The Emmy Awards are a prestigious event to celebrate the achievements and work of the television industry. This year, the awards were held differently than they usually are with a mostly virtual event due to the Covid-19 pandemic. They were held in the Staples Center on Sunday, September 20th, and were hosted by Jimmy Kimmel. 

Jimmy Kimmel started the Emmys with a comedic monologue mostly about Covid-19, social distancing, the nominees, and Schitt’s Creek. At first, the camera panned out to show a full audience of people at the Staples Center, but at the end of the monologue, Kimmel revealed that there is no one in the audience. Instead of people in the seats, they replaced the nominees with cardboard cutouts of themselves. The only people allowed in the building were the announcers and the host. The nominees were usually at home with their family or gathered with the crew that worked together on the nominated TV show, and they were filmed at home when they were announced for the category that they were nominated for.

Schitt’s Creek, Watchmen, and Succession were all big winners at the Emmys. Schitt’s Creek, a TV show that focuses on a wealthy family who lost all their money and is forced to rebuild their lives in a small town, won the most awards. They won in major categories, such as Best Comedy and Best Supporting Actress in a Comedy. Watchmen, a series based on a 1985 superhero comic, had the most nominations. It also won many significant categories like Best Limited Series and Best Actress in a Limited Series. Additionally, Succession, a show about a family and their media empire, took home many notable awards like Best Drama and Best Actor in a Drama.

Zendaya, at age 24, made history by being the youngest actress to ever win an Emmy for Best Actress in the Drama category. She played Rue, a drug-addicted teen, in Euphoria, a TV show about teenagers dealing with an array of different issues. Zendaya was up against many renowned actresses, such as Olivia Coleman, an Oscar winner, and Sandra Oh, a Golden-Globe winner, which made her win even more spectacular. When she won her award, she was surrounded by her family and was overcome with joy. A large number of Yorba Linda High School students watch Euphoria, and many of them are big fans of Zendaya. Karina Shah (11) says that she has been “watching Zendaya since she was on Disney Channel and was very excited when she won her Emmy.”

Tyler Perry, who owns the first major film studio owned by an African-American, was awarded the Governor’s Award. During his acceptance, he tells a story about a quilt he received from his grandmother and African-American experiences in America. When he first received the quilt, he disregarded it. He was later embarrassed when he found out that this quilt was made from a slave, and the patches represented significant parts of that slave’s life. He continued talking about different “patches” of his life as an African-American and how happy he is that people of every race, sexual orientation, and gender are “adding patches to a quilt that is as diverse as it can be.”

There were a few moments that were quite awkward to watch because of the lack of an audience during the awards. Most of those moments were jokes, and one of those moments was an exchange between Jimmy Kimmel and Jennifer Aniston. Before Aniston announced the nominees for Best Lead Actress in a Comedy Series, she and Kimmel exchanged banter about social distancing and set the winning envelope on fire. Many people found this moment awkward, and it is regarded to be one of the most awkward moments of the 2020 Emmys (cosmopolitan.com). This moment was made worse by the fact that there was no audience laughing at their jokes. 

Overall, the 72nd Emmys was a success, the producers and hosts were able to adapt to these unusual times and entertain all of their viewers. Yorba Linda High School students watch many of these shows, and they were excited to watch these TV shows, actors, and actresses get awarded for their work. Hopefully, this year’s Emmys will be a model for upcoming award shows to follow, so they can keep their audience, crew, nominees, and winners safe from Covid-19.