LOS ANGELES (AP) — Jean Smart made it a sweep with her fifth best actress award in a comedy for the fifth and final season of “Hacks,” Rhea Seehorn won best actress in a drama for “Pluribus” and “Widow’s
Bay” was making early waves at the 78th Emmy Awards on Monday night.
No actor has ever won an Emmy every year for a series that lasted more than three seasons until Smart did it Monday.
“What a ride this has been,” an emotional Smart said from the stage of the Peacock Theater after getting a standing ovation.
The 75-year-old Smart has won eight Emmys overall in a career that was already more than respectable when she landed her defining role of Deborah Vance, a brash stand-up comic pushing back against age, obscurity and sexism in the HBO Max series.
Seehorn plays the lone central character who takes on an alien hivemind on Apple TV’s “Pluribus,” and she rode the role to her first Emmy. The 54-year-old had been nominated twice without winning for her breakthrough role on “Better Call Saul,” a show from “Breaking Bad” creator Vince Gilligan, who put Seehorn at the center of “Pluribus.”
“Hacks” was the top nominee among all comedies, but it got a major challenge from rookie upstart “Widow’s Bay,” which won a pair of acting awards.
The show’s breakout star Kate O’Flynn took best supporting actress in a comedy, and Stephen Root, a ubiquitous character actor for decades, won supporting actor. It was the first Emmy for both.
O’Flynn, a 40-year-old British actor whose previous acclaim came mostly for her work in theater, plays Patricia Moyer, a city worker and social outcast dealing with a demonic darkness on the Apple TV horror comedy.
“This is the role of a lifetime,” O’Flynn said from the stage. “This is for all the Patricias out there.”
Root beat out Harrison Ford, who many thought would get his first major competitive Hollywood award for his role on “Shrinking.”
“Thank you, sir, for all your many years of great, great, great acting,” Root said to Ford during his acceptance. “Widow’s Bay” won eight Emmys in previous ceremonies during the run-up to Monday’s main show and is expected by many to claim the top comedy prizes.
“Widow’s Bay” star Matthew Rhys won best actor in a limited series early in the show Monday night for another show, “The Beast in Me,” and is nominated for best actor in a comedy later.
HBO Max’s real-time emergency room drama “The Pitt” was the top overall nominee and will look to find its place in the television pantheon. It’s expected to repeat as best drama, as is star Noah Wyle for best actor.
But a surprise came in its first category, when Allison Janney won best supporting actress in a drama over four women from “The Pitt” who were nominated in the category, including last year’s winner, Katherine LaNasa. Janney joined Smart as an eight-time Emmy winner.
Mariska Hargitay opened the NBC telecast with a musical tribute to television viewing, “I Love TV Screens,” sung to the tune of “I Love Rock ’n’ Roll.” A recorded start featured NBA champion Jalen Brunson of the New York Knicks and actor Jennifer Coolidge. It continued inside the theater with a group of dancers with TVs for heads.
“NBC is celebrating its 100th year, and I have been on ‘Law & Order: SVU’ for all of them,” said Hargitay, a three-time Emmy winner who has starred in the show for 27 seasons.
The Emmys telecast rotates between the broadcast networks, and this year it’s airing live on NBC and streaming live on Peacock.
“Live from E!: Countdown to the Emmys” is showing stars arriving on YouTube and Peacock. The Associated Press is streaming a delayed feed of celebrity arrivals on YouTube.
