LOS ANGELES — Actors from Succession, Ted Lasso and other television shows walked a shiny silver carpet on Monday as Hollywood stars convened four months later than usual for the annual primetime Emmy awards.
The top TV honors were postponed from September because of labour disputes last year. That meant some shows in the running aired as far back as June 2022.
Heading into the ceremony, HBO's media dynasty drama Succession led all nominees with 27 nods for its fourth and final season, the one that resolved the long-running question of who would win the battle to control a global business empire.
Hosted by comedian Anthony Anderson, the awards gala will be broadcast live on the Fox television network starting at 8pm Eastern time (9am GMT+8).
Outside the Peacock Theater in downtown Los Angeles, stars including Brian Cox and Matthew Macfadyen from Succession and Hannah Waddingham from Ted Lasso arrived in tuxedos and floor-length gowns, with classic black and white dominating many outfits. The carpet was silver instead of the traditional red.
Succession was considered the favourite to win the top award of best drama series, an honour it has won twice.
"There's been a lot of light on our show," said Alan Ruck, who played Connor Roy. "It's thrilling. I'm enjoying it."
Comedy series was more of a toss-up, said pundits, who were divided between Ted Lasso, the Apple TV+ show about a spirited British football club, and restaurant dramedy "The Bear" from Walt Disney's FX.
Lasso finished its third season last year, and producers have not said whether the show will continue. Phil Dunster, who played star forward Jamie Tartt, said he was unsure. "If it is a last hurrah, it's been a really wonderful last hurrah," Dunster said.
Nearly two-thirds of the Emmy-nominated shows came from streaming platforms, their highest share ever, according to data from Nielsen's Gracenote.
Succession stars Kieran Culkin and Sarah Snook were among the actors vying for trophies, as well as The Bear duo of Jeremy Allen White and Ayo Edebiri, and Pedro Pascal and Bella Ramsey from The Last of Us.
Organizers planned to use this year's milestone — the 75th Emmys — to honour classic television shows with cast reunions and other moments. Cheers, Game of Thrones, The Sopranos, and All in the Family are among the shows that will be celebrated. Two actresses who have not been revealed will play Lucy and Ethel to commemorate I Love Lucy.
The awards ceremony was moved to Monday, which coincides with the Martin Luther King Jr. holiday in the United States as well as the Iowa caucuses, the kickoff to the US presidential election.
Anderson, who previously starred on the show Black-ish, said the broadcast was being run by an all African-American production team and emcee for the first time.
"I'm excited to be part of that, making history in front of and behind the camera on such a special day," Anderson said ahead of the event.