Emmys 2020: Succession, Watchmen and Schitt’s Creek sweep – as it happened

A strange night, introducing what will be the new awards show normal for the foreseeable future as the television academy brought their annual party to living rooms, green rooms and event spaces around the world. It was an unusual ceremony, intriguing to start with and a little boring by the end but then the Emmys, with its lack of musical performances or breaks between awards, is never the most entertaining night of the year.

Jimmy Kimmel was a sturdy if a little safe choice of host whose lack of bite was countered somewhat by a string of deserving and diverse victories, some were genuine surprises while most were at least given to newer, more daring shows. Without Game of Thrones and Veep to dominate and with The Marvelous Mrs Maisel left to pick up the scraps, Schitt’s Creek, Succession and Watchmen were the big winners, a strong showing for HBO but a disappointing night for Netflix.

It was a mostly slick night, devoid of big glitches, but there was a sense of spirit or at least fun missing, something that the upcoming awards ceremonies will hopefully work to figure out by the time they come around. This was a patchy start but a start nonetheless.

And there it is. The big award of the night goes to the show everyone has been talking about for the last year. Jesse Armstrong is picking it up back in London understandably disappointed not to be with the rest of the cast. His speech is full of un-thank yous to the virus, to nationalists and to Trump and Johnson for their “crummy” responses to the pandemic.

The second year in a row for Julia Garner winning in this category and this time it was fiercer than ever with Helena Bonham-Carter, Laura Dern and professional award-winner Meryl Streep. It’s also one of the rare big wins for Netflix tonight ...

Ooh another shock here given the three Succession contenders but Billy Crudup’s divisive role in Apple’s divisive show has won out. It’s an important end note for the fresh streamer given a mostly quiet night for them.

The cinematographer turned director is another welcome winner for Succession and he delivered a touching speech about belonging in America with his children. Three more awards left and at least one of them is going to Succession ...

A very deserving win for Jesse Armstrong whose whipsmart Succession scripts easily outdo pretty much anything else on the small screen. He’s surprisingly still awake and still coherent despite accepting the award from London at an ungodly hour. It’s a big night for HBO.

A big surprise here for an extremely deserving Zendaya, who has beaten out favourites Jennifer Aniston and Olivia Colman to pick up one of the night’s biggest awards for her lead role in the dark HBO drama Euphoria.

She’s shocked but gracious and aware that it’s “a weird time to be celebrating” while also paying tribute to those “on the streets” doing the work.

A slight shock here, less so for the show but more for the star with Jeremy Strong winning out over his more-favoured co-star Brian Cox. The second season of Succession has turned it into one of the biggest dramas on TV and, as things start to wrap up, this will probably be the first of a number of awards for HBO’s hit tonight.

Another win here for the standout show of the category or at least the one with the most passionate fanbase. RuPaul also won a fifth Emmy earlier this week for hosting the show, breaking a record.

And, as a shock to no one, the most nominated show of the night has won the award for limited series. Given the incredible balancing act Watchmen pulled off, it’s a win that feels wholly earned.

Damon Lindelof’s speech is gracious and generous given the nature of the show, quoting others over himself. “Stop worrying about getting cancelled and start worrying about what you’re doing to get renewed,” he says.

The first win tonight for Mrs America (a show that would usually have swept the board) and the third Emmy for Uzo Aduba, who has won twice before for Orange is the New Black. She is also the second winner tonight, after Regina King, to wear a Breonna Taylor T-shirt.

An interesting category here without a real frontrunner but a deserved win for the rising star from Watchmen. He’s a bit taken aback but his speech is incisive and well-crafted, talking about the dangers of white domestic violence and devoting the award to all of the black women in his life.

Ooh a nice surprise here for the breakout Netflix series and nice to see a surprised winner for once tonight! It was a tough category, including the late Lynn Shelton for Little Fires Everywhere, and the streamer’s first win for the evening despite going in with the most nominations.

The second win for Watchmen, the most nominated show of the night, which has co-writer Cord Jefferson thanking his therapist (“Therapy should be free!”), a rare, and refreshing, shoutout for a winner’s speech!

Watchmen shall return very soon ...

A slight shock here for those who thought Hugh Jackman would win for his performance in HBO’s acclaimed drama Bad Education, especially given how Mark Ruffalo’s dark series was mostly ignored in most categories.

The actor is using his spotlight to talk about the importance of mental health awareness and how we look after the most vulnerable members of society. “We have to come together with love,” he says in a speech heralding the importance of diversity and staying together during a difficult time. He’s another winner talking about how voting could save us all from division and hate this November. It’s a welcome relief from Kimmel’s disappointing avoidance of political barbs.

An explosion of confetti and a knock on the door for Regina King for her role in Watchmen, the most nominated show of the evening. King, who is on her way to becoming an EGOT, delivers an impassioned speech in a Breonna Taylor T-shirt.

It’s the first of a number of wins for the acclaimed show as well as a big season for King whose big-screen directorial debut, One Night in Miami, is also set to return her to the Oscars stage.

Okay so those Emmys-in-boxes are a thing and they’re threatening to wound whoever wins for the rest of the night (they will spring out when announced).

Presented by a countryside-lurking David Letterman, the predictable winner was John Oliver for Last Week Tonight. It was fun to watch him terrified of how the box might open as well as gratifying given how much his weekly show continues to outdo any of his rivals.

An incredibly random list of celebrities bigged up the nominees (including Elton John, the Broad City ladies, Lin-Manuel Miranda and Count von Count – sure) although we all knew who would win this one.

It’s the final comedy award of the night and the seventh for Schitt’s Creek, accepted by the Levy family. Dan has come to implore viewers to vote before apologising for making things too political. Eugene has smartly thanked Netflix, the platform that really did turn the show into the hit it ultimately became. That’s it for comedy! No more laughs tonight!

In another nice touch, a UPS delivery driver is presenting this award. Aaaaand it’s ANOTHER award for Schitt’s Creek for Annie Murphy, one of the lesser known members of the cast.

“I’m so proud to be part of a show that stands for love and kindness and inclusivity and acceptance,” she says in a speech from the same envious party we still can’t attend.

There’s a nicely judged intro for this category from a teacher, one of many shoutouts to come for frontline workers during the pandemic.

“The internet’s about to turn on me,” blares Levy, who is probably wrong given the fervent fans for his cult show Schitt’s Creek. He calls it the greatest experience of his life to play this role and is extremely grateful for his big win. So far it’s sweeping all of the comedy categories and there are a few left for it to scoop.

Aaaand the sweep continues with another award for the comedy that’s slowly become a thing. Levy has thankfully ceded the stage to a grateful Cividino. More to come for this one.

Oof another spectacularly unfunny bit between Kimmel and an IRL Tracee Ellis Ross, ironic given the category. But yes, another big win for Schitt’s Creek from Dan Levy who stars in and writes for one of the most popular shows of the night.

It’s a huge night for Pop TV, if not a little bittersweet given that it’s the final season of their only known show ...

Aaand the Schitt’s Creek Toronto cast party might as well be the actual Emmys ceremony at this stage. Eugene Levy has been handed the second award of the night by a Hazmat suit-wearing somebody for his role in the final season of the offbeat comedy series.

He’s giving a heartfelt speech about his long-term castmates as well as his family focused on his son who came up with the show with him. Again, more shall come for this one and again if only we were all in Toronto right now.

So that PJs post was a lie. Jennifer Aniston, a close friend of Kimmel’s, is there in person to present the first award after some unbearable banter about a deadly virus. Aaaaaand as expected Catherine O’Hara has won for the final season of critical darling and fan favourite Schitt’s Creek.

She’s accepting the award from a Toronto get-together with the rest of the cast which means we can’t see what her living room is like. She’s thanking the Levys for giving her the chance to be ridiculous as well as her “wardrobe whisperer” for putting her in a string of unhinged outfits. There will be a lot more for awards these chaps coming tonight ...

And so it begins. Jimmy Kimmel has come on stage for the “Pandemmys” in front of a fake crowd digitally recreated from a previous year. He’s questioning the need of awards during a global pandemic (same) but also relying on his rather exhausting schtick of criticising the ceremony he’s been hired to host. Cool.

Using previous reactions (cut-tos, laughter and applause) to his monologue is creepy given that it’s not one that’s worth much of a reaction. It’s a strange way of pretending that we’re not where we are. But hey, joking about Quibi (“dumbest thing to ever cost a billion dollars”) is always welcome.

Wait, now the facade has dropped, with Kimmel seeing himself react to his own jokes. It’s a dumb way of progressing to reality but hey, at least we’re now back to 2020. Cardboard cutouts are taking the place of nominees apart from some of the stars who are actually there (as mentioned) such as Jason Bateman, sitting by himself in the audience.

Here come all those awards/living rooms/tech glitches ...

For a while, it seemed like the Television Academy was going to find a way around the chaos of 2020 with early word suggesting that somehow, a live Emmys ceremony would still take place at the Microsoft Theater in Los Angeles. But as July rolled around, and as California continued to see cases on the rise, producers wisely decided to keep things virtual, a bold but practical statement for the year’s biggest night in television, one that would help to prevent Eugene Levy contracting a deadly virus.

It’s not the first awards ceremony of the year that’s had to confront a post-Covid world but it is the biggest and will probably set a precedent as we head into the unknown of another season. Nominees will be at home with state-of-the-art equipment capturing their disappointment or glee while Jimmy Kimmel, by now a pro at working from home on camera thanks to his late-night show, will commandeer the proceedings.

Given how stale the Emmys can often feel (a lack of performances means it’s really just award after award after award), the unusual format could make it an interesting evening as could the nominees, rich with diversity and representing a fresher set of shows than usual. The smart money is on Watchmen, Succession and Schitt’s Creek cleaning up with Game of Thrones and Veep out of the picture although for once, we could be in for some surprises.

We’ll be here with every awkward moment, every shock win and every revealing insight into how celebrities live until the very bitter end. Stick with us!