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The 2020 Primetime Emmy Awards are done (September, 20), with Schitt’s Creek sweeping the comedy awards and HBO’s Watchmen and Succession nabbing a host of their own big wins in the limited-series and drama categories.
Regina King unsurprisingly won best lead actress in a limited series for Watchmen, while Euphoria’s Zendaya scored her first Emmy win for best lead actress in a drama. Mark Ruffalo fans were ecstatic to see him win best lead actor in a limited series for I Know This Much Is True.
Jimmy Kimmel hosted the virtual ceremony mostly hiccup-free live from Staples Center in LA, with live feeds giving us the spontaneous reactions of winners from wherever they were in the world.
Historic year for Black actors
After an unprecedented number of Black performers received Emmy nominations this year, a record number of Black performers also picked up actual Emmy trophies.
Out of the 18 acting awards handed out at the 72nd Annual Primetime Emmy Awards, nine of them went to Black actors, which gives the performer parity with white actors, as no other people of color won this year.
This is a notable increase from last year, when 11.11% of acting winners were Black (16.67% BIPOC winners overall). All in all, the Television Academy has come a long way in the last few years: in 2013 there were zero BIPOC winners in the acting categories.
History was also made with Zendaya’s lead drama actress win for HBO’s “Euphoria.” It was also only the second time in the awards’ seven-plus decade history that a Black woman won that category. The first was Viola Davis in 2015 for “How To Get Away With Murder.”
Zendaya Makes History
“She’s younger than Baby Yoda and she already has an Emmy,” Jimmy Kimmel said after a visibly shaken Zendaya, 24, became the youngest Emmy winner for best lead actress in a drama for her role as Rue on HBO’s “Euphoria.”
The Disney-actress-turned-drama-star beat out the decades-older counterparts Jennifer Aniston, Olivia Colman, Sandra Oh and Laura Linney to claim the crown — not to mention the incumbent winner, Jodie Comer, who set the record last year when she won for “Killing Eve” at age 26.
“Thank you to all of the other incredible women in this category,” Zendaya said. “I admire you so much.”
See below for a list of nominees and winners.
Outstanding lead actor in a limited series or TV movie
Jeremy Irons («Watchmen»)
Hugh Jackman («Bad Education»)
Paul Mescal («Normal People»)
Jeremy Pope («Hollywood»)
Mark Ruffalo («I Know This Much Is True») *WINNER
Outstanding lead actress in a limited series or TV movie
Cate Blanchett («Mrs. America»)
Shira Haas («Unorthodox»)
Regina King («Watchmen») *WINNER
Octavia Spencer («Self Made»)
Kerry Washington («Little Fires Everywhere»)
Supporting Actor in a Limited Series or Movie
Dylan McDermott («Hollywood»)
Jim Parsons («Hollywood»)
Tituss Burgess («Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt: Kimmy vs. the Reverend»)
Yahya Abdul-Mateen II («Watchmen») *WINNER
Jovan Adepo («Watchmen»)
Louis Gossett Jr. («Watchmen»)
Supporting Actress in a Limited Series or Movie
Holland Taylor («Hollywood»)
Uzo Aduba («Mrs. America») *WINNER
Margo Martindale («Mrs. America»)
Tracey Ullman («Mrs. America»)
Toni Collette («Unbelievable»)
Jean Smart («Watchmen»)
Outstanding lead actor in a comedy series
Anthony Anderson («Black-ish»)
Don Cheadle («Black Monday»)
Ted Danson («The Good Place»)
Michael Douglas («The Kominsky Method»)
Eugene Levy («Schitt’s Creek») *WINNER
Ramy Youssef («Ramy»)
Outstanding lead actress in a comedy series
Christina Applegate («Dead to Me»)
Rachel Brosnahan («The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel»)
Linda Cardellini («Dead to Me»)
Catherine O’Hara («Schitt’s Creek») *WINNER
Issa Rae («Insecure»)
Tracee Ellis Ross («Black-ish»)
Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series
Andre Braugher («Brooklyn Nine-Nine»)
William Jackson Harper («The Good Place»)
Alan Arkin («The Kominsky Method»)
Sterling K. Brown («The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel»)
Tony Shalhoub («The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel»)
Mahershala Ali («Ramy»)
Kenan Thompson («Saturday Night Live»)
Dan Levy («Schitt’s Creek») *WINNER
Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series
Betty Gilpin («GLOW»)
D’Arcy Carden («The Good Place»)
Yvonne Orji («Insecure»)
Alex Borstein («The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel»)
Marin Hinkle («The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel»)
Kate McKinnon («Saturday Night Live»)
Cecily Strong («Saturday Night Live»)
Annie Murphy («Schitt’s Creek») *WINNER
Outstanding lead actor in a drama series
Jason Bateman («Ozark»)
Sterling K. Brown («This Is Us»)
Steve Carell («The Morning Show»)
Brian Cox («Succession»)
Billy Porter («Pose»)
Jeremy Strong («Succession») *WINNER
Outstanding lead actress in a drama series
Jennifer Aniston («The Morning Show»)
Olivia Colman («The Crown»)
Jodie Comer («Killing Eve»)
Laura Linney («Ozark»)
Sandra Oh («Killing Eve»)
Zendaya («Euphoria») *WINNER
Supporting Actor in a Drama Series
Giancarlo Esposito («Better Call Saul»)
Bradley Whitford («The Handmaid’s Tale»)
Billy Crudup («The Morning Show») *WINNER
Mark Duplass («The Morning Show»)
Nicholas Braun («Succession»)
Kieran Culkin («Succession»)
Matthew Macfadyen («Succession»)
Jeffrey Wright («Westworld»)
Supporting Actress in a Drama Series
Laura Dern («Big Little Lies»)
Meryl Streep («Big Little Lies»)
Helena Bonham Carter («The Crown»)
Samira Wiley («The Handmaid’s Tale»)
Fiona Shaw («Killing Eve»)
Julia Garner («Ozark») *WINNER
Sarah Snook («Succession»)
Thandie Newton («Westworld»)
Outstanding reality/competition series
«The Masked Singer»
«Nailed It»
«RuPaul’s Drag Race» *WINNER
«Top Chef»
«The Voice»
Outstanding variety talk series
«Daily Show with Trevor Noah»
«Full Frontal with Samantha Bee»
«Jimmy Kimmel Live»
«Last Week Tonight with John Oliver» *WINNER
«Late Show with Stephen Colbert»
Outstanding limited Series
«Little Fires Everywhere»
«Mrs. America»
«Unbelievable»
«Unorthodox»
«Watchmen» *WINNER
Outstanding comedy series
«Curb Your Enthusiasm»
«Dead to Me»
«The Good Place»
«Insecure»
«The Kominsky Method»
«The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel»
«Schitt’s Creek» *WINNER
«What We Do in the Shadows»
Outstanding drama series
«Better Call Saul»
«The Crown»
«The Handmaid’s Tale»
«Killing Eve»
«The Mandalorian»
«Ozark»
«Stranger Things»
«Succession» *WINNER
