It’s safe to say that we all could have predicted the Emmys this year would come with a fair few surprises, and we weren’t wrong. Particularly with a virtual ceremony taking place, there were bound to be some memorable moments – and I’ve bookmarked a few for those of you who didn’t manage to catch up on the big night.
Zendaya wins big
It was a proud moment for women everywhere as Zendaya made history to become the youngest woman to win best actress in a drama series at the Emmys. The Disney Channel actress has definitely grown up by portraying teenager Rue in HBO’s Euphoria, and her role as a struggling addict saw her beating off Jennifer Aniston (The Morning Show), Laura Linney (Ozark) and Olivia Colman (The Crown). Those who have watched these shows will know this is no mean feat!
What’s more, Zendaya gave an inspiring speech to young people on the night, saying that ‘there is hope in our young people and I just want to say to all my peers out there doing the work in the streets, ‘I see you, I admire you, I thank you.’’
Friends Reunion!
We’re waiting impatiently for HBO Max to release the hotly anticipated Friends reunion, but in the meantime fans were treated to half of the crew appearing on camera during the Emmys. To be precise, Jennifer Aniston and her buddies Lisa Kudrow and Courtney Cox were on screen in a surprise appearance, delighting fans.
While Jimmy Kimmel was talking to Jennifer Aniston, Courtney Cox wandered onto the screen to his surprise. When he questioned ‘Oh! Courtney’s there?’ She replied ‘Of course I’m here, we live together!’ Jennifer added ‘Yeah, we’ve been roommates since 1994 Jimmy, hello?’
Schitt’s Creek makes history
It wasn’t just Zendaya who made history at the event many are now dubbing the Pand-emmys – as Schitt’s Creek broke the record for the most wins in a single season for a comedy. The show aired its sixth and final instalment this year, and the show’s creator said that it was ‘sad not to be with the cast and crew to share it.’
Daniel Levy, who wrote the final episode Happy Ending, said ‘Our show, at its core, is about the transformational effects of love and acceptance, and that is something we need more of now than we’ve ever needed before.’
Big wins for Black and LGBTQ people
As mentioned, Schitt’s Creek managed to make history by landing nine wins and representing the LGBTQ category proudly. Happily, this show isn’t the only example of minority representation – as over 30 people of colour were nominated and seven LGBTQ people were acknowledged for hosting.
Notable wins include Eddie Murphy landing his first Emmy for his stint hosting Saturday Night Live. Furthermore, RuPaul managed to win his fifth Emmy in a row for hosting RuPaul’s Drag Race.
RuPaul kills it – again
We all know about the allure of RuPaul’s Drag Race, but the show wouldn’t exist without RuPaul himself – and he managed to land his fifth Emmy on the night, which means he has broken the record for the most host wins. What’s more, RuPaul’s Drag Race also landed its third win in a row for Outstanding Competition Program – what more recommendation do you need to check it out if you haven’t already?
Hazmat suits dominated the stage
We’d usually only see these outfits for clearing out asbestos or a rat infestation, but the Emmys saw gongs being handed to people by figures in the terrifying looking suits. What’s more, this was the first ceremony where people were dialling in to make their acceptance speeches – with some even wearing designer pyjamas. This is a far cry from the fabulous fashion we’re used to seeing on the night, but it’s better than no Emmys at all!
A classic mix-up took place
The audience was greeted with an error message on their screens when an award mix-up took place, with both Ron Cephas Jones and Jason Bateman announced as winners of the same award. A VoiceOver announced Jason Bateman from The Outsider, while a card displayed Ron Cephas Jones from This Is Us as the winner.
The actual winner was Cephas Jones, but it took a few minutes for the awards broadcast to correct the mistake – leaving audiences feeling confused for a short while. In other words, the VoiceOver was not correct, but the Twitter account for The Television Academy confirmed that Cephas Jones was the one to land the gong.
Several weird moments unfolded
It was strange enough to see the hazmat suits and designer pyjamas, but cardboard cutouts of the key players from the night ‘sitting’ in the audience and canned applause playing instead of genuine clapping had us all feeling a little creeped out. However, it’s evident that the organisers behind the ceremony were doing their best to make the event as memorable and close as possible to the real thing.
We’re getting a bit sick of Zoom now
When the pandemic first began, the novelty of Zoom was kicking off with all of us dialling into work calls using the software. But now, after most of the year has been taken up with Zoom and feeling isolated, it’s a little boring to see even more faces appear on poor-quality video streams – even if they’re famous ones.
The envelope fire
Jimmy Kimmel delivered some decent lines in his gig as host of the Emmys, but some of us were a bit confused when the talk show host sprayed down an Emmy envelope with Lysol and set it on fire. Then Jennifer Aniston appeared to put out the fire – a privilege not all of us are lucky enough to have.
