This past Sunday, September 18, the 68th Primetime Emmy Awards aired on ABC, live from the Microsoft Theater in Los Angeles. Hosted by Jimmy Kimmel, the show was full of excitement as the television elite were celebrated for their work in creating and performing on our favorite shows. If TV is not really your thing, you are missing out; here’s a recap of the night’s award ceremony:
One of the biggest winners of the night, to no surprise, was HBO’s Game of Thrones. David Benioff and D.B. Weiss won the award for Outstanding Writing in a Drama Series and Miguel Sapochnik won for Outstanding Directing in a Drama Series, all for the action-packed “Battle of the Bastards” episode. The show, which also won Outstanding Drama Series, now holds the record for the scripted primetime series with the most Emmys.
Another big winner was FX’s The People v. O.J. Simpson: American Crime Story. Actors Sterling K. Brown, Sarah Paulson, and Courtney B. Vance all won for their outstanding performances. The show was also awarded Outstanding Writing and Outstanding Limited Series.
Surprises were also in store; Rami Malek scored his first Emmy for his lead performance in USA Network’s Mr. Robot. Tatiana Maslany also won her first Emmy for her lead performance in BBC America’s Orphan Black, beating last year’s winner Viola Davis. Another pleasant surprise was Kate McKinnon, who won Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series for her work on NBC’s Saturday Night Live. Also, Aziz Ansari and Alan Yang won for their comedic writing in Netflix’s Master of None.
Other noteworthy awardees were HBO’s Veep and Last Week Tonight with John Oliver and Comedy Central’s Key & Peele for their work in comedy and variety series. Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Louie Anderson, Jeffrey Tambor, Regina King, Maggie Smith, and Ben Mendelsohn also won for their lead and supporting performances in their respective Comedy and Drama series. In addition to Tambor, his show Transparent’s director, Jill Soloway, also won for Outstanding Directing in a Comedy Series.
While all the awards are well-deserved, the snubs and surprises specifically speak to the changing landscape of television. The Television Academy is starting to see various genres, such as sci-fi and fantasy, as respectable forms of art. Malek’s win, also shows how the industry is starting to accept diversity in its talented storytelling.
