By Marron Joshua F. Mendoza
Shows from HBO and its flagship streaming service HBO Max have dominated the 2022 Primetime Emmy Awards held on Monday, September 12, at the Microsoft Theater in Los Angeles, California, hosted by comedian Kenan Thompson.
The HBO anthology series The White Lotus, which follows the week in the life of guests and employees of the fictional Hawaiian resort of the same name, won the most awards with ten wins, including Outstanding Limited or Anthology Series, Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Limited or Anthology Series or Movie (Murray Bartlett), Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Limited or Anthology Series or Movie (Jennifer Coolidge), Outstanding Directing for a Limited or Anthology Series or Movie, and Outstanding Writing for a Limited or Anthology Series or Movie for its creator (Mike White).
Another HBO series, Succession, led the nominees’ list with 25 nominations, took home the coveted Outstanding Drama Series award, Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series for Matthew Macfadyen, and Outstanding Writing for a Drama Series for its creator, Jesse Armstrong.
Lee Jung-jae, the star of the hit South Korean Netflix series Squid Game, made history when he won Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series for his role as Seong Gi-hun, making him the first Asian actor to win the category, the fourth Asian person to ever win an Emmy for acting, and the first person to win an acting Emmy for a non-English performance. Squid Game‘s creator and director, Hwang Dong-hyuk, also took home an Emmy for Outstanding Directing for a Drama Series, making him the first Asian to win in the category.
Zendaya also made history when she won the award for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series for her role as Rue Bennett in the HBO teen drama Euphoria. She became the first Black woman to win the category twice and the youngest actress to ever win the Emmys twice at age 26.
“My greatest wish for Euphoria was that it could help heal people, and I just want to say thank you to everyone who has shared their story with me. I want you to know that anyone who has loved Rue or feels like they are Rue, I want you to know that I’m so grateful for your stories, and I carry them with me, and I carry them with her,” Zendaya said in her acceptance speech.
The Apple TV+ comedy series Ted Lasso won Outstanding Comedy Series, Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series for Jason Sudeikis, Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series for Brett Goldstein, and Outstanding Directing for a Comedy Series for MJ Delaney.
Singer Lizzo received the award for Outstanding Competition Program for her Amazon Prime Video reality series Lizzo’s Watch Out for the Big Grrrls, ending RuPaul’s Drag Race‘s four-year winning streak in the category.
“When I was a little girl, all I wanted to see was me in the media. Someone fat like me, Black like me, beautiful like me. If I could go back and tell little Lizzo something, I’ll be like, ‘You gonna see that person, but bitch, it’s gonna have to be you,'” she said in her acceptance speech.
John Oliver‘s HBO talk show, Last Week Tonight with John Oliver, won Outstanding Variety Talk Series for the 7th year. Meanwhile, the long-running sketch variety series Saturday Night Live won Outstanding Variety Sketch for the 6th consecutive time.
Actress Geena Davis‘ non-profit organization, the Geena Davis Institute on Gender in Media, which aims to research gender representation in media and promote equal representation of women in film and television, received the Governor’s Award.
Other winners of the night include Sheryl Lee Ralph (who took home the award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series for her role as Barbara Howard in Abbott Elementary), Quinta Brunson (who received the Outstanding Writing for a Comedy Series award for her sitcom Abbott Elementary), Jean Smart (who won Oustanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series for the second year in a row for her role as Deborah Vance in the HBO comedy series Hacks), Michael Keaton (who received the award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Limited or Anthology Series or Movie for his role as Dr. Samuel Finnix in Dopesick), Amanda Seyfried (who won the award for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Limited or Anthology Series or Movie for her role as real-life controversial entrepreneur Elizabeth Holmes in The Dropout), Julia Garner (who won Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series for her role as Ruth Langmore in the Netflix series Ozark), and Jerrod Carmichael (who took home Outstanding Writing for a Variety Special for his HBO comedy special Jerrod Carmichael: Rothaniel).