The delayed 2023 Emmy Awards, postponed due to strikes by writers and actors, saw major wins for Succession, Beef and The Bear, with historic achievements for actors of colour.
Succession won six awards, including best drama series. Creator Jesse Armstrong thanked HBO for believing in the show, noting it was about family and partisan news coverage. Sarah Snook, winning best lead actress, dedicated her award to her child, joking that pregnancy hormones helped her acting. Matthew Macfadyen, winning supporting actor, praised his on-screen wife Snook and Nicholas Braun.
The Bear also won six awards, including best comedy series and lead actor for Jeremy Allen White. Ayo Edebiri and Ebon Moss-Bachrach won supporting awards. With Edebiri's win and Quinta Brunson's lead actress win for Abbott Elementary, it marked the first time Black women won both comedy acting Emmys in the same year.
Beef dominated limited series categories with five wins, including lead acting awards for Steven Yeun and Ali Wong, who became the first woman of Asian descent to win a lead acting Emmy. Creator Lee Sung Jin thanked the cast for contributing personal stories of suicidal ideation, a major theme of the show.
Jennifer Coolidge won best supporting actress in a drama for The White Lotus, her second Emmy for the role. Niecy Nash-Betts won for supporting actress in a limited series for Dahmer, dedicating the award to Black and brown women. RuPaul, winning for competition program, urged listening to drag queens. Glaad received a governors award for LGBTQ+ advocacy.
Other winners included Paul Walter Hauser for Black Bird, Last Week Tonight With John Oliver for variety series, and Elton John's farewell concert for variety special, granting him Egot status. John, unable to attend due to a knee injury, expressed humility in joining the Egot winners.
