Fans and Industry Come Together Celebrating the 75th Primetime Emmy Awards

It was a trip back in time that the Television Academy of the United States invited viewers on the night of this Monday, January 15, as it finally delivered the trophies for the 75th edition of the Primetime Emmy, the most important American TV and streaming award.

Four months late, the party in Los Angeles honored the best of the small screen between 2022 and 2023 and followed a balanced formula of humor, politics, and nostalgia in its ceremony. Due to the historic strikes of actors and writers in Hollywood, the event had to be postponed from September to this week, causing confusion in the list of nominees.

Many of those who showed up on the red carpet, like Jena Malone in a fairy tale dress that would cause nausea in Wednesday Addams, and Evan Peters, already beautified months after playing the worn-out Jeffrey Dahmer, were there to represent series that had already been forgotten.

“The Crown,” on the other hand, was competing for its fifth season, still recorded under the reign of Queen Elizabeth II, and not the most recent, which arrived on Netflix in December. And while rumors about cast and locations for the third season of “The White Lotus” spread across the internet, the HBO anthology reaped the rewards for its acclaimed second season.

Even though the long distance between its release in October 2022 and this January 2024 did not weaken the candidate – because the votes were sent as far back as August – “The White Lotus” secured five statuettes for its season set in a hotel in Taormina, including those previously received at the Creative Arts Emmy, a section of the award dedicated to smaller categories, mostly technical, announced last week.

However, the feeling is that only three series truly celebrated during the post-Emmy parties. Every year, it seems like the voters watch the same handful of productions. This season, the perception was even stronger, perhaps because the phenomenon repeated shortly after the Golden Globes took a similar path.

Breaking the record for most wins for a comedy in a single edition, “The Bear” took home ten trophies; the drama “Succession,” six; and the miniseries “Treta,” eight. There was little room for talents that had not worked in this trio. Not that they are not deserving, but it is still somewhat frustrating and monotonous to see the same faces taking the stage.

That’s why, with “Succession” having won the best drama for the third time, the ceremony seemed like a return to the past, reinforced by castmates reuniting long after farewells on the set and, at home, viewers having the chance to see beloved characters one last time.

It was also a return to the past with endless references to the great series of years past throughout the party. There were tributes to “The Sopranos” and the iconic Carol Burnett, for example, in speeches shaped to celebrate the 75 years of the award.

As the television audience crisis in the Hollywood awards season deepens, it is imperative that presenters play a role beyond the decorative, as the Golden Globes fiasco last week made clear.

Jo Koy, the comedian responsible for hosting it, took on the role of spewing nonsense, embarrassing the audience. This Sunday, the Critics’ Choice Awards didn’t fare much better – presenters aside, it became evident that the problem starts in the script room.

Bella Ramsey, star of “The Last of Us,” while presenting a category, had to read from the teleprompter, visibly uncomfortable, that there are actors who pretend to be singers as well, poking fun at Ryan Gosling and Ariana DeBose.

It almost felt like they forgot that he started his career singing and dancing as a child before being nominated for an Oscar for the musical “La La Land,” and she recently made a successful transition from Broadway to Hollywood screens, winning the little gold man for the remake of “West Side Story.”

At the Emmy’s, there was no fiasco. Showing absolute readiness and mastery of the microphone, “Black-ish” actor and producer Anthony Anderson entertained a tough – and intimidated after last week’s tasteless displays – audience with smarter jokes and immense charisma, particularly when hinting at the resistance to awarding plots that exalt Black culture and experiences.

The statement was supported by several other politicized moments, balanced amid the festive atmosphere. The lines written for those presenting categories also effortlessly drew laughs – “Kieran Culkin beat me up,” Pedro Pascal said about his injured shoulder, mentioning their competition for best dramatic actor, in which the Chilean has repeatedly been overlooked.

The acceptance speeches followed a similar formula, garnering enthusiastic applause from an audience that seemed in sync and, finally, showed that the industry remains united after last year’s shutdowns.

Anderson’s opening number may have encountered resistance due to its high complexity, but the truth is that, with its delay and the new January date, the Emmy only made the Golden Globes party, filled with alcohol and with guests leaving as the night went on, even more pathetic.