2023 Emmys: Succession runs the show as The Bear and Beef also win big
Los Angeles, California - The final season of Succession dominated the 2023 Emmy Awards on Monday, scooping six prizes – including best drama – at a nostalgic gala that was delayed by four months due to Hollywood strikes.
The HBO show about the back-stabbing dynastic battles of the powerful Roy family won awards for stars Kieran Culkin, Sarah Snook, and Matthew Macfadyen, while The Bear topped the comedy awards and Beef led in the limited series section.
"This is a show about family, but it's also about when... partisan news coverage gets intertwined with divisive right-wing politics," Succession creator Jesse Armstrong said.
"After four seasons of satire, as I understand it, that's a problem we have now fixed," he joked, on the night that Donald Trump won the Iowa Republican caucuses.
Accepting their best actress and actor prizes, both Snook – who was pregnant during the show's final season – and Culkin paid tribute to their babies, with Culkin joking to his wife, "I want more... you said maybe, if I win!"
Succession, which had already won best drama series twice previously, had entered the night as a heavy favorite with a whopping 27 nominations, including a record three of the six nominees for best actor. It also won for best writing and directing.
Emmys honor the classics
Jennifer Coolidge, the sole returning star for the Sicily-set second season of satire The White Lotus, won for best supporting actress in a drama series.
Coolidge thanked "all the evil gays," in a nod to her character's memorable storyline in which she befriended a flamboyant, yacht-owning group of men with sinister intentions.
Celebrating its 75th year, the Emmys featured multiple skits paying homage to beloved classic shows on elaborate sets.
Stars like Kelsey Grammar and Ted Danson appeared on a set emulating the beloved famous Boston bar from Cheers, while The Sopranos actors Lorraine Bracco and Michael Imperioli presented an award from the mob drama's psychiatrist office.
Other shows getting nostalgic reunions included Grey's Anatomy and Ally McBeal.
Beef sweeps limited series category
Netflix's Beef dominated the limited series categories, for shows that run only a single season, with five prizes including best limited series, writing, and directing.
Its stars Ali Wong and Steven Yeun took lead acting prizes, playing road-rage drivers locked in a rapidly escalating feud.
Dahmer – Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story co-star Niecy Nash-Betts won best supporting actress, while Paul Walter Hauser won for best supporting actor for Black Bird another dark true crime series.
Last Week Tonight with John Oliver won best scripted variety series, and variety series writing.
The annual In Memoriam section honored TV stars who died in the past year including Angela Lansbury, Richard Roundtree, Harry Belafonte, Euphoria actor Angus Cloud, and Friends star Matthew Perry.
The Emmys typically take place in September, but organizers opted for a January slot, correctly gambling that the entertainment industry strikes would be over, and that actors would be free to attend.
Cover photo: FRAZER HARRISON / GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA / GETTY IMAGES VIA AFP