With an acceptance speech turned marriage proposal and plenty of star studded comedy stunts, Monday night’s Emmy Awards seemed as dramatic as the winning shows themselves. This year, the 70th annual TV awards show was hosted by Michael Che and Colin Jost, best known for their weekend update segment on the sketch comedy program, Saturday Night Live.
The opening number, featuring comedy actors like Kate McKinnon, Sterling K. Brown, RuPaul, Kristen Bell, Tituss Burgess, Ricky Martin, and Andy Samberg, included lines such as “We solved it/ you’re welcome Asians we gave you that one show/ we solved it/ this room is so diverse.” This was the first of many commentaries made over the course of the evening regarding diversity tensions in Hollywood. Over the last year, many comedians on stage have grown accustomed to joking about these significant issues.
“A quick hello to the thousands to you here in the audience and to the hundreds watching at home,” welcomed Jost. This was a quick nod to the commonly low viewership, accentuated this year with the move to Monday night. Unfortunately, the viewership fell another 10% from an already recognized low in 2017. Despite these numbers, the Emmy’s were still well put together and entertaining.
Throughout the show, the hosts and announcers reminisced through Emmy history. Betty White, a nominee for best actress at the 3rd annual Emmy’s in 1951, came on stage for a hello and remembrance speech. Facts were sprinkled throughout about Emmy origins: the first ever were held in a Hollywood “rec room” and the Emmy statue was modeled from the designer’s wife. The tributes to lost Hollywood stars were also tasteful and set to Aretha Franklin’s Amazing Grace.
And now a winner recap! The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel was by far the most decorated. It won best comedy, writing for a comedy series, directing for a comedy series, and the lead actress, Rachel Brosnahan, took home best comedy actress. Best Drama went to Game of Thrones and one of its actors, Peter Dinklage, also won Best Supporting Actor for a Drama. Best Director for a Drama went to Stephen Daldry of The Crown, and Claire Foy, the lead actress playing Queen Elizabeth II, brought home Best Actress in a Drama. In response to this win, senior Daniela Rybarczyk said, “I was really happy that Claire Foy received lead actress in a drama series. I thought she did amazing job in The Crown.”
The Best Variety Talk Series and Reality Competition Program went to Last Week Tonight With John Oliver and RuPaul’s Drag Race, respectively. For comedy fans, writing for a Variety Special was brought home by John Mulaney for his Kid Gorgeous at Radio City stand up performance and Best Variety Sketch Series went to SNL.
