emmys 2021: Photos From the 73rd Annual Emmy Awards

A complete list of the 73rd annual Primetime Emmy Awards winners: 

Outstanding Comedy Series

Ted Lasso (Apple TV Plus)

Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series

Jean Smart, Hacks (HBO Max)

Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series

Jason Sudeikis, Ted Lasso (Apple TV Plus)

Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series

Brett Goldstein, Ted Lasso (Apple TV Plus)

Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series

Hannah Waddingham, Ted Lasso (Apple TV Plus)

Outstanding Writing for a Comedy Series

Hacks (There Is No Line), Written by Lucia Aniello (HBO Max)

Outstanding Directing for a Comedy Series

Hacks (There Is No Line), Directed by Lucia Aniello (HBO Max)

Outstanding Drama Series

The Crown (Netflix)

Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series

Olivia Colman, The Crown (Netflix)

Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series

Josh O'Connor, The Crown (Netflix)

Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series

Tobias Menzies, The Crown (Netflix)

Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series

Gillian Anderson, The Crown (Netflix)

Outstanding Writing for a Drama Series

The Crown (War), written by Peter Morgan (Netflix)

Outstanding Directing for a Drama Series

The Crown (War), Directed by Jessica Hobbs  (Netflix)

Outstanding Limited or Anthology Series

The Queen's Gambit (Netflix)

Outstanding Lead Actor in a Limited or Anthology Series or a Movie

Ewan McGregor, Halston (Netflix)

Outstanding Lead Actress in a Limited or Anthology Series or a Movie

Kate Winslet, Mare of Easttown (HB0)

Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Limited or Anthology Series or Movie

Evan Peters, Mare of Easttown (HBO)

Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Limited or Anthology Series or Movie

Julianne Nicholson, Mare of Easttown (HBO)

Outstanding Directing for a Limited or Anthology Series or Movie

The Queen's Gambit, Directed by Scott Frank (Netflix)

Outstanding Writing for a Limited or Anthology Series or Movie

I May Destroy You, Written by Michaela Coel (HBO)

Outstanding Variety Sketch Series

Saturday Night Live (NBC)

Outstanding Variety Special (Live)

Stephen Colbert's Election Night 2020: Democracy's Last Stand Building Back America Great Again Better 2020 (Showtime)

Outstanding Variety Special (Pre-Recorded)

Hamilton (Disney Plus)

Outstanding Writing for a Variety Series

Last Week Tonight with John Oliver (HBO)

Outstanding Variety Talk Series

Last Week Tonight with John Oliver (HBO)

Outstanding Competition Program

RuPaul's Drag Race (VH1)

Cedric the Entertainer took the stage as the 73rd Emmy Awards host on CBS, rapping about the merits of television, with assists from LL Cool J, Lil Dicky and Rita Wilson. “TV, you got what I need,” went the chorus, a riff on the late Biz Markie’s “Just A Friend,” as the crowd sang along. 

Seth Rogen gave out the trophy for outstanding supporting actress in a comedy to Hannah Waddingham of Ted Lasso on Apple TV Plus. 

“Jason, you’ve changed my life with this, and more importantly my baby girl’s,“ she said to Jason Sudeikis. “I’m so privileged to work with you.”

Saluting the producers and writers, she added, “You don’t realize how wonderful you are.”

Yara Shahidi of grown-ish gave out the prize for supporting actor in a comedy, with Brett Goldstein of Ted Lasso getting the trophy.  

“I was very specifically told not to swear,” he said before a series of bleeps. “This cast makes me sick, they’re so good,” he added.

Emmys 2021: Photos From the 73rd Annual Emmy Awards

Billy Porter and MJ Rodriguez gave out the award for best supporting actress in a limited series or movie. Julianne Nicholson of HBO’s Mare of Easttown got the award. She saluted creator Brad Inglesby for his deft hand in detailing “the bonds between women” and series star Kate Winslet.

“Man, you’re good at acting,” she said of Winslet. “But it turns out you’re good at caring for a whole production. I owe this to you."

Nicholson mentioned “all the ladies out there in Philadelphia and Kabul and Texas” who are finding themselves struggling to be heard. 

Vanessa Lachey and Wilmer Valderrama from the NCIS franchise gave out best supporting actor in a limited series or movie. Evan Peters of Mare of Easttown was named. 

“I gotta thank my mom and dad for getting me out to L.A.,” he said. “You guys were crazy to do that, but we’re gonna drink tonight.”

Peters thanked “Kate Winslet for BEING KATE WINSLET!” 

Mindy Kaling came out to award the best writing in a drama prize. Peter Morgan of Netflix’s The Crown won. From London, he said, “I’m very proud, I’m very grateful, we’re gonna party. Good night!”

Emmys 2021: What We Watched During the Pandemic

Best director on a drama was singled out by America Ferrara. Jessica Hobbs of The Crown got the honor. Also in London, she credited “the brilliant and generous” Peter Morgan. 

“Not a lot of women have won this award so I feel like I’m standing on the shoulders of really extraordinary women,” she added. 

Stephen Colbert came out to “Sympathy for the Devil” and awarded the outstanding supporting actress in a drama award. Gillian Anderson, who plays Margaret Thatcher on The Crown, won. She thanked agent Connie Freiberg, “who believed in me when no one else would...Connie, I love you! This is for you.”

Kerry Washington mentioned Michael K. Williams, who died earlier this month, calling him “a brilliantly talented actor and a generous human being who left us far too soon.”

Washington named Tobias Menzies of The Crown for best supporting actor in a drama. Menzies was not in attendance. 

Daniel Dae Kim and Sophia Bush gave out the trophy for outstanding writing in a variety series to Last Week Tonight with John Oliver on HBO. Producers Tim Carvell and Liz Stanton were singled out, and the writers dedicated the award to Adam Driver. “He knows what he did and we know what we’d like him to do,” said one writer. 

Kaley Cuoco of The Flight Attendant named the best variety talk series, which also went to Last Week Tonight. “Like many of us in this room, I was kind of rooting for Conan, so this is bittersweet,” said Oliver. 

Oliver saluted the late Norm Macdonald. “No one was funnier in the last 20 years in late-night comedy than Norm Macdonald,” said Oliver, urging viewers to watch him on YouTube. 

Ken Jeong of The Masked Singer named the winner for best variety sketch series. It was NBC’s Saturday Night Live. Lorne Michaels detailed the show getting back to work amid the COVID pandemic in front of a small audience of first responders. “Fatigue soon turned to exhilaration and we went to work,” he said, as things got back to relatively normal. 

He also saluted Norm Macdonald, who hosted "Weekend Update" on SNL. “One of the best we ever had,” said Michaels. 

The Schitt’s Creek cast, Dan Levy, Catherine O’Hara, Annie Murphy and Eugene Levy, came out to award best writing in a comedy series. HBO Max’s Hacks won. Creators Lucia Aniello, Paul W. Downs and Jen Statsky claimed the prize. Downs mentioned the show’s “incredible cast,” including Jean Smart and Hannah Einbinder. Aniello saluted “anyone who struggles to tell their story.”

The Schitt’s Creek bunch stayed out to give out best directing in a comedy. Lucia Aniello of Hacks won. An emotional Aniello thanked Smart and Einbinder “for giving so much of themselves to these characters. We were so lucky to experience your love every day.” 

Bowen Yang named the outstanding actress in a comedy. Jean Smart of Hacks won, as the room rose to its feet. She thanked her late husband Richard Gilliland, who passed away in March. 

“Hacks has been such a thrill,” she said, citing creators Statsky, Downs and Aniello. “I read this and said, I have to do this. It checked off every box.” 

Jennifer Coolidge of The White Lotus named the outstanding actor in a comedy. Jason Sudeikis won. He said the show is about family, mentors and teammates, and thanked, among others, his parents, Lorne Michaels, and Lasso executive producers Bill Lawrence, Joe Kelly and Brendan Hunt. 

“I wouldn’t be here without those three things,” said Sudeikis. 

Outstanding competition program was given out by Allyson Felix and Jessica Longwent. RuPaul’s Drag Race on VH1 won. 

“Thanks to all of our lovely children on our show from around the world,” said RuPaul. “They are so gracious to tell their stories of courage and how to navigate this difficult life.”

Frank Scherma, president of RadicalMedia and the CEO of the Television Academy, gave out the Governor’s Award to Debbie Allen. “I’d like to have the title of your biggest admirer but I know I’d have a lot of competition in that category,” said Ava DuVernay in a video.

“Thank you for this glorious moment in the sun,” Allen said, then instructed producers to turn the time countdown clock off. 

“Let this moment resonate with women across the country and around the world,” she said, urging women to “claim your power, claim your voice, sing your song, tell your story.”

Paulina Alexis, Lane Factor, Sterlin Harjo, Devery Jacobs and D’Pharaoh Woon-A-Tai of FX on Hulu’s Reservation Dogs awarded outstanding directing for a limited series or movie. Scott Frank of Netflix’s The Queen’s Gambit won.

He described the series as about “a girl addicted to chess, alcohol, pills and wallpaper.” 

Frank said, “A film crew is a family borne out of a shotgun wedding.” 

Frank’s speech went on long enough that the wrap-it-up music came on three times. He singled out star Anya Taylor-Joy. “You set a lovely tone,” he said. “That’s a lot of pressure and no easy feat.” 

Sir Patrick Stewart opened the envelope for writing for a limited series or movie. Michaela Coel of HBO’s I May Destroy You won. 

“Write the tale that scares you, that makes you feel uncertain,” she said. 

She thanked HBO for “the two best years of my life” and offered solace for victims of sexual assault. 

Beanie Feldstein and Sarah Paulson of American Crime Story on FX saluted outstanding lead actress in a limited series. Kate Winslet of Mare of Easttown won. Winslet saluted the other nominees and mentioned “women having each other’s backs. I support you, I salute you, I’m proud of all of you.”

She called Mare “a cultural moment” that gave viewers “something to talk about other than a global pandemic.”

Winslet also singled out creator Brad Inglesby. “This is you,” she said. “This is all you.”

Taraji P. Henson, who will be in NBC production Annie Live!, named the outstanding actor in a limited series. Ewan MacGregor of Netflix’s Halston won. 

“It’s quite difficult going after you, Kate,” he said to Winslet. 

McGregor thanked the show’s crew for keeping the cast safe during the pandemic. 

Anthony Anderson and Tracee Ellis Ross of black-ish came out to award top lead actress in a drama. Olivia Colman of The Crown won. In London, an emotional Colman said, “what a lovely end to this extraordinary journey with this lovely family.”

Catherine Zeta-Jones was next to award the top actor in a drama. Josh O’Connor of The Crown got the honor. 

“Making The Crown has been the most rewarding two years of my life,” he said. 

O’Connor played Prince Charles and Emma Corrin played Diana. He called Corrin “a force of nature.” 

Aidy Bryant of Shrill gave out the trophy for variety special, live. Stephen Colbert’s Election Night 2020 on Showtime won. 

“I accept this Emmy on behalf of everyone who works on The Late Show,” Colbert said. “I’m so proud to be one of them.”

Conan O’Brien snuck up onstage and hugged the Colbert crew. “These people behind me, most of the people behind me,” said Colbert, “really deserve this Emmy right now.”

Amy Poehler came out next to award best variety special, recorded. Hamilton on Disney Plus won. Producers noted “the synergy between the mediums of television and the theater” that the project represented, and television’s role in bringing people together when they were otherwise separated due to the pandemic, and could not go to the theater. 

Awkwafina of Nora From Queens came out to award best comedy. Black-ish, Cobra Kai, Emily in Paris, The Flight Attendant, Hacks, The Kominsky Method, Pen15 and Ted Lasso were in the running. Ted Lasso won. 

Bill Lawrence thanked Warner Bros., Apple and the show’s “amazing cast, crew and writing staff,” and “our fearless leader, Jason Sudeikis.”

“The biggest thank you from this group is to the people who watched,” he added. 

Best drama was between The Boys, Bridgerton, The Crown, The Handmaid’s Tale, Lovecraft Country, The Mandalorian, Pose and This Is Us. Adrien Brody gave out the award to The Crown.

Peter Morgan thanked “this lot” in the room with him in London. 

“We’re gonna have a party now,” he added. “I’m lost for words and I’m very, very grateful.”

Angela Bassett came out for the final award, for top limited series. I May Destroy You, Mare of Easttown, The Queen’s Gambit, The Underground Railroad and WandaVision were on the list. The Queen’s Gambit won. Exec producer William Horberg thanked fans for using word of mouth to build buzz for the quirky show, and Netflix for taking a chance on risky material. 

He said of star Anya Taylor-Joy, “What can I say, you brought the sexy back to chess.” 

Horberg added, “Patriarchy simply has no defense against our queens.”

Multicultural Perspectives is a new podcast extension of the original video series of the same name from Multichannel News and Broadcasting + Cable that shines a spotlight on executives and celebrities of color making significant and groundbreaking contributions to the entertainment industry. 

Our latest episode features Grammy-winning and Tony-nominated jazz musician Branford Marsalis who talks about his recent Emmy nomination for developing the original musical score for History’s documentary Tulsa Burning: The 1921 Race Massacre, executive produced by Marco Williams. The multi-talented artist also talks about producing music for television, his various acting endeavors and his love for jazz and music.

HBO will debut the fifth and final season of its comedy series Insecure in October, the network revealed Monday via social media.

The return of the series -- which stars Issa Rae and follows several Black 20-somethings as they evaluate their relationships in an effort to figure out who and what comes with them in this next phase of their lives -- was revealed in a network Tweet posted Monday, although no specific date was included. 

Season four of Insecure garnered nine Emmy Awards nominations, including outstanding comedy series, outstanding lead actress in a comedy series for Rae and outstanding supporting actress in a comedy series for Yvonne Orji.

HBO also said this week that hit series Succession will return in October, as will venerable comedy Curb Your Enthusiasm, for its 11th season.

Insecure is executive produced by Rae, Prentice Penny, Melina Matsoukas, Michael Rotenberg, Dave Becky, Jonathan Berry, Amy Aniobi and Jim Kleverweis. 

Read Also: Prentice Penny Inks Onyx Collective Deal (video)

Disney Plus on Aug. 11 will launch a new animated series from Marvel Studios that reimagines notable events from within the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU). 

The nine-episode series, What If …?, will focus on a number of heroes from the MCU -- including Peggy Carter, T’Challa, Doctor Strange, Killmonger and Thor -- and place them in circumstances that differ from how they were represented in the Marvel Films, according to Disney Plus. 

Read Also: Disney Plus Sets November Premiere Date for 'Hawkeye' Series 

Many of the MCU actors reprise their roles from the live-action films in the animated series, including the late Chadwick Boseman, Benedict Cumberbatch, Chris Helmsworth, Danai Guria, Don Cheadle, Jeremy Renner, Mark Ruffalo, Michael B. Jordan, Tom Hiddleston Sebastian Stan, Michael Douglas and Jeff Goldblum. 

The series marks the first animated project from Marvel Studios to stream on Disney Plus, which has already streamed three Marvel live-action series, including Loki and Emmy-nominated shows WandaVision and The Falcon and the Winter Soldier. Disney Plus is set to debut Marvel’s Hawkeye on Nov. 24.

Read Also: Streaming Shows 'The Crown,' The Mandalorian,' 'WandaVision' Lead Emmy Awards Nominations 

What If…? Is executive produced by Brad Winderbaum, Kevin Feige, Louis D’Esposito, Victoria Alonso, Bryan Andrews and AC Bradley. 

The 73rd Emmy Awards will air live on CBS Sunday, Sept. 19, CBS and the Television Academy announced Tuesday.

The ceremony will start at 8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. PT and broadcast on the CBS network as well as stream live and on demand on Paramount Plus.

Paramount Plus is owned by CBS parent ViacomCBS.

More details, including hosts and producers, will be announced later.

Also Read: Golden Globes: 'Schitt's Creek' Gets Globe for Comedy, 'The Crown' Gets Top Drama

Canoe Ventures was awarded a Technology and Engineering Emmy for cross-MVPD dynamic ad insertion for cable network video-on-demand content.

“We’re extremely honored to be recognized by the NATAS with a Technical and Engineering Emmy,” said Sid Gregory, Canoe’s CTO. “I will proudly accept this prestigious award on behalf of the Canoe team, our owner MVPDs, and our technology and programming partners, all of whom have worked tirelessly over the years to grow the availability of VOD content to over 35,000 titles.

Canoe was founded in 2008 by cable companies Comcast, Time Warner, Cox and Brighthouse to provide VOD and ad insertion technology. Working with multiple hardware and software partners, Canoe built a dynamic ad insertion (DAI) platform and integrated it with the unique VOD infrastructures of the four founding MVPDs.  

Today, VOD represents 15-20% of all television viewing while Canoe serves 85% of the 45 million U.S. households with VOD, resulting in an estimated $1.5 billion market.

Canoe will be honored at the 72nd Annual Technology & Engineering Emmy Awards Ceremony, which is tentatively scheduled to be done virtually on Oct. 10.

Canadian sitcom Schitt’s Creek, suddenly a global sensation and a newly minted Emmy record holder, is now also the prime example of what can happen when a well-crafted, albeit initially obscure series gains exposure on a digital platform.

On Sunday, Schitt’s Creek took primetime Emmys for Outstanding Comedy Series, as well the top prizes for comedy writing and directing. It swept all four lead actor categories, with former SCTV castmates Eugene Levy and Catherine O’Hara winning “Actor” and “Actress” Emmys, and Daniel Levy and Annie Murphy taking the “Supporting Actor” and “Supporting Actress” statues. Before Sunday night, the series won “craft” Emmys for costumes and casting. 

Also read: Netflix and Other Streaming Services Come Away with Only 4 Primetime Emmys

Say what you want about the declining relevance of the Emmy Awards, particularly in virtual format. This kind of sweeping, record-setting feat was never pulled off by M*A*S*H or Cheers or Friends or Seinfeld. (Read more about the show's night at the Emmys in this Mike Malone recap.)

Schitt’s Creek joined All in the Family, The Golden Girls and Will & Grace as only the fourth comedy series in which all the lead and supporting actors were recognized by Emmy. 

Based on Schitt's Creek and Schitt's Creek alone, Pop TV ranked third among all networks and platforms at the Primetime Emmys (behind only giants HBO and Netflix).

Where did this show come from?

Debuting in January 2015, Levy and his son Dan, the creative team behind Schitt’s Creek, envisioned some interest in this tale of a super-rich family who lose their fortune and are forced to move to a dumpy dead-end town they once purchased as a joke.

The Canadian Broadcasting Company (CBC) commissioned the series. Then, after pitching the comedy at Mipcom in Cannes prior to its launch, ViacomCBS-owned TVGN, soon to be rebranded as Pop TV, decided Schitt’s Creek would fit its goal of attracting the “modern grownup,” specifically those viewers in their 30s and 40s who came of age in the 1980s and 1990s.

Pop TV touted the immediate merits of Schitt’s Creek. There was no real historical programming model for comparison, after all. Launching on Pop TV in 2015, the sitcom experienced consistent double-digit ratings growth via the traditional Nielsen ratings. At the same time, the accolades started mounting, including Canada’s ACRTA and Canadian Screen Awards. It was the first Canadian comedy to be nominated for a Critics’ Choice Award. 

Word of mouth spread; from Mariah Carey to Elton John publicly espoused their praise; even former First Lady Michelle Obama touted the merits of the fictional Rose clan. And then came Netflix, which began streaming the series’ repeats in 2017 and turned the cult favorite into a mass appeal hit.

Upon accepting the Series Emmy Sunday night, Eugene Levy included a shoutout to Netflix, citing the streaming service “for the spark that seemed to, you know, start everything.”

As the seasons progressed, the series evolved beyond a fish out of water comedy, and as the characters in the ensemble developed, so did the relationship between David (Dan Levy) and Patrick (Noah Reid). At the beginning, Schitt’s Creek immediately attracted attention by featuring David as an openly pansexual character, where his sexuality is simply accepted by all in any given relationship. When Patrick enters the scene in the middle of season three, there is an attraction between the two and their first kiss by season end. By season four, David finds himself navigating his first long-term relationship. And, in the series finale, the two wed in an emotional ceremony.

In what could not be better timing, meanwhile, Schitt’s Creek will launch into national syndication across the country beginning Monday, Sept. 28. Lionsgate’s Debmar-Mercury owns the domestic broadcast syndication rights to the series, which produced 80 episodes (six seasons). And the final season of the comedy, which concluded on Pop TV in April, will be available for streaming on Netflix on Wednesday, Oct. 7.

Schitt’s Creek can also be seen on the free CW Seed service and IMDb TV, while Comedy Central will air five consecutive episodes every Friday beginning Oct. 2 at 8 p.m. ET.

B&C has partnered with always-on TV ad measurement and attribution company iSpot.tv to bring you a weekly chart we call Promo Mojo: exclusive data showing the top five TV promos ranked by ad impressions. Our data covers the seven-day period through Sept. 20.

On the strength of nearly 326 million TV ad impressions, a promo for ABC’s Emmys telecast is No. 1.

NFL Network takes second place to drum up some excitement for Thursday Night Football, while Fox grabs two slots: third place to promote Filthy Rich, and fourth to hype The Masked Singer. Rounding out our ranking: a general promo for the “Discovery family of networks” — including Discovery, HGTV, Food Network, OWN and ID.

Notably, the Discovery spot has the highest iSpot Attention Index (105) in our ranking, meaning viewers were on average highly likely to watch it all the way through (vs. interrupting it by changing the channel, pulling up the guide, fast-forwarding or turning off the TV).

1) 2020 Emmys, ABC

Impressions: 325,971,921

Completion Rate: 98.63

Attention Index: 104 (4% fewer interruptions than avg.)

Imp. Types: National 81%, Local 18%, VOD/OTT 1%

In-network Value: $2,726,206

Out-of-network Est. Spend: $1,194,362

2) Thursday Night Football, NFL Network

Impressions: 290,065,352

Completion Rate: 99.15

Attention Index: 99 (1% more interruptions than avg.)

Imp. Types: National 95%, Local 4%, VOD/OTT 1%

In-network Value: $481,942

Out-of-network Est. Spend: $5,746,358

3) Filthy Rich, Fox

Impressions: 231,121,869

Completion Rate: 98.67

Attention Index: 100

Imp. Types: National 88%, Local 10%, VOD/OTT 2%

In-network Value: $1,228,100

Out-of-network Est. Spend: $2,341,685

4) The Masked Singer, Fox

Impressions: 213,681,261

Completion Rate: 98.99

Attention Index: 103 (3% fewer interruptions than avg.)

Imp. Types: National 87%, Local 11%, VOD/OTT 2%

In-network Value: $1,638,789

Out-of-network Est. Spend: $2,039,298

5) Discovery family of networks, Discovery Inc.

Impressions: 201,091,880

Completion Rate: 98.77

Attention Index: 105 (5% fewer interruptions than avg.)

Imp. Types: National 97%, Local 2%, VOD/OTT 1%

In-network Value: $1,110,092

Out-of-network Est. Spend: $0.00

*Data provided by iSpot.tv, TV Ad Measurement for Disruptive Brands*

Impressions - The total impressions within all US households including National Linear (Live & Time-shifted), VOD+OTT, and Local.

Attention Score - Measures the propensity of consumers to interrupt an ad play on TV. The higher the score, the more complete views. Actions that interrupt an ad play include changing the channel, pulling up the guide, fast-forwarding or turning off the TV.

Attention Index - Represents the Attention of a specific creative or program placement vs. the average in its respective industry. The average is represented by a score of 100, and the total index range is from 0 through 200. For example, an attention index of 125 means that there are 25% fewer interrupted ad plays compared to the average.

Imp. Types - Impression types tracked include National (Live + Time-shifted), Local, VOD & OTT. See below for further details.

In-network Value - Estimated media value of in-network promos.

Out-of-network Spend - The estimated amount spent on TV airing time for this promo's spots during a given date range.

National: Live - A national promo which was viewed during live linear television broadcast or same day, via DVR or on-demand.

Local - A promo that was aired during a local ad break slot.

VOD - This includes promos that run in on-demand content past three days (i.e. do not contain the linear promo load)

OTT - On-demand streaming content (i.e. Hulu, Roku, Fire TV Stick, Chromecast).

NBC had the winning score in Sunday prime, Sunday Night Football easily topping the Emmys on ABC. NBC had a 3.5 in viewers 18-49, and a 19 share. In second was CBS, with the NFL leading into prime, at 1.7/19, while ABC rode the Emmys to a 0.9/5. 

NBC had Football Night in America at a flat 1.8 and Sunday Night Football, Patriots versus Seahawks, at 4.1. Last week, Cowboys-Rams scored a 4.7. 

CBS had the NFL leading into the season premiere of 60 Minutes up 44% for a 1.3. Big Brother got a 0.9 and Love Island a 0.4, both down a tenth. 

ABC had Celebrity Family Feud at 0.7 and the Emmys, hosted by Jimmy Kimmel, on at 8 p.m. ET. The Emmys, with Kimmel in an empty Staples Center, averaged a 1.0. Last year’s Emmys on Fox got a 1.5. Last night, Schitt’s Creek dominated the comedy categories and Succession and Watchmen rolled on the drama side. 

In 2019, Fox came in third with its Emmys telecast, behind NBC and CBS. 

Univision scored a 0.4/2. The Quien Es La Mascara finale got a level 0.4. 

Fox had a 0.3/2 with comedy reruns. 

Telemundo rated a 0.2/1. The Exatlon Estados Unidos finale got a flat 0.3. A rerun of The Wall closed out prime. 

The CW got a 0.1/0 with repeats. 

Early on in the Emmys telecast, host Jimmy Kimmel noted how every mention of Pop TV comedy Schitt’s Creek would involve the show’s title appearing on screen in an effort to appease the profanity police. 

Schitt’s Creek would appear on screen quite a few times. So would Eugene Levy and Daniel Levy and Catherine O’Hara as they claimed various Emmy awards. 

Schitt’s Creek grabbed the first seven Emmy trophies: lead actress in a comedy, lead actor in a comedy, writing for a comedy, directing for a comedy, supporting actor in a comedy, supporting actress in a comedy and, finally, outstanding comedy. 

Eugene Levy credited son Daniel, “who took our fish-out-of-water story and transformed it into a celebration of inclusivity, a castigation of homophobia and a declaration of the power of love.”

No other show was honored in the Emmys’ first hour. 

The 2020 Emmys was unlike the 71 Emmys before it, Jimmy Kimmel hosting in an empty room, for the most part, and no one having audible laughs after their quips. But the telecast moved relatively quickly, remote laughs hit home and the big-winner shows all felt timely. The serious challenge of having over a hundred cameras at nominees' remote locations worked as well as one might have hoped for. 

On the drama side, HBO’s superhero drama Watchmen had a terrific night, racking up outstanding limited series, along with outstanding writing for a limited series and supporting actor in a limited series. 

But HBO drama Succession, about the battles within a family of media moguls, burned even brighter, its honors including lead actor in a drama, outstanding writing, outstanding directing and, ultimately, outstanding drama. 

Creator Jesse Armstrong called it “such a very nice moment” for all involved, and lamented the group not being together to share it. Armstrong gave out a series of “un-thank you’s” to Covid, President Trump, Boris Johnson, nationalist governments that get in the way of combating the virus, and “the media moguls who keep them in power,” said Armstrong--not unlike the moguls portrayed on the series. 

Netflix came in with 160 nominations, while HBO had 107. Netflix got wins with Unorthodox and Ozark, and gets an assist as the streaming platform for Schitt’s Creek. 

HBO has felt the pressure from Netflix at awards time in recent years, but had the upper hand in 2020. HBO picked up 11 Emmys Sunday. Besides the big nights for Succession and Watchmen, Last Week Tonight with John Oliver, I Know This Much is True and Euphoria also brought home trophies. 

Pop TV won 7 for Schitt's Creek and Netflix won 2. VH1, FX and Apple TV+ each got one. 

When Watchmen was named outstanding limited series, creator Damon Lindelof thanked HBO, and Warner Bros., “for their unblinking support” of a daring show. 

Pop TV's Schitt's Creek swept the primetime Emmy Awards comedy category, winning best series, best actor and best actress awards. 

The series -- which ended its six-season run earlier this year -- won seven overall primetime Emmy Awards including best comedy series, beating out HBO's Curb Your Enthusiasm and Insecure, Netflix's Dead to Me and The Kominsky Method, NBC's The Good Place, Prime Video's The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel and FX's What We Do in the Shadows. 

Catherine O’Hara won the first award of the evening, taking home the best actress in a comedy series, topping Christina Applegate (Dead to Me), Rachel Brosnahan (The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel), Linda Cardellini (Dead to Me), Issa Rae (Insecure) and Tracee Ellis Ross (Black-ish)

Emmys: Photos From Television's Biggest Night

Eugene Levy took best actor honors, topping Anthony Anderson (Black-ish), Don Cheadle (Black Monday), Ted Danson (The Good Place), Michael Douglas (The Kominsky Method), and Ramy Youssef (Ramy). It was his first acting Emmy.

Daniel Levy won best supporting actor in a comedy series, while Annie Murphy won best supporting actress in a comedy series. 

Schitt’s Creek, which was nominated for 15 Emmys this year, also won Emmys for best writing in a comedy series and best directing in a comedy series. Overall, the series garnered nine Emmy awards this year, including two Creative Arts Emmy awards.

Jimmy Kimmel kicked off the 72nd Emmys at an empty Staples Center, and acknowledged the elephant in the room, or at least the elephant watching from home. “Right now we need fun. My god, do we need fun,” he said of these COVID times. “This has been a miserable year.”

Kimmel spoke of the importance of television in the pandemic era, calling it “a friend who’s there for us 24 hours a day.”

Kimmel saluted Emmy winner Norman Lear, calling him a “miracle.”

“The only thing I’ll be producing when I’m 98 is phlegm,” said Kimmel. 

Related: Emmys Analysis: HBO Rolls, Pop TV Makes Some Noise

Kimmel also praised Pop TV comedy Schitt’s Creek, and spoke about how network mandates said ABC has to put the show name on the screen whenever it’s mentioned, to avoid penalties for profanity. “Just in case you were wondering why network television is almost dead,” Kimmel quipped.

Jennifer Aniston gave out the outstanding lead actress in a comedy trophy. Catherine O’Hara of Schitt’s Creek won. 

“I will forever be grateful to Eugene and Daniel Levy,” she said, for giving her a character who gets to play “her ridiculous self.”

Netflix came in with 160 nominations, while HBO had 107. NBC had 47, ABC had 36, Fox had 33, Amazon had 30, Hulu had 26 and CBS had 23. 

Outstanding lead actor in a comedy went to Eugene Levy of Schitt’s Creek. “You see, I told you I was good,” he said. 

Levy thanked his wife and the cast, including O’Hara, who “evidently can make anyone she works with look good.” 

He saluted his children Daniel and Sarah, with Daniel taking “our show that we came up with and brilliantly guiding it to this little Emmy party tonight.”

Tracee Ellis Ross gave out the prize for outstanding writing for a comedy series. Daniel Levy of Schitt’s Creek got the honors. 

He thanked his father for “giving me the reins to this show...I wouldn’t be here if it weren’t for you.”

Levy thanked the writers for sharing their personal and often embarrassing stories, “so that the Rose family could be who they are.”

Next up was outstanding directing for a comedy series. Andrew Cividino and Daniel Levy of Schitt’s Creek got the win. Cividono saluted Catherine O’Hara and Eugene Levy, saying “their grace, their genius and their generosity bubbles through the entire set.”

Levy added that the show’s “incredible cast made it so, so easy to direct.”

Outstanding supporting actor in a comedy saw Daniel Levy once again claim the prize. “The internet’s about to turn on me,” he said. “I’m so sorry.”

He called Schitt’s Creek a “six-year master class” taught by “two brilliant comedic minds--my dad, Eugene Levy, and the magnificent Catherine O’Hara.”

Levy spoke about the show giving the cast the “safety and security to do what we wanted.”

Playing David Rose has been “the greatest experience of my life,” Levy added. 

Outstanding supporting actress in a comedy went to Annie Murphy of, yes, Schitt’s Creek. “The six years that I have spent working on this show have been the best six years of my life,” she said. 

Murphy said she’s “so proud to be part of a show that stands for love and kindness and inclusivity and acceptance.”

Jason Sudeikis honored the outstanding comedy series, which had HBO’s Curb Your Enthusiasm and Insecure, Dead to Me and The Kominsky Method on Netflix, The Good Place on NBC, The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel on Amazon, Pop TV’s Schitt’s Creek and What We Do in the Shadows on FX. 

Schitt’s Creek won. Daniel Levy said the show is about “the transformational effects of love and acceptance,” and how that’s something we desperately need today. He urged people to vote and apologized for getting political. 

Eugene Levy thanked Pop TV and Netflix, and his son Daniel, “who took our fish-out-of-water story and transformed it into a celebration of inclusivity, a castigation of homophobia and a declaration of the power of love.”

When Kimmel came back on, he noted how “The Canadians have won all the Emmys tonight,” and added how America still has the Stanley Cup.

Outstanding variety talk series was given out by David Letterman. Waiting for the “virtual applause to die down,” Letterman shared some jokes from hosting in 1986 that he said he found in the pocket of his tux. The Emmy went to HBO’s Last Week Tonight with John Oliver. 

Oliver thanked producers Tim Carvell and Liz Stanton and said he was happy to be working these days. “We’ve all been very fortunate to be able to do our shows and not have to stop during the pandemic,” said Oliver. 

He thanked HBO and his wife and his staff. “I miss you so much and I honestly cannot wait until we’re in the same space together,” Oliver said of the Last Week Tonight staff.  

Outstanding lead actress in a limited series or movie went to Regina King of HBO’s Watchmen. “This is so freakin’ weird,” she started. 

“It’s an honor to be in this category with you,” she said of her fellow nominees. “I truly love being a thespian.”

“Have a voting plan,” King added, urging viewers to “be a good human.” 

Lead actor in a limited series or movie was given to Mark Ruffalo of HBO’s I Know This Much Is True. Ruffalo thanked director Derek Cianfrance for “a great collaboration” and his fellow cast for bringing out the best in each other with their “career-defining performances.”

“I can’t be up here right now without you being there,” he added. 

Ruffalo credited the show’s crew for their “grit, determination, dignity and class.”
He said the show is about family. “We are stronger together when we love each other and respect each other’s dignity,” he said, urging viewers to “vote for love and compassion and kindness.”

Outstanding writing for a limited series or movie was given out by Randall Park. Damon Lindelof and Cord Jefferson won for their work on Watchmen. 

Jefferson singled out his therapist. “I am a different man than I was two years ago,” he said.

Jefferson also mentioned the African-American men and women who died in the Tulsa massacre of 1921. “I think we should never forget them,” he said. 

Outstanding directing for a limited series or movie was claimed by Maria Schrader of Netflix’s Unorthodox. “Being nominated for the Emmys already felt like a coronation,” she said. “I’m speechless.”

She credited Netflix and its execs for “accompanying it with so much knowledge and support.”

She described Unorthodox as “adventurous and powerful and at the same time a delicate story.”

Outstanding supporting actor in a limited series went to Yahya Abdul-Mateen II of Watchmen. He thanked HBO and Damon Lindelof “for your words, for your creativity.”

Watchmen is “a story about trauma, about the lasting scars of white domestic terrorism and police corruption,” he said, “and a guy who came down to Earth to reciprocate to a black woman all the love she deserved.”

“I’m so proud that i was able to walk into those shoes,” Abdul-Mateen added.

Outstanding supporting actress in a limited series or movie was given to Uzo Aduba of FX on Hulu’s Mrs. America. “I love you, ladies, you are all exceptional,” she said of her castmates. 

She offered a “tremendous thank you to FX,” to former Congresswoman Shirley Chisholm, who she plays in the series, and “everyone who came together to tell this brilliant story.”

“Thank you beyond words,” Aduba added. 

Anthony Anderson gave out the Emmy for outstanding limited series. HBO’s Watchmen got the prize. Damon Lindelof thanked HBO and Warner Bros. “for their unblinking support.” 

He also thanked “every single person who invested nine hours of their life into Watchmen.”

Lindelof singled out the “victims and survivors in Tulsa in 1921.”

Kimmel noted Justice Ruth Bader Ginsberg’s death, calling her a “tireless champion of equality and justice.” H.E.R. sang “Nothing Compares 2 U” as the tribute to Hollywood’s deceased rolled. 

Several times throughout the night, essential workers, not Hollywood stars, announced Emmy nominees. Those included a nurse, a UPS driver and a teacher. 

Next was outstanding competition program. RuPaul’s Drag Race on VH1 won. 

“We love making television,” said RuPaul. “It is an honor to make television. All the kids get to tell their stories on our show and it’s beautiful.”

Tyler Perry got the Governor’s Award from the Television Academy board. Chris Rock and Oprah Winfrey spoke on behalf of Perry. “It takes extraordinary grit and determination to navigate the rough terrain that often life can give you,” said Winfrey. “My friend Tyler Perry has done that against all odds.”

Rock spoke about Perry living in his car before he made it. “And of course Hollywood welcomed an independent black man with open arms,” said Rock. “Wait. I misread that.”

Winfrey called Perry a maverick and an innovator. 

Perry spoke about a quilt his grandmother gave him when he was a teen. He didn’t like it much and used it for odd jobs, such as drying off a wet dog. Years later, he saw a similar quilt in an antique shop. The shopkeeper explained how it was made of patches representing stages of the maker’s life. “I didn’t even recognize the value in my grandmother’s quilt,” said Perry. 

Perry said, “We all sew our own quilts with our thoughts, our behaviors, our experience and our memories.”

Speaking of his studio headquarters in Atlanta, Perry said, “We’re all coming together to add patches to a quilt as diverse as it can be.” 

Outstanding lead actor in a drama went to Jeremy Strong of HBO’s Succession. Strong, who plays Kendall, singled out the people who have “been there for me and believed in me when something like this felt basically impossible,” including family. 

He mentioned a Stephen Dunn poem about a book so good the reader finishes it for the rest of their life. “This job is that for me,” he said. 

Outstanding lead actress in a drama went to Zendaya of HBO’s Euphoria. “This is pretty crazy,” she said. 

Of the show’s cast and crew, Zendaya said, “I’m so lucky to go to work with you every day and so inspired by what you do.”

Amid these tough times, Zendaya said “there is hope in the young people.”

Kimmel quipped, “She’s younger than Baby Yoda.”

Outstanding writing for a drama went to Jesse Armstrong of Succession. 

“I love writing for this show so very much, and for this amazing cast and crew,” he said from London.

Outstanding directing for a drama went to Andrij Parekh of Succession. “The show’s been such a professional dream,” he said. 

Parekh dedicated his Emmy to “all the kids whose names, like mine, are difficult to pronounce.” 

Outstanding supporting actor in a drama was claimed by Billy Crudup of Apple TV+’s The Morning Show. He thanked “everybody at Apple for the wonderful opportunity.”

“I’m glad to have delivered something for you,” he said. 

Outstanding supporting actress in a drama went to Julia Garner of Netflix’s Ozark. 

“I’m shocked, to be honest,” she said. 

Garner made a point of showing “gratitude to all the women in this category. You are the reason why I’m acting in the first place.”

Finally, outstanding drama was given out by Sterling K. Brown. It was between Hulu’s The Handmaid’s Tale, AMC’s Better Call Saul, Netflix’s The Crown, Stranger Things and Ozark, BBC America’s Killing Eve, Disney+’s The Mandalorian and HBO’s Succession. 

Succession got the honors. 

“This is such a very nice moment,” said Armstrong, who lamented not being able to share it with his cast and crew and fellow writers and producers. “This is a wonderful achievement for the whole group.”

Armstrong gave out a series of “un-thank you’s” to COVID, President Trump for his “crummy and uncoordinated response” to COVID, Boris Johnson for the same, “nationalist and quasi-nationalist governments” for getting in the way of combating the virus, and “the media moguls who keep them in power,” said Armstrong. 

On this season of HBO’s Insecure, Molly (Yvonne Orji) gets angry when she goes to get a towel at an exclusive Mexican resort and is asked to show her room key when a white woman who just did the same thing is handed a towel without question. When Molly returns, pissed off, to her Asian-American boyfriend and his brother, they write her off as an angry Black woman. Which just makes her all the angrier. 

That particular episode aired the night before George Floyd was murdered in Minneapolis at the hands of police officers. Soon after, protests against police brutality and systemic racism erupted across the country. It was in the middle of that charged environment that the TV Academy announced the 72nd Annual Primetime Emmy nominations, on July 28. And for once in the difficult year that’s been 2020, there was some good news. 

Of the 102 acting nominations among the series, limited series and TV movie categories, Black performers scored 35 nods or 34.3% of the total acting nominations. (Maya Rudolph earned three nominations, while Sterling K. Brown and Giancarlo Esposito each snapped up two.) That number is the all-time high for Black actors. The previous best was 27.7% in 2018, which fell to 20% in 2019. 

Additionally, three of the six nominees for animation voice-over performance — Big Mouth’s Rudolph, Central Park’s Leslie Odom Jr. and Crank Yankers’ Wanda Sykes — and half of the 10 short-form acting nominees are Black.

Not Overlooked This Year

Asked for immediate reactions, This Is Us’ and The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel’s Brown summed it up by saying: “It’s f---ing dope. It’s really f---ing dope.” 

Besides being nominated twice this year, Brown has earned a total of seven Emmy nominations and two wins since his breakout role as Christopher Darden in FX’s The People v. OJ Simpson: American Crime Story. When he won the Golden Globe in 2018 for best leading actor in a TV drama for playing Randall Pearson on NBC’s This Is Us, it marked the first time an African-American man had won that award in the Globes’ 75-year history. 

“You cannot deny that … Black Lives Matter and the desire for criminal justice reform has influenced how people have voted for sure,” Brown told B+C. “I think that’s OK. I don’t think any Black folks who are nominated want to be nominated unless they truly deserve to be nominated. I think the Academy has recognized people who are putting in the work. I hope they continue to do that year in and year out.” 

While Brown plays a Black man who was adopted by a white family as a baby and often struggles with his identity and place in the world as a result, The Good Place’s William Jackson Harper’s role as the brilliant but indecisive and anxious Chidi had little to do with race. Still, how race affects the casting process is something Harper constantly considers. 

“There’s a lot of really good work being done by actors of color and when it comes to awards that can get overlooked,” said Harper, who is nominated for best supporting actor in a comedy. “This year, in regard to Black actors, that work is not being overlooked.” 

Another key marker of the moment was that HBO’s limited series Watchmen scored the most nominations this year, with 26, including mentions for outstanding limited series and a lead actress nod for Regina King. Watchmen’s competition among limited series is Hulu’s Little Fires Everywhere, FX’s Mrs. America and Netflix’s Unbelievable and Unorthodox. Netflix was by far the entity that earned the most nominations this year with a record-setting 160, followed by HBO with 107.

Watchmen’s cast dominated the category of supporting actor in a limited series with Yahya Abdul-Mateen II, Jovan Adepo and Louis Gossett Jr. all nominated. (Tituss Burgess also grabbed a nomination for Netflix’s movie, Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt: Kimmy vs. The Reverend, meaning that four of the category’s six slots were filled by Black men.) 

“I was overjoyed to see the amount of Emmy nominations to Black actors this year,” Lucinda Martinez, executive VP of multi­cultural marketing, brand and inclusion strategy, WarnerMedia Entertainment, said. “To me, it represents excellence that is often overlooked. I hope this isn’t performative, but rather the Television Academy becoming more inclusive and self-aware as an organization of their past exclusionary practices, whether intentional or not.” 

A key part of Watchmen’s storyline, an extension of the story told in the iconic graphic novel of the same name, is the 1921 Tulsa Massacre, in which a wealthy Black neighborhood was firebombed. There’s also a shadowy vigilante group, known as the Seventh Kalvary, that’s influenced by the Klu Klux Klan. The entire series, which premiered in October 2019 and concluded in December, now feels prescient.

“I hope that, at a minimum, these fictional stories raise awareness even if not always intended,” Martinez said. “It was surprising to many of us how the Tulsa Massacre on Watchmen was revelatory to so many viewers. How many people, including Black viewers, were unaware of the history of the Tulsa riots? By simply raising awareness about the injustices that have occurred allows for more enlightened dialogue around the solutions that need to happen if we do want to see systemic change happen.” 

Stories That Relate

Other nominated shows, such as Insecure and ABC’s Black-ish, tell relatable stories that happen to include Black performers and are created and produced by Black creators and showrunners. Both series were nominated outstanding comedy series, along with Pop TV’s Schitt’s Creek, NBC’s The Good Place, Netflix’s Dead to Me and The Kominsky Method, Amazon Prime Video’s The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel and FX’s What We Do in the Shadows. Among critics and experts, Schitt’s Creek, which aired its seventh and final season this year, is the favorite to win.

On the drama side, the outstanding series nominees are notably less diverse: AMC’s Better Call Saul, Netflix’s The Crown, Ozark and Stranger Things, Hulu’s The Handmaid’s Tale, BBC America’s Killing Eve, Disney Plus’s The Mandalorian and HBO’s tale of filthy-rich white people and odds-on favorite, Succession. A stark miss in this category is FX’s Pose, although last year’s winner of lead actor in a drama, Billy Porter, is nominated again this year.

“Who is the target demo for any of these shows?” Orji said. “Insecure is for people who enjoy good, well-rounded characters. I watch Succession and I’m like, ‘Yo, these rich people really got a lot of problems.’ You get into shows because you understand the characters’ motivation, drive and humanity.”

To that end, most roles don’t call for an actor of a certain race to play a certain part. Black actors find that to be changing, bit by bit, but there is always room for improvement. In the age of streaming there are far more platforms, creating space to tell more diverse stories. Actors of color look forward to being able to take advantage of that.

“For performers of color, there are just fewer opportunities in general,” Harper said. “It doesn’t feel like people are intentionally trying to keep performers of color out, but there are a dearth of opportunities for them. 

“I do think about it. As a Black actor, you do look at who else is cast, where on that call sheet you are going to be and, if you have a Black lead, will there be another significant Black lead?” he added. “The math of who’s going to be playing what part really figures into how you feel about your chances. I don’t know that a lot of actors have to think about it in that way.” 

When it comes to getting awards recognition, that number shrinks even further for performers of color. “There are only a certain number of roles that mandate the kind of performances that merit awards attention,” Brown said. “You can only get nominated if you have something to do. I’m encouraged by that. There have been times in the past where I’ve seen Hollywood maybe trying to placate Black folks. This [moment] feels different to me.”

While Black actors netted by far the highest number of nominations among groups that are not white, other notable nominations went to Ramy Youssef, star of his eponymous comedy, Ramy, along with two-time Oscar winner Mahershala Ali, a Black performer who was nominated for best supporting actor in a comedy for playing Sheikh Ali Malik. Hulu’s Ramy marks the first time a Muslim-American comedy has earned nominations.

Still Work to Do

While all of the actors were mostly thrilled to be nominated, they noted that there’s more work to do — such as bringing more people of color into the pipeline, developing talent and thinking outside the box when it comes to everything from casting to cinematography to directing. “It’s interesting and a little sad that in 2020 we’re still having these kinds of firsts,” Orji said. “If Joe Biden picks a Black woman as his running mate, really? It’s a big deal, but we’ve been having the civil-rights movement for years now.

“For me, the bigger and larger issue is not to celebrate the most Black performers,” she added. “Where are we in terms of directors, cinematographers, writers — not just the people that we see on-screen, but also the people behind the scenes. What are we doing to circumvent that and not just in the entertainment industry?” 

What that requires is hiring people of color across the board so there is representation in the boardroom as well as on set, Orji said. “I think that true diversity and true progress is when you can have a woke white person as the VP of inclusion and you can have a Black person as the VP of programming,” Orji said. “What you find so often is, you have this Black woman as the head of diversity and inclusion, and you think, ‘That’s great, you want the Black person to patrol Black things.’ We need to have an equal number of people of color on this [project] because it makes the show better, because it makes this organization and company function at a better level. For me, at least, that’s progress.” 

It also requires getting people of color in the writers’ room and behind the camera, said Brown, who has his own production company, Indian Meadows Productions. One of the company’s chief mandates is to ensure diversity and inclusion across all of its projects. “In terms of championing marginalized voices, there’s a specific pipeline to get to be a showrunner,” Brown said. “It’s not an easy thing to get into. And then you are trying to make sure that you have women, people of color, gay, lesbian and trans representation. Executives will say, ‘these people don’t have enough experience,’ but at some point in time, someone has to say, ‘we believe in this idea’ and take a chance.” 

HBO’s Martinez concurred that breaking into the system remains difficult: “There is still a lot of existing inherent systemic bias in how we greenlight our shows, who decides what stories get told and which stories get supported with marketing dollars and promotion. We have to pay attention to the areas where we may be inadvertently participating in rigging it to exclude others. It’s time to come together as an industry and collectively decide we can and should do better.”  

 The 72nd Annual Primetime Emmy Awards air Sunday, Sept. 20, on ABC in a virtual ceremony hosted by Jimmy Kimmel. 

The Sept. 20 Emmy Awards will be virtual. Executive producers of the Emmys, including host Jimmy Kimmel, sent a letter to nominees that asked them to participate from a remote location. 

“As you’ve probably guessed, we’re not going to be asking you to come to the Microsoft Theatre in downtown LA on September 20th,” read the letter, published in Variety. “This year, it’s still going to be [the] TV industry’s biggest night out… but we’ll come to you!”

The producers plan to film the nominees at home. They told nominees in the letter that they aim to “create a moment that is more relaxed, more entertaining, more enjoyable not only for you, but for the millions watching at home.”

Reggie Hudlin, Ian Stewart, Guy Carrington and David Jammy are the other executive producers. They said the “informal theme for the night is ‘come as you are, but make an effort!’”

It is the 72nd annual Emmy Awards. The Television Academy gives out the awards for the best in television. ABC will telecast the event. 

Kimmel is host of Jimmy Kimmel Live! on ABC. 

Netflix set the nominations record with 160. 

Netflix obliterated its broadcast, cable and streaming competitors with a whopping 160 Emmy Award nominations, the Television Academy announced Tuesday morning.

HBO, which topped Emmy nominations last year, was a distant second with 107 nominations. NBC was third with 47 nominations, followed by ABC’s 36 and Fx’s 33 nods.

HBO’s The Watchman (pictured) drew the most nominations for any show with 26, including one in the best limited series category along with HBO's Little Fires Everywhere, FX's Ms. America, and Netflix's Unbelievable and Unorthodox.

Prime Video's The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel finished second with 20 nods as it looks to reclaim its 2018 win in the category.  Maisel will go up against HBO’s Curb Your Enthusiasm and Insecure; Netflix’s Dead To Me and The Kominsky Method; NBC’s The Good Place, Pop TV’s Shitt’s Creek and FX’s What We Do In the Shadows.

Netflix’s Ozark and Stranger Things drew 18 nominations, and will go head-to-head in the best drama series against category veterans Better Call Saul (AMC), The Crown (Netflix), Killing Eve (BBC America), The Handmaid’s Tale (Hulu) and Succession (HBO), as well as newcomer The Mandalorian (Disney Plus).

Actress Zendaya earned a surprise nomination in the best actress in a drama series category for role in HBO’s freshman series Euphoria. Also posting surprisingly strong showings were upstart streaming services Apple TV Plus and Disney Plus, which generated several high-profile nominations.

Apple TV garnered 18 nominations, including nods in lead actor/actress categories for Jennifer Aniston and Steve Carell (The Morning Show), while Disney Plus drew 19 nominations, including a best drama series nod for The Mandelorian. 

The 72nd Emmy awards will be telecast live on ABC Sept. 20. 

Below is a partial list of Primetime Emmy Awards nominations. Click here to see more nominations: 

Outstanding drama series

"Better Call Saul" -- AMC

"The Crown"  -- Netflix

"The Handmaid's Tale" -- Hulu

"Killing Eve" -- BBC America

"The Mandalorian" -- Disney Plus 

"Ozark" -- Netflix

"Stranger Things" -- Netflix 

"Succession" -- HBO

Outstanding lead actor in a drama series

Jason Bateman ("Ozark")

Sterling K. Brown ("This Is Us")

Steve Carell ("The Morning Show")

Brian Cox ("Succession")

Billy Porter ("Pose")

Jeremy Strong ("Succession")

Outstanding lead actress in a drama series

Jennifer Aniston ("The Morning Show")

Olivia Colman ("The Crown")

Jodie Comer ("Killing Eve")

Laura Linney ("Ozark")

Sandra Oh ("Killing Eve")

Zendaya ("Euphoria")

Outstanding comedy series

"Curb Your Enthusiasm" -- HBO

"Dead to Me" -- Netflix

"The Good Place" -- NBC

"Insecure" -- HBO

"The Kominsky Method" -- Netflix 

"The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel" -- Prime Video

"Schitt's Creek" -- POp TV 

"What We Do in the Shadows" -- FX 

Outstanding lead actor in a comedy series

Anthony Anderson ("Black-ish")

Don Cheadle ("Black Monday")

Ted Danson ("The Good Place")

Michael Douglas ("The Kominsky Method")

Eugene Levy ("Schitt's Creek")

Ramy Youssef ("Ramy")

Outstanding lead actress in a comedy series

Christina Applegate ("Dead to Me")

Rachel Brosnahan ("The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel")

Linda Cardellini ("Dead to Me")

Catherine O'Hara ("Schitt's Creek")

Issa Rae ("Insecure")

Tracee Ellis Ross ("Black-ish")

Outstanding limited Series

"Little Fires Everywhere" -- Hulu

"Mrs. America" -- FX 

"Unbelievable" -- Netflix 

"Unorthodox" -- Netflix 

"Watchmen" -- HBO

Outstanding lead actor in a limited series or TV movie

Jeremy Irons ("Watchmen")

Hugh Jackman ("Bad Education")

Paul Mescal ("Normal People")

Jeremy Pope ("Hollywood")

Mark Ruffalo ("I Know This Much Is True")

Outstanding lead actress in a limited series or TV movie

Cate Blanchett ("Mrs. America")

Shira Haas ("Unorthodox")

Regina King ("Watchmen")

Octavia Spencer ("Self Made")

Kerry Washington ("Little Fires Everywhere")

Outstanding reality/competition series

"The Masked Singer" -Fox 

"Nailed It" -- Netflix

"RuPaul's Drag Race" -- VH1

"Top Chef" -- Bravo

"The Voice" -- NBC

Outstanding variety talk series

"Daily Show with Trevor Noah" -- Comedy Central 

"Full Frontal with Samantha Bee" -- TBS 

"Jimmy Kimmel Live!" -- ABC 

"Last Week Tonight with John Oliver" -- HBO

"Late Show with Stephen Colbert" -- CBS 

UPDATED: Emmy nominations were announced July 28. Netflix has 160 nominations and HBO 107. NBC has 47, ABC 36, FX 33, Amazon 30, Hulu 26 and CBS 23. 

Among new streaming services, Disney Plus received 19 nominations, Apple TV+ took 18, and Quibi had 10. A record 370 nominations came from streaming services, and 86% of the nominations required no pay TV service to watch. 

HBO’s Watchmen got 26 nominations and Amazon’s The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel got 20. Netflix’s Ozark and HBO’s Succession both got 18. 

Outstanding comedy is between Curb Your Enthusiasm and Insecure on HBO, Dead to Me and The Kominsky Method on Netflix, The Good Place on NBC, The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel on Amazon, Schitt’s Creek on Pop TV and What We Do in the Shadows on FX. 

Top drama is between AMC’s Better Call Saul, The Crown, Stranger Things and Ozark on Netflix, The Handmaid’s Tale on Hulu, Killing Eve on BBC America, The Mandalorian on Disney+ and Succession on HBO. 

Lead Actor in a Comedy is between Don Cheadle on Showtime’s Black Monday, Anthony Anderson on ABC’s Black-ish, Ted Danson on NBC’s The Good Place, Michael Douglas on Netflix’s The Kominsky Method, Ramy Youssef on Hulu’s Ramy and Eugene Levy on Pop TV’s Schitt’s Creek. 

Lead Actor in a Drama is between Steve Carell on Apple TV+’s The Morning Show, Jason Bateman on Netflix’s Ozark, Billy Porter from FX’s Pose, Brian Cox and Jeremy Strong from HBO’s Succession and Sterling K. Brown from NBC’s This Is Us. 

Lead Actress in a Comedy is between Tracee Ellis Ross on ABC’s Black-ish, Christina Applegate and Linda Cardellini on Netflix’s Dead to Me, Issa Rae on HBO’s Insecure, Rachel Brosnahan on Amazon’s The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel and Catherine O’Hara on Pop TV’s Schitt’s Creek. 

Lead Actress in a Drama has Olivia Colman from Netflix’s The Crown, Zendaya from HBO’s Euphoria, Jodie Comer and Sandra Oh from BBC America’s Killing Eve, Jennifer Aniston from Apple TV+’s The Morning Show and Laura Linney from Netflix’s Ozark. 

The Emmys happen at the Microsoft Theater in Los Angeles Sept. 20. ABC airs the event and Jimmy Kimmel hosts. 

Outstanding Limited Series is between Hulu’s Little Fires Everywhere, FX’s Mrs. America, Netflix’s Unbelievable and Unorthodox and HBO’s Watchmen.

Outstanding Animated Program is between Big Mouth and BoJack Horseman on Netflix, Bob’s Burgers on Fox, Rick and Morty on Adult Swim and The Simpsons on Fox.

Outstanding Lead Actor in a Limited Series is between Hugh Jackman in HBO’s Bad Education, Jeremy Pop of Netflix’s Hollywood, Mark Ruffalo from HBO’s I Know This Much is True, Paul Mescal from Hulu’s Normal People and Jeremy Irons from HBO’s Watchmen.  

Outstand Lead Actress in a Limited Series has Kerry Washington from Hulu’s Little Fires Everywhere, Cate Blanchett from FX’s Mrs. America, Octavia Spencer from Netflix’s Self Made: Inspired By the Life of Madam C.J. Walker, Shira Haas from Netflix’s Unorthodox and Regina King from HBO’s Watchmen.

Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy is between Andre Braugher of NBC’s Brooklyn Nine-Nine, William Jackson Harper from NBC’s The Good Place, Alan Arkin from Netflix’s The Kominsky Method, Sterling K. Brown and Tony Shalhoub from Amazon’s The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, Mahershala Ali from Hulu’s Ramy, Kenan Thompson from NBC’s Saturday Night Live and Daniel Levy from Pop TV’s Schitt’s Creek.

Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama is between Giancarlo Esposito of AMC’s Better Call Saul, Bradley Whitford from Hulu’s The Handmaid’s Tale, Billy Crudup and Mark Duplass from Apple TV+’s The Morning Show, Nicholas Braun, Kieran Culkin and Matthew Macfadyen from HBO’s Succession, and Jeffrey Wright from HBO’s Westworld.

Supporting Actor in a Limited Series features Dylan McDermott and Jim Parsons from Netflix’s Hollywood, Tituss Burgess from Netflix’s Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt, and Yahya Abdul-Mateen II, Jovan Adepo and Louis Gossett Jr. from HBO’s Watchmen.

Supporting Actress in a Comedy features Betty Gilpin of Netflix’s Glow, D’Arcy Carden from NBC’s The Good Place, Yvonne Orji from HBO’s Insecure, Alex Borstein and Marin Hinkle from Amazon’s The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, Kate McKinnon and Cecily Strong from NBC’s Saturday Night Live and Annie Murphy from Pop TV’s Schitt’s Creek.

Supporting Actress in a Drama has Laura Dern and  Meryl Streep from HBO’s Big Little Lies, Helena Bonham Carter from Netflix’s The Crown, Samira Wiley from Hulu’s The Handmaid’s Tale, Fiona Shaw from BBC America’s Killing Eve, Julia Garner from Netflix’s Ozark, and Sarah Snook and Thandie Newton from HBO’s Westworld.

Supporting Actress in a Limited Series has Holland Taylor from Netflix’s Hollywood, Uzo Aduba, Margo Martindale and Tracey Ullman from FX’s Mrs. America, Toni Collette from Netflix’s Unbelievable and Jean Smart from HBO’s Watchmen.

Top TV movie is between HBO’s Bad Education and four Netflix films: American Son, Dolly Parton’s Heartstrings: These Old Bones, El Camino: A Breaking Bad Movie and Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt: Kimmy vs. The Reverend.

Outstanding Talk Variety has Comedy Central’s The Daily Show With Trevor Noah, TBS’s Full Frontal With Samantha Bee, ABC’s Jimmy Kimmel Live!, HBO’s Last Week Tonight With John Oliver and CBS’s The Late Show With Stephen Colbert.

Outstanding Variety Sketch Series has HBO’s A Black Lady Sketch Show, Comedy Central’s Drunk History and NBC’s Saturday Night Live. 

Outstanding Children’s Program features Netflix’s Jim Henson's The Dark Crystal: Age Of Resistance, Disney Channel’s Star Wars Resistance and HBO’s We are The Dream: The Kids Of The Oakland MLK Oratorical Fest. 

Top documentary is between HBO’s The Apollo, Apple TV+’s Beastie Boys Story, Netflix’s Becoming and The Great Hack, and Epix’s Laurel Canyon: A Place In Time. 

Outstanding Competition Program is between The Masked Singer on Fox, Nailed It! on Netflix, RuPaul’s Drag Race on VH1, Top Chef on Bravo and The Voice on NBC. 

Outstanding reality host is between Amy Poehler and Nick Offerman on NBC’s Making It, Nicole Byer on Nailed It!, Bobby Berk, Karamo Brown, Tan France, Antoni Porowski and Jonathan Van Ness of Netflix’s Queer Eye, RuPaul of RuPaul’s Drag Race on VH1 and Barbara Corcoran, Mark Cuban, Lori Greiner, Daymond John, Robert Herjavec and Kevin O'Leary of ABC’s Shark Tank. 

Spring in Hollywood is a time when billboards bloom with For Your Consideration ads, and almost every night offers a glamorous red-carpet event for Emmy voters. 

Not this year. 

With so much shut down due to the pandemic and protests, the Emmys and ABC have moved quickly to institute changes. “We’ve been talking with ABC quite a bit, and there are a lot of conversations going on,” Maury McIntyre, president and chief operating officer of the TV Academy, said. “The good news is, we are all committed to having a show on Sept. 20. We think there’s a value right now in celebrating TV, which has been keeping us together and informed through all of this.” 

It won’t be a typical Emmys, both in terms of the broadcast and the networks’ awards campaigns. Voting for the 72nd Primetime Emmy Awards has been moved back and will now start July 2, with nominations announced July 28. With more new platforms in the mix, submissions are already up, McIntyre said. And this year is the first for the TV Academy’s online viewing platform, which allows voters to either watch screeners on the platform or link out to other streaming platforms. With voters having more access and more time at home, use of the system appears to be robust. 

Voting for the winners kicks off Aug. 21 and runs for 11 days. The Primetime Emmys will take place as scheduled on Sunday, Sept. 20, although whether there will be a live ceremony at the Microsoft Theater in downtown Los Angeles remains to be seen. Jimmy Kimmel will host; a producer is pending.  

While the Primetime Emmys are happening, the rest of the events around the ceremony have either been canceled or will be virtual. Last week, the TV Academy said it would not hold any of the three Governors Balls it typically hosts after the two Creative Arts ceremonies and the Primetime Emmys. In addition, the Creative Arts Emmys, which honor craft and technical categories, will be handed out this year via virtual ceremonies held over several nights in September. 

RELATED: Jimmy Kimmel to Host Emmy Awards in September

Similarly, networks, studios and streaming services have had to pivot, innovating new ways to deliver their messages. Along the way, they have discovered a silver lining: What’s working now will help them deliver immersive experiences to a broader range of audiences going forward. “Why reach a local audience when you can reach the world through a virtual event?” Eileen Quast, VP of events for WarnerMedia, said. “I hope that we’ll be able to take our virtual premiere learnings and combine that with live events in the future to reach a much larger pool of Emmy voters.” 

Charity Instead of Celebration 

While networks canceled their premiere Emmy events this year — including HBO’s gala party at the Pacific Design Center and Netflix’s FYSee experience at Raleigh Studios — they, in turn, donated that money to charity. HBO gave $1 million to the Mayor’s Fund for Los Angeles COVID-19 relief while Netflix gave $1 million to the Restaurant Employee Relief Fund. 

Amazon, instead of launching an elaborate billboard campaign during a time when people aren’t commuting, donated $1 million to Jon & Vinny’s Restaurant Group to prepare meals for those going hungry. Amazon then converted its billboard buy from For Your Consideration messages to For Your Community messages, encouraging people to visit COVID19ResponseFund.org and donate. 

On June 15, the TV Academy joined in, saying  it will donate $1 million to The Actors COVID-19 Relief Fund, which provides assistance to those struggling to pay their bills due to layoffs, furloughs and just an overall lack of work. “The Actors Fund oversees distribution and aid for anyone who works in entertainment and that was very important to us,” McIntyre said. “We understand that some of our members are hurting, and we also know that a lot of people who are hurting are people who couldn’t be members yet. We wanted to make sure that whatever aid we were giving went to help as many of those people as possible.” 

For entertainment companies, it’s about accurately reflecting the culture in which they live and work. “Marketers always have to be aware of the environment in which they’re in,” said Todd Beck, president of Beck Media, which helps entertainment companies create and conduct events and awards campaigns. “This doesn’t feel like a time to be overly celebratory. This FYC season, we’re working to honor the storytellers and their work while being a part of creating a better world.” 

Beck Media helped National Geographic stage a virtual event around its limited series, Barkskins, which premiered over Memorial Day weekend. The series, based on the novel by Annie Proulx, is set in New France in 1690 and stars David Thewlis and Marcia Gay Harden. 

“We had to think about what we would normally do at this time of year and then how we could adapt to achieve what we are supposed to achieve,” Beck said. “We do these things because we are trying to spotlight content and honor talent and the work that’s being done. When we throw an event, it’s because we are trying to reach a certain audience and cause them to have an experience which, in turn, creates a feeling and causes them to take a positive action. 

“So how do we recreate that experience virtually?” he continued. “How we get as close to what we used to do is level-one thinking. There are certain things we can’t do anymore, but there are other things we couldn’t do before that we can do now.” 

Pushing Virtual Events to the Limit 

Instead of using Zoom to screen a show and invite hundreds or even thousands of people to attend, entertainment marketers took those tools and went to work pushing them as far as they could go. “We created a landing page where you could get a feel of the show,” Chris Albert, executive VP, marketing strategy and global communications, National Geographic, said. “Barkskins is a really complex, intricate series with a lot of character and plot twists, so we wanted to put viewers into the world of Barkskins before the screening even started.” 

After the screening, Nat Geo also took a unique virtual approach to the Q&A. “Instead of a Q&A that you might attend at a premiere, we produced a virtual Q&A with about 12 different panelists, including the showrunner, director, writer, production designer, costume designer and some of the cast,” Albert said. “We prerecorded it in different Zoom rooms with a moderator who went in and out, and then we edited it so it flowed like one panel.” 

Around 3,000 people tuned in, which is about three times more than are able to attend a typical National Geographic in-person premiere event. 

“We didn’t just invite press and influencers and other people in the industry,” Albert said. “We expanded the invite list to include guild members as well.” 

Nat Geo ran the screening twice — once at 5 p.m. ET on Sunday, May 17, and again at 5 p.m. PT for the West Coast. People also tuned in from abroad, giving the event far more reach than if it had been held in one physical location. 

RELATED: Pandemic Brings Daytime Emmys Back to Broadcast

Barkskins is just one of many virtual screenings Nat Geo has been running during quarantine. Other events have taken place around reality series Life Below Zero and the new season of Cosmos, hosted by Neil deGrasse Tyson. 

Many other networks and services have taken the virtual screening and premiere route, including HBO Max, with Love Life starring Anna Kendrick and Legendary, a ballroom competition series; and TNT’s long-awaited drama Snowpiercer. 

“For each of these premieres, we had several goals,” Quast said. “First, we wanted to give back to the community philanthropically in an appropriate way. Also, we wanted to find a way to bring our industry together during a time when we are all supposed to stay apart. We wanted to try to do this and still capture the excitement and buzz that we’d normally receive from talent walking the carpet at a typical premiere.”

Throwing Virtual Parties 

To accomplish this virtual feat, WarnerMedia hired Jay Rinsky, founder of the digital studio Little Cinema, to help figure out how to bring its exclusive “red carpet” premieres and gala afterparties to life in the virtual world. “Jay specializes in fusing film, music and theater into special performances,” Quast said. “For the afterparties, Jay drew from his experience producing immersive theater and created an afterparty that brought our community back together and promoted social interaction. We accomplished this by creating different rooms our guests could explore, be entertained and mingle with each other.” 

For the Love Life virtual premiere, Rinsky created different rooms where guests could experience virtual Manhattans mixed by director Paul Feig; dance to a set by DJ Michelle Pesce; receive relationship advice from matchmaker Amy Van Doran; and sing karaoke with other partygoers. 

HBO Max and other networks also have sent attendees gift boxes or dinner and drinks as part of their overall experience. For Love Life, guests received a “Dinner for Two” delivery with a make-your-own pizza kit from L.A. hot spot Pizzeria Mozza, as well as customized Love Life candles, wine glasses, a heart-shaped Connect Four game and a karaoke microphone. Guests also were given a Manhattan cocktail kit — which included a bottle of Woodford Reserve bourbon, vermouth, bitters and Luxardo cherries — so they could follow along with Feig.

Legendary’s afterparty was hosted by MC Dashaun Wesley with live music from DJ MikeQ and appearances from the show’s celebrity judges: Law Roach, Jameela Jamil, Leiomy Maldonado and Megan Thee Stallion. 

Attendees also received gift boxes including everything they might need to attend a virtual ball: A cellphone stand to catch every dance move; an “essential voguing fan,” judging card and wand; as well as nail polish, makeup and plenty of glitter. Each attendee also received the Legendary: Inside the Ballroom Scene coffee-table book. 

Also as part of Legendary’s premiere, HBO Max donated to The Trevor Project, a suicide prevention and crisis-intervention organization for LGBTQ+ young people and GLSEN, a national education organization focused on ensuring safe and inclusive schools for all students. 

For its part, Netflix took its entire FYSee experience and recreated it virtually at fyseetv.netflixawards.com. Netflix describes the site as “an innovative new platform showcasing Netflix’s 2020 Emmy contenders with heightened, 360-degree experiences for voters and guild members alike. An offshoot of the experiential space known as FYSee, the digital initiative is a content hub that celebrates storytellers, performers and craft artists — and gives an exclusive look at footage, dynamic conversations, thematic industry panels and so much more.” 

The site allows visitors to explore such Netflix shows as Ryan Murphy’s limited series Hollywood, comedies Dead to Me and Grace and Frankie and reality series Queer Eye.

Considering New Content Opportunities 

Beyond virtual events, Nat Geo took the opportunity to launch entirely new content in the form of FYC-focused podcast Consider This, featuring interviews with series stars such as Neil deGrasse Tyson and Jane Goodall across 12 episodes. It’s an idea that could live on post-pandemic. 

“The one thing that worked to our advantage was that everyone we wanted to work with was stuck at home, so we had access to them,” Albert said. “In a year when people are out working, you might not be able to get something like this done.” 

Producing the episodes required overcoming some logistical issues, but Nat Geo worked with a podcast company, sending equipment to each of the participants so they could record episodes from their homes. 

Marketers see these new ways of offering content as opportunities they hadn’t previously considered. That said, they’ll also be happy to return to live events — with all of the energy and engagement those provide — as soon as they are able. 

“Being able to expand the events we do to include more of the community is something we’ve always thought about and struggled with,” Albert said.
“The virtual world that we’re in now has really opened our eyes.”

Netflix and HBO were the big winners during Sunday’s Critics Choice Awards, securing the most wins in the television category.

HBO led all services with six awards, including best drama series for Succession, according to the Broadcast Television Journalists Association. Netflix took home five awards in the television category and nine overall awards, including theatrical films.

Amazon’s Fleabag won three awards, including best comedy series, to top all shows. The win was the third best comedy series accolade for Fleabag this awards season, matching its Emmy and Golden Globes awards.

Actor Taye Diggs hosted Sunday's live Critics Choice Awards telecast, which aired on The CW network. A partial list of The Critics Choice Awards winners in the television category are as follows:

BEST DRAMA SERIES

Succession

BEST ACTOR IN A DRAMA SERIES

Jeremy Strong, Succession

BEST ACTRESS IN A DRAMA SERIES

Regina King, Watchmen

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR IN A DRAMA SERIES

Billy Crudup, The Morning Show

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS IN A DRAMA SERIES

Jean Smart, Watchmen

BEST COMEDY SERIES

Fleabag

BEST ACTOR IN A COMEDY SERIES

Bill Hader, Barry

BEST ACTRESS IN A COMEDY SERIES

Phoebe Waller-Bridge, Fleabag

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR IN A COMEDY SERIES

Andrew Scott, Fleabag

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS IN A COMEDY SERIES 

Alex Borstein, The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel

BEST LIMITED SERIES

When They See Us

BEST MOVIE MADE FOR TELEVISION

El Camino: A Breaking Bad Movie

BEST ACTOR IN A LIMITED SERIES OR MOVIE MADE FOR TELEVISION

Jharrel Jerome, When They See Us

BEST ACTRESS IN A LIMITED SERIES OR MOVIE MADE FOR TELEVISION

Michelle Williams, Fosse/Verdon

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR IN A LIMITED SERIES OR MOVIE MADE FOR TELEVISION

Stellan Skarsgård, Chernobyl

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS IN A LIMITED SERIES OR MOVIE MADE FOR TELEVISION

Toni Collette, Unbelievable

BEST ANIMATED SERIES

BoJack Horseman

BEST TALK SHOW

The Late Late Show with James Corden

Late Night with Seth Meyers

BEST COMEDY SPECIAL

Live in Front of a Studio Audience: Norman Lear's All in the Family and The Jeffersons

While perennial standouts HBO and Netflix had their usual strong showings at the 71st Annual Primetime Emmy Awards, Amazon Prime Video surprisingly scored seven wins during Fox’s live telecast — second only to HBO — and 15 Emmys overall, finishing third behind HBO and Netflix.

Another surprise: National Geographic finished fourth among all cable, broadcast and streaming services with eight Emmy statuettes, and first among all basic cable networks, outperforming the likes of FX and VH1 (adding in Primetime and Creative Arts awards).

Leading Nat Geo’s Emmy run was documentary film Free Solo, about climber Alex Honnold’s attempted ascent of Yosemite National Park’s El Capitan. It won seven Creative Arts Emmys, including Outstanding Directing for a Documentary/ Nonfiction Program for show directors Elizabeth Chai Vasarhelyi and Jimmy Chin. (Nat Geo’s wildlife documentary series Life Below Zero won the Emmy for Outstanding Cinematography for a Reality Program.)

National Geographic Global Television Networks president Courteney Monroe talked with Multichannel News about the programmer’s big Emmy night, as well as how it plans to build on those the wins. Here’s an edited transcript of that conversation.

MCN: Were you surprised at Nat Geo’s Emmy performance?
Courteney Monroe: I’d be lying if I said we weren’t. Teams across many divisions worked extremely hard to be sure we were getting our programming in front of TV Academy members in innovative and creative ways. Ultimately, the quality of the programs that were recognized speaks for itself. For Free Solo to go seven for seven and win every category for which it was nominated — making it the most Emmy-winning documentary of all time — is a testament to the incredible craft that went into making that film.

MCN: How do Nat Geo’s eight Emmy Awards enhance the network’s brand?
CM: We want to be one of the first ports of call for best-in-class storytellers in the entertainment business. The current TV landscape gives creators a lot of options when it comes to finding homes for their programs. Emmy Awards are a great statement to the creative community that we are in the business of making premium, compelling and important programs and that we support those programs with innovative marketing and awards campaigns.

MCN: Why did Free Solo resonate both with viewers and Emmy voters?
CM:Free Solo is a beautifully made, well-crafted film, made by some of the best editors, cinematographers, sound editors and mixers and directors in the business. It also has a gripping — pun intended — story at its center. I think Alex’s journey to chase his dreams, as absolutely wild as they may be, is something that resonates with everyone.

MCN: Nat Geo recently signed Free Solo’s Chai Vasarhelyi and Jimmy Chin to a first-look deal. What are your expectations for projects from the duo?
CM: We’re excited to expand our partnership with them to create not only more documentary films, but documentary series for the network. Chai and Jimmy are visionary filmmakers who share our same passion for storytelling, striving unfailingly for the high standards that we look for in our premium content. In fact, we just green-lit their next feature documentary and hope to share details soon.

MCN: How does Nat Geo build on its strong Emmy performance?
CM: We’ve got an exciting year ahead. We’re hard at work on the next season of our Emmy-winning franchise series Genius, which will center on Aretha Franklin; the next season of the Emmy-winning epic science series Cosmos; the relaunch of our Emmy-nominated legacy series Brain Games, hosted by Keegan-Michael Key; and an incredibly fun and informative new series we’ve created for Disney+, The World According to Jeff Goldblum.

Beyond the seven "primetime" Emmys for Amazon Prime Video and the four for Netflix, the looming role of streaming media permeated the least-watched Emmy telecast in history on Sunday. Let's start with the commercials for yet-to-debut Apple TV+ and Disney+, both eagerly awaited by digerati but barely on the radar of most video watchers. At least the Disney+ commercial teased the library of Mouse House classics plus the other brands (Marvel, Lucasfilm, etc.) that Disney has absorbed.

Even the commercials for existing over-the-top services, such as Netflix and Amazon Prime Video raised questions about the outlook for this competitive category of content. A Netflix ad promoted the forthcoming El Camino, a spinoff of Breaking Bad. While that Emmy-winning series ran originally on the AMC cable network (as did its earlier spinoff Better Call Saul), "El Camino" is not only a Netflix original, but the two-hour movie will open simultaneously on Oct. 11 in movie theaters, hence qualifying it for Oscar contention.

If nothing else, the move from AMC to Netflix is a (hoped-for) indication that viewers will follow the show, not the platform on which it appears.

Meanwhile, the so-called "Primetime Emmys" skirted a more fundamental conundrum. Since the streaming programs can be viewed on-demand at whatever hour is "prime" for an individual, the term - a legacy of broadcasting's evening hours - is increasingly irrelevant in modern life.

Is Everything Old Really New Again?

Just before the Emmy telecast, a series of published reports pointed out that many of the streaming TV juggernauts (with the exception of Apple TV+) are spending heavily on old (or ancient) broadcast TV series. Reportedly Netflix has bought Seinfeld streaming rights for $500 million; Comcast/NBC's new "Peacock" service will pay a comparable sum for The Office; and WarnerMedia's HBO Max is paying $600 million for 279 episodes of The Big Bang Theory.

"Big Bang" will also run on WarnerMedia's TBS linear network during its HBO Max availability. Of course, for Comcast and WarnerMedia, it means moving funds from one corporate pocket to another.

Related: Emmys 2019: Stars, Nets Happy Over Nods

Yet skeptics rightly wonder if these prices are right for shows which have already lived through years of syndication. Will they really attract viewers to the streaming platforms - or even bring in a next generation of audiences as youngsters age into the users of the technology?

Will any of the shows have the perennial appeal of I Love Lucy? Or will they merely look dated?

Some cynics also question whether quirky Seinfeld is now worth more than double what TBS paid for the same show ($200 million) in the late 1990s.

It all comes down to the unknown question of how much is too much "repeatability"?

These challenges about the value of old TV shows take on great meaning in the context of the Emmycast, which is all about new and original programs.

When several of the Emmy presenters pontificated about today's "platinum age" of television (the "golden age" isn't bright enough anymore), they were alluding to the creativity and range of the vast line-up of streaming content. Of course, cable's contribution to the creative age is significant, based on the number of creative Emmys to HBO, National Geographic, CNN and others. But Netflix gleaned almost as many trophies as HBO, and Hulu's tally (three) was equal to VH1, FX and Sundance.

Perhaps most significantly for the so called Primetime Emmys, among the aging broadcast networks, only NBC won any awards - and they were both for Saturday Night Live, which runs in a timeslot that pushes the meaning of "primetime."

A Lot of Progress in Six Years Plus ACEs and Old Jokes

The Academy of Television Arts & Sciences (ATAS) only allowed streaming video into the Emmy competition in 2013, so the sizeable showing (nominations as well as actual awards) demonstrates a remarkable growth - and recognition about what viewers want to watch.

It brought back memories of the Cable ACE Awards ("Award for Cable Excellence," which became redundant with the extended acronym). The cable industry created the ACEs in 1978, and they survived until 1997, after ATAS finally bowed to reality and allowed made-for-cable programs into its Emmy competition.

And that brought to mind another recent concept bouncing around Hollywood with no obvious support. As the walls between cinema and television crumble even further, why have separate Oscar and Emmy awards? Maybe the Golden Globes has it right: a glam party where trophies for all types of media are handed out. Of course, the film vs. television infrastructure won't allow such a cross-platform statuette-fest. Yet.

So let's see what El Camino and its multiple distribution successors do to that model?

All the promises and blather during the Emmycast - especially in the vague promotional commercials for upcoming streaming services - reminded me of a sexist, almost-dirty "joke" that was heard often during the 1970s. Its set-up was about a mission not accomplished, and the punchline was, "He was a cable franchise promoter, and all he did was talk all night about how great things were going to be."

Amid the hype and bravura of the Emmy show, I could only wonder about the future of television, especially how great it's going to be.

Let's acknowledge that the next wave of TV - platforms, distribution, content - will not necessarily resemble the past 70 years in which ATAS gloried on Sunday night. The awkward introductory remarks by Bryan Cranston lauded TV's history and bright future.

“Television has never been bigger; television has never mattered more; and television has never been this damn good," Cranston intoned properly from his script.

But I couldn't help thinking that the actor was selected for this speech because of his recent portrayal of Howard Beale."the mad prophet of the airways," in the Broadway adaptation of the ever-more credible 1977 movie "Network."

And in that film, the mad-as-hell Howard Beale character (played by Oscar-winner Peter Finch) offered an even more impassioned and sobering outlook of what television will become.

Ultimately, it's all about "the promises" and will they be fulfilled.

Two surprise winners took home awards in the best actor and actress in a drama categories.

Pose’s Billy Porter took home the Emmy award for lead actor in a drama series for his role in FX’s Pose, besting Better Call Saul’s Bob Odenkirk, Game Of Thrones’ Kit Harington, Ozark’s Jason Bateman, This is Us’ Milo Venrimiglia and Sterling K. Brown.

Killing Eve’s Jodie Comer won for best actress in a drama series, topping series co-star and category favorite Sandra Oh, Game Of Thrones’ Emilia Clarke, House Of Cards’ Robin Wright, How to Get Away With Murder’s Viola Davis; Ozark’s Larua Linney and This Is Us’ Mandy Moore. 

Related: 'Game of Thrones' Triumphs in Best Drama Category

HBO's Game of Thrones won the Emmy for best drama series, the last statuette for the record setting drama series. 

Game Of Thrones repeated last year's win in the category, topping AMC's Better Call Saul, Netflix's Bodyguard, BBC America's Killing Eve, Netflix's Ozark, HBO's Succession, FX's Pose and NBC's This Is Us. 

Game of Thrones ends its Emmy run with a record 59 statuettes. 

Related: 'Fleabag' Wins Emmy for Best Comedy

Amazon comedy series Fleabag earned top Emmy honors in a competitive comedy category.  

The series beat out last year's winner The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel as well as multi Emmy winner HBO's Veep in its final year of eligibility for the coveted statuette. 

Also nominated in the category were Netflix's Russian Doll, HBO's Barry, Pop TV's Shitt's Creek and NBC's The Good Place.

Related: 'Game of Thrones' Triumphs in Best Drama Category

Peter Dinklage repeated as Emmy winner in the best supporting actor category in his last year of eligibility for his role as Tyrion Lannister on HBO’s Game Of Thrones. Dinklage bested actors Giancarlo Esposito, Jonathan Banks, Alfie Allen, Nikolaj Coster-Waldau, Michael Kelly, and Chris Sullivan for the statuette.

In a surprise, Julia Garner won the best supporting actress Emmy for her performance as Ruth Langmore in Netflix’s Ozark, besting four Game Of Thrones nominees as well as Killing Eve’s Fiona Shaw. 

Related: 'Game of Thrones' Triumphs in Best Drama Category

Emmy winners in the limited series or movie category were spread across several shows and performers.

HBO’s drama series Chernobyl took home the Emmy statuette for Outstanding Limited Series, while Netflix’s Bandersnatch (Black Mirror) won the Emmy for Outstanding Television Movie.

Related: 'Game of Thrones' Triumphs in Best Drama Category

Jharrel Jerome was the top choice in the Outstanding Lead Actor in a Limited Series or Movie for his role in Netflix’s When They See Us, while Michelle Williams won the statuette for Lead Actress in a Limited Series or Movie for her performance in FX’s Fosse/Verdon.

Patricia Arquette (Hulu’s The Act) and Ben Whishaw (Netflix’s A Very English Scandal) won Emmy awards in the Outstanding Supporting Actress and Actor in a Limited Series or Movie categories, respectively. 

In an upset, Phoebe Waller-Bridge won the Emmy award for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series for Amazon Prime Video's Fleabag.

Waller-Bridge beat out five other actresses including last year’s winner Rachel Brosnahan (The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel), and past multi-Emmy winner Julia Louis-Dreyfus in her last year of eligibility as politician Selina Meyer on HBO’s Veep.

Bill Hader won his second straight Emmy winner for Best Actor in a Comedy Series.

Hader topped actors Don Cheadle Black Monday), Anthony Anderson (black-ish), Eugene Levy (Schitt’s Creek) , Ted Danson (The Good Place) and Michael Douglas (The Kominsky Method) for the award.

Related: 'Fleabag' Wins Emmy for Best Comedy

Amazon Prime Video’s The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel won Emmy awards in both the supporting actress and actor in a comedy series awards.

Alex Borstein repeated as the Best Supporting Actress in a Comedy award winner, while Tony Shalhoub won for his supporting actors role on the comedy series. 

The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel will look to defend its Best Comedy Series award later this evening during the live Emmy telecast on Fox.  

Related: 'Fleabag' Wins Emmy for Best Comedy

HBO easily regained its title as the top Emmy-nominated service, drawing a whopping 137 Emmy nominations, the TV Academy announced Tuesday morning (July 16). 

Leading HBO’s charge was Game Of Thrones, which drew an Emmy-record 32 Emmy nominations in its last year of eligibility, wiping out NYPD Blue’s 25-year record, according to the Academy.

Other shows garnering multiple nominations include Amazon’s The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel (20 Emmy nominations), HBO’s Chernobyl (19), NBC's Saturday Night Live (18), HBO’s Barry and FX’s Fosse/Verdon (17).

Video streaming service Netflix - which was the most nominated service last year for the first time in its history --  finished a distant second this year with 117 nominations, led by its documentary series When They See Us, with drew 16 nominations. NBC finished third with 58 nods, followed by Amazon Prime video (47) and CBS (43).

Game Of Thrones will vie for its second straight Emmy for best drama against a host of first time-nominated shows such as Netflix’s Bodyguard, BBC America’s Killing Eve, FX’s Pose, Netflix's Ozark and HBO’s Succession. AMC’s Better Call Saul and NBC’s This Is Us rounded out the category.

HBO's Veep will look to win one more Emmy in the best comedy category after not being eligible for the award last year. Veep star Julia Louis-Dryefus will also look to add to her Emmy collection of wins for best performance by an actress in her last year of eligibility as politician Selina Meyer. 

The 71st annual Emmy Awards will air live on Fox Sept. 22, while the Creative Arts Emmy Awards will air Sept. 21 on FXX.

A complete list of Emmy shows can be found here.

If the recently completed Creative Arts Emmys ceremonies are any indication, actors, producers and writers of color could have a very memorable night at Monday’s primetime Emmys event.

A record 38 people of color were nominated for primetime Emmys, and several took home statuettes during Creative Emmy ceremonies this past Saturday (Sept. 8) and Sunday (Sept. 9). Much has already been made of the sweep by African-American actors of the Emmys' guest acting categories -- This Is Us's Ron Cephas Jones (guest actor drama series); The Handmaid’s Tale’s Samira Wiley (guest actress drama series); Atlanta’s Katt Williams (guest actor comedy series) and Saturday Night Live’s Tiffany Haddish (guest actress comedy series) -- as well as John Legend’s historic Emmy win for co-producing Fox's variety special Jesus Christ Superstar Live In Concert, making him the first African-American male to win an Emmy, Grammy, Oscar and a Tony award (the coveted EGOT).

Also walking away with Emmys were RuPaul, whose show RuPaul’s Drag Race won four Emmys, including outstanding host for a reality or reality-competition program; W. Kamau Bell, who won two Emmys for his CNN docuseries United Shades of America W. Kamau Bell, and comedy legend Dave Chappelle, who took home the outstanding variety special statuette for his Netflix comedy show Equanimity. (FXX will air an edited replay of the Creative Arts Emmy Awards on Sept. 15.)

The industry will be watching NBC's live Emmys telecast Monday to see if Atlanta’s Donald Glover and This Is Us’s Sterling K. Brown can capture Emmys magic again in the lead actor in a comedy and drama categories, respectfully, and if Sandra Oh can become the first woman of Asian descent to win the best actress in a drama Emmy.

Also, the absence of six-time consecutive Emmy winner Julia Louis Dreyfus from the best actress in a comedy category could allow first-time nominated actress Issa Rae (Insecure) or multiple Emmy-nominated actress Tracee Ellis Ross (black-ish) to win Emmy gold.

Other actors such as Antonio Banderas (Genius: Picasso); Thandie Newton (Westworld); Zazie Beetz (Atlanta); and Leslie Jones and Kenan Thompson (Saturday Night Live) will also vie for television’s highest honors.

Even if none of these actors win any hardware Monday, it can't diminish what has already been a strong showing for people of color at the 70th annual Emmys Awards. 

Network Emmys Tally Through the Creative Awards Ceremonies

Network                                   Program                           Individual                                Total

HBO                                                4                                      13                                          17

Netflix                                             5                                     11                                           16

NBC                                                1                                      14                                          15

FX                                                   0                                        5                                            8

National Geographic                    0                                       5                                           5

Hulu                                               0                                        4                                            4

VH1                                                0                                        4                                            4

Fox                                                 0                                        3                                            3

Prime Video                                  0                                        3                                           3

Source: TV Academy