The 78th Emmy Awards commenced on Sept. 14, leaving fans feeling either emotional or confused. The night was full of upsets and unexpected moments as television’s biggest stars gathered to celebrate the year’s most successful shows.
From surprising wins to emotional speeches and musical performances, the ceremony delivered several memorable moments, both good and bad.
Predictions were in as “The Pitt” was nominated a staggering 25 times, nearly doubling the amount from its first season. Comedy show “Hacks” trailed by one nomination, followed by “Widow’s Bay” with 19, “Pluribus” with 18 and “Abbott Elementary” with six.
At the end of the night, the results were in, and vastly different than what was expected.
Horror-comedy hybrid “Widow’s Bay” set an all-time record of 14 total wins for a comedy series within a single year. Their wins ranged from Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series to Outstanding Directing for a Comedy Series and Outstanding Guest Actress in a Comedy Series.
Limited series “DTF St. Louis” won an impressive seven awards. The show blends human vulnerability with awkward pacing and character dynamics, ultimately creating a series that dominated the night despite feeling like an unexpected choice for such a major sweep.
“The Traitors” also amassed seven wins, sweeping every category it was nominated for, most notably winning Outstanding Reality-Competition Program against shows like “Dancing With The Stars,” “RuPaul’s Drag Race,” “Survivor” and “Top Chef.”
HBO Max’s show, “The Pitt,” only won 24 percent of its nominations. Noah Wyle unsurprisingly won the award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series for a second year in a row, bringing his total number of Emmy wins to four.
Dark comedy-drama series “Hacks” actress Jean Smart won Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series for the fifth time—she has won this award for every season of the show. Smart became the first female performer in television history to win an acting Emmy for every single season of a show’s run.
The ceremony also had its fair share of emotional moments. Between heartfelt speeches and moving musical performances, the Emmys incorporated slower moments into the night.
Macaulay Culkin, Annie Murphy and Dan Levy delivered emotional speeches about the late Catherine O’Hara, commenting on the joy she brought to people, her creativity and unique personality. The tribute was so special as it showed three sides of O’Hara: Culkin remembered her as a mother figure from Home Alone, Murphy remembered the joy she gave to her audiences and Levy remembered her as a mentor and friend.
After the three actors finished their speeches, Noah Kahan sang Simon & Garfunkel’s “Bridge Over Troubled Water” during the “In Memoriam” segment. Simultaneously, a slideshow displayed actors who passed away this past year. It was an incredibly heartfelt moment that resulted in solemn silence from the audience.