Without the interest from last year on how they wouldproceed during COVID, the 74th Primetime EmmyAwards have little to attract viewers. With a few emot-ional wins but many more jokes that didn’t land, the 2022 Emmys were far from exceptional. This year, the awards were hosted by Kenan Thompson, a Saturday Night Live (SNL) comedian. This role had been previously occupied by celebrities like Jimmy Kimmel, Ellen DeGeneres, and Eddie Murphy. The broadcast was opened with a dance number to famous series’ intros, from Friends to Stranger Things. While some themes were clearly awkward to dance to, most of the opening performance was well-choreographed. Despite the effort, the idea was bland, and nothing will ever beat the 2010 Glee-themed opening.In the 2022 Emmys, a repeat winner, Succession, beat out shows like Stranger Things, Euphoria, and Squid Game to win Outstanding Drama Series. The show has won the category twice in three seasons, racking up to a total of thirteen Emmy wins. The winner of Outstanding Comedy Series was Ted Lasso, the second season earning twenty nominations at the 74th Emmys. Despite the loss of Outstanding Drama Series, the Squid Game team made history with an acting and directing trophy, the first foriegn-language drama to win these top honors. We also saw many other wins at this year’s Emmys, with The White Lotus winning the Limited or Anthology Series category. Additionally, Zendaya won Lead Actress in a Drama series for her performance as Rue Bennett in Euphoria. Likewise, Jason Sudekis won Lead Actor in a Comedy Series for Ted Lasso. Last Week Tonight With John Oliver won the talk show category, beating out both Jimmy Kimmel Live! and The Late Show With Stephen Colbert. As expected, SNL won the Variety Sketch Series category after competing with only one other show. Despite the routine nature of this year’s Emmy Awards, social media clips from celebrities expanded the audience for the awards. Lizzo’s new show Lizzo’s Watch Out for the Big Grrrls won Outstanding Competition Program, and she celebrated her win on a TikTok live, alongside an appearance as memorable as her dress. Additionally, Sheryl Lee Ralph’s win came with another performance, a rendition of Diane Reeves’ 1994 song “Endangered Species.” As two years worth of COVID jokes ran dry, the show writers turned their attention to the TV takeover that is streaming services. The night was punctuated with a number of jabs at Netflix’s recent business setbacks. Although broadcast shows have been failing, a high point was Abbott Elementary, an ABC sitcom, winning two
Emmys. The show won Outstanding Casting for a Comedy Show and Sheryl Lee Ralph won Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series. Among other nominations, Abbott was nominated for Best Comedy; if it had won, it would have marked the first time since 2014 that this category was won by a network comedy.
Overall, The Emmys were as usual: un-offensive and only momentarily memorable. With the increasing amount of choice viewers are faced with, what’s the role of an award show?