By Sarah Carlson | TV | September 23, 2013 |
By Sarah Carlson | TV | September 23, 2013 |
During the 75 minutes I (and tons of others) tuned away from the 65th Emmy Awards on Sunday to watch the penultimate episode of the brilliant Breaking Bad, that series’ stars and award favorites Bryan Cranston and Aaron Paul both lost their categories (although Anna Gunn won and looked fabulous doing it — suck it, haters). We tuned back to the broadcast to see this:
Yes, that’s dancers dressed as meth cookers in a tribute to choreography. The segue was … jarring. (Vulture has the full video). The entire show was confusing, really. About 2/3 of the way through the show, host Neil Patrick Harris joked that everyone watching had already lost their office Emmy pools. Although the comment was a bit funnier when everyone made it on Twitter an hour earlier, it was accurate. This wasn’t just the year of upsets. This was the year of WTF-just-happened-sets. Some of the surprises were welcome, such as Stephen Colbert finally getting his due in the Variety categories. Others, well … That’s why the Emmys exist: For people to bitch about.
The choreography number referenced above, which featured impressive dancing and a good effort at making us not like Daft Punk’s “Get Lucky,” was one of two song and dance numbers inexplicably saved until the back half of the show. Because sure, when Neil Patrick Harris hosts, we all tune in to see an boring, unfunny opening number featuring TV clips that doesn’t feature song and dance. At least with “The Number in the Middle of the Show,” we (somewhat) got what we came for. We expected more from you, Harris.
The uneven show was packed with memorials to lost TV talent, all of which were beautiful but spread out, they routinely brought down a mood that was struggling to stay upbeat as it was, not to mention relevant. Right before Breaking Bad viewers changed channels, Elton John sang a tribute to Liberace. Later, Don Cheadle talked about the importance of the television coverage of John F. Kennedy’s assassination, which came not long before the Beatles arrived on our shores and TV sets and kept things a’changin’. Then Carrie Underwood butchered “Yesterday.” Yikes. “Well, this may be the saddest Emmys of all time, but we could not be happier,” Modern Family creator Steven Levitan said as he accepted the show’s Best Comedy award, proving that although the series lost most of the acting categories it had previously dominated, its Reign of Terror is not yet complete.
It was up to various award winners and presenters to try to save the show, and thankfully, some were up for it, notably: Tina Fey and Amy Poehler, heckling Harris during the opening; everything Kevin Spacey did; and Will Ferrell, dragging his kids on stage to stand by as he presented the final awards of the night (he couldn’t find a sitter).
Merritt Wever was one of the night’s surprises, taking home a statue for Supporting Actress in a Comedy for Nurse Jackie, and she gave one of the night’s better acceptance speeches:
This may have been an upset, but it was deserved: She is excellent in Nurse Jackie, a show that makes me believe the Emmys need Dramedy categories. I can’t find fault in her win, just as I can’t gripe too much about Bobby Cannavale beating Aaron Paul. The former was spectacular in Boardwalk Empire. (I wouldn’t have been upset to see him win for Nurse Jackie, either. Seriously, it’s a good show.) I can wonder how Jeff Daniels beat Bryan Cranston (or who I was pulling for, Jon Hamm). But remember this, Breaking Bad fans: The show still has next year to sweep the awards. It’ll look something like this:
And we can only hope that Tina and Amy will host. They wouldn’t have let any of this happen. They probably watched the excellent Top of the Lake, unlike the rest of the Emmy voters, apparently. Oh well.
Other highlights:
Julia Louis-Dreyfus accepting her Best Actress in a Comedy award for Veep mostly in character, with Tony Hale (her character’s bag man) holding her clutch and feeding her names of people to thank. Perfection, and his win for the same show was much-deserved as well.
This. Forever.
I think Lohan had the best night of any of us, though:
I just sped watched #emmys, now back to this 90210 marathon on soapnet. night!
— Lindsay Lohan (@lindsaylohan) September 23, 2013
The winners (in bold):
LEAD ACTOR IN A DRAMA SERIES:
Hugh Bonneville, Downton Abbey, PBS
Bryan Cranston, Breaking Bad, AMC
Jeff Daniels, The Newsroom, HBO
Jon Hamm, Mad Men, AMC
Damian Lewis, Homeland, Showtime
Kevin Spacey, House of Cards, Netflix
LEAD ACTRESS IN A DRAMA SERIES:
Connie Britton, Nashville, ABC
Claire Danes, Homeland, Showtime
Michelle Dockery, Downton Abbey, PBS
Vera Farmiga, Bates Motel, A&E
Elisabeth Moss, Mad Men, AMC
Kerry Washington, Scandal, ABC
Robin Wright, House of Cards, Netflix
COMEDY SERIES:
The Big Bang Theory, CBS
Girls, HBO
Louie, FX
Modern Family, ABC
30 Rock, NBC
Veep, HBO
LEAD ACTOR IN A COMEDY SERIES:
Jason Bateman, Arrested Development, Netflix
Louis C.K., Louie, FX
Don Cheadle, House of Lies, Showtime
Matt LeBlanc, Episodes, Showtime
Jim Parsons, Big Bang Theory, CBS
Alec Baldwin, 30 Rock, NBC
LEAD ACTRESS IN A COMEDY SERIES:
Lena Dunham, Girls, HBO
Laura Dern, Enlightened, HBO
Tiny Fey, 30 Rock, NBC
Amy Poehler, Parks and Recreation, NBC
Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Veep, HBO
Edie Falco, Nurse Jackie, Showtime
SUPPORTING ACTOR IN A COMEDY SERIES:
Adam Driver, Girls, HBO
Jesse Tyler Ferguson, Modern Family, ABC
Ed O’Neill, Modern Family, ABC
Ty Burrell, Modern Family, ABC
Bill Hader, Saturday Night Live, NBC
Tony Hale, Veep, HBO
SUPPORTING ACTRESS IN A COMEDY SERIES:
Mayim Bialik, The Big Bang Theory, CBS
Jane Lynch, Glee, Fox
Sofia Vergara, Modern Family, ABC
Julie Bowen, Modern Family, ABC
Merritt Wever, Nurse Jackie, Showtime
Jane Krakowski, 30 Rock, NBC
Anna Chlumsky, Veep, HBO
DRAMA SERIES:
Breaking Bad, AMC
Downton Abbey, PBS
Homeland, Showtime
Game of Thrones, HBO
House of Cards, Netflix
Mad Men, AMC
SUPPORTING ACTOR IN A DRAMA SERIES:
Bobby Cannavale, Boardwalk Empire, HBO
Jonathan Banks, Breaking Bad, AMC
Aaron Paul, Breaking Bad, AMC
Jim Carter, Downton Abbey, PBS
Peter Dinklage, Game of Thrones, HBO
Mandy Patinkin, Homeland, Showtime
SUPPORTING ACTRESS IN A DRAMA SERIES:
Anna Gunn, Breaking Bad, AMC
Maggie Smith, Downton Abbey, PBS
Emilia Clarke, Game of Thrones, HBO
Christine Baranski, The Good Wife, CBS
Morena Baccarin, Homeland, Showtime
Christina Hendricks, Mad Men, AMC
LEAD ACTOR IN A MINISERIES OR MOVIE:
Michael Douglas, Behind The Candelabra, HBO
Matt Damon, Behind The Candelabra, HBO
Toby Jones, The Girl, HBO
Benedict Cumberbatch, Parade’s End, HBO
Al Pacino, Phil Spector, HBO
LEAD ACTRESS IN A MINISERIES OR MOVIE:
Jessica Lange, American Horror Story, FX
Laura Linney, The Big C: Hereafter, Showtime
Helen Mirren, Phil Spector, HBO
Sigourney Weaver, Political Animals, USA
Elisabeth Moss, Top of the Lake, Sundance Channel
MINISERIES OR MOVIE:
American Horror Story: Asylum, FX
Behind the Candelabra, HBO
Phil Spector, HBO
Political Animals, USA
The Bible, History
Top of the Lake, Sundance Channel
VARIETY SERIES:
The Colbert Report, Comedy Central
The Daily Show With Jon Stewart, Comedy Central
Jimmy Kimmel Live, ABC
Late Night With Jimmy Fallon, NBC
Real Time With Bill Maher, HBO
Saturday Night Live, NBC
WRITING FOR A VARIETY SERIES:
The Colbert Report, Comedy Central
The Daily Show With Jon Stewart, Comedy Central
Jimmy Kimmel Live, ABC
Portlandia, IFC
Real Time With Bill Maher, HBO
Saturday Night Live, NBC
WRITING FOR A DRAMA SERIES:
Breaking Bad (“Dead Freight”), AMC
Breaking Bad (“Say My Name”), AMC
Downton Abbey (“Episode 4”), PBS
Game of Thrones (“The Rains of Castamere”), HBO
Homeland (“Q&A”), Showtime
DIRECTING FOR A DRAMA SERIES:
Tim Van Patten, Boardwalk Empire, “Margate Sands”
Michelle MacLaren, Breaking Bad, “Gliding Over All”
Jeremy Webb, Downton Abbey, “Episode 4”
Lesli Linka Glatter, Homeland, “Q&A”
David Fincher, House Of Cards, “Chapter 1”
WRITING FOR COMEDY SERIES:
David Crane and Jeffrey Klarik, Episodes, “Episode 209”
Louis C.K. and Pamela Adlon, Louie, “Daddy’s Girlfriend (Part 1)”
Greg Daniels, The Office, “Finale”
Jack Burditt and Robert Carlock, 30 Rock, “Hogcock!”
Tina Fey and Tracey Wigfield, 30 Rock, “Last Lunch”
DIRECTING FOR COMEDY SERIES:
Lena Dunham, Girls, “On All Fours”
Paris Barclay, Glee, “Diva”
Louis C.K., Louie, “New Year’s Eve”
Gail Mancuso, Modern Family, “Arrested”
Beth McCarthy-Miller, 30 Rock, “Hogcock! / Last Lunch”
GUEST ACTRESS IN A COMEDY SERIES
Molly Shannon, Enlightened
Dot-Marie Jones, Glee
Melissa Leo, Louie
Melissa McCarthy, Saturday Night Live
Kristen Wiig, Saturday Night Live
Elaine Stritch, 30 Rock
GUEST ACTOR IN A COMEDY SERIES
Bob Newhart, The Big Bang Theory
Nathan Lane, Modern Family
Bobby Cannavale, Nurse Jackie
Louis C.K., Saturday Night Live
Justin Timberlake, Saturday Night Live
Will Forte, 30 Rock
DIRECTING FOR A MINISERIES, MOVIE, OR DRAMATIC SPECIAL
Steven Soderbergh, Behind The Candelbra
Julian Jarrold, The Girl
David Mamet, Phil Spector
Allison Anders, Ring of Fire
Jane Campion and Garth Davis, Top of the Lake
SUPPORTING ACTOR IN MINISERIES OR MOVIE:
James Cromwell, American Horror Story: Asylum, FX
Zachary Quinto, American Horror Story: Asylum, FX
Scott Bakula, Behind The Candelabra, HBO
John Benjamin Hickey, The Big C: Hereafter, Showtime
Peter Mullan, Top of the Lake, Sundance Channel
SUPPORTING ACTRESS IN MINISERIES OR MOVIE:
Sarah Paulson, American Horror Story: Asylum, FX
Imelda Staunton, The Girl, HBO
Charlotte Rampling, Restless, Sundance Channel
Ellen Burstyn, Political Animals, USA
Alfre Woodard, Steel Magnolias, Lifetime
REALITY COMPETITION PROGRAM
The Amazing Race
Dancing With the Stars
Project Runway
So You Think You Can Dance
Top Chef
The Voice
OUTSTANDING CHOREOGRAPHY
Derek Hough and Allison Holker, Dancing With the Stars
Derek Hough, Dancing With the Stars
Warren Carlyle, Rodgers & Hammerstein’s Carousel (Live From Lincoln Center)
Mandy Jo Moore, So You Think You Can Dance
Napoleon and Tabitha, So You Think You Can Dance
Travis Wall, So You Think You Can Dance
Sonya Tayeh, So You Think You Can Dance