The Emmys 2018: A Marriage Proposal & Hannah Gadsby Liven Up The Awards Night

The 70th Emmy Awards opened with a musical number claiming that Hollywood’s diversity problem has been solved. With Saturday Night Live’s Kate McKinnon and Kenan Thompson, and joined by Sterling K. Brown, Tituss Burgess, and Kristen Bell, the group launched into a song-and-dance number ‘We solved it’. Ricky Martin, RuPaul, John Legend and Andy Samberg – who wondered, “is there any room in this song for a straight white guy like me?” – too joined in.

Meanwhile, the opening monologue by the two hosts, Michael Che and Colin Jost, seemed like an extended episode of Saturday Night Live with jokes on predictable topics like representation, diversity, #MeToo movement and Roseanne. 

But the highlight of the evening was an impromptu performance by Glenn Weiss. Most of the world didn’t know who Weiss was until Monday night. On the night of the Emmy awards, he walked on to the stage to accept an award for Outstanding Directing for a Variety Special, and ended up saving the event which had, well, been sinking into dullness.

Weiss won the award for helming the 90th Academy Awards earlier this year. In his acceptance speech, he spoke about his mother who passed away a fortnight ago. “Part of my heart is broken, I don’t think it will ever be repaired, but she’s in me and she always will be,” he said, before addressing his girlfriend, Jan Svendsen, to whom he formally proposed marriage. “Mom always believed in finding the sunshine in things, and she adored my girlfriend Jan. Jan, you are the sunshine in my life, and mom was right, don’t ever let go of your sunshine. You wonder why I don’t like to call you my girlfriend — because I want to call you my wife.”

The audience, including the A-lister celebrities, gave the couple a standing ovation, celebrating the sublime human moment. The Twitterati described Weiss’ acceptance speech as one of the greatest speeches in the biggest event of Western television show-biz.

Another monologue that garnered a lot of applause and love was of Australian comedian Hannah Gadsby who arrived on the stage to present an award. She was present on the stage barely for 100 seconds which, instantly, led to an informal Twitter campaign calling for Gadsby to host the Emmys next year.

Gadsby, who is still riding on the success of her immensely popular Netflix stand-up special Nanette, quipped, “This nobody from nowhere gets this sweet gig, free suit and new boots… Just ’cause I don’t like men…. That’s joke, fellas. Calm down. Hashtag ‘not all men.’ But a lot of ‘em. Nobody knows what jokes are, but especially men. Am I right fellas? That’s why I’m presenting alone,” she said, in a veiled response to the critics of Nanette who had argued that Gadsby’s non-traditional style of self-deprecating and emotional story-telling isn’t ‘stand-up comedy’.

***

A horde of stars wore their politics on their sleeve to the Emmys red carpet. Westworld star Evan Rachel Wood wore a blue ribbon in support of the ACLU’s fight to reunite immigrant families separated at the border, and brought activist Amanda Nguyen as her date. Orphan Black star Tatiana Maslany wore a Planned Parenthood pin.

But the most striking appearance among these was of actor-singer-comedian Jennifer Lewis who appeared in a Nike t-shirt, as a gesture of gratitude towards the corporate giant for the support they extended to Colin Kaepernick, the American footballer who at 2016 NFL games, knelt down while the American national anthem was being played, in protest against racial injustices and police brutality against Black Americans. He has been out of a team for more than a year post the protest. Recently, Nike, one of the partners of NFL, signed a multi-year deal with Kaepernick that makes him the face of the 30th anniversary of Nike’s “Just Do It” campaign. The ad that features the footballer’s face, reads: “Believe in something. Even if it means sacrificing everything.”

“I am wearing Nike to applaud them for supporting Kaepernick and his protest against racial injustice and police brutality,” Lewis said. “What can I do? What can I do that’s meaningful? I’ll wear Nike. I’ll wear Nike to say thank you. Thank you for leading the resistance! We need more corporate America to stand up also.”

Emmy Awards 2018: The Complete Winners List

Recommended

Producer Aishwarya Jyothi Krishna Makes Singing Debut

Box Office Report: Anushka Sharma’s ‘Pari’ Earns Rs 4.36 Crores On Its Opening Day

SC Directs Latha Rajinikanth To Repay Loan Of Rs 6.20 Crore Borrowed For ‘Kochadaiiyaan’