Quinta Brunson and actors from ‘The Bear’ snag wins at long-delayed Emmys

 Quinta Brunson and actors from ‘The Bear’ snag wins at long-delayed Emmys
Anthony Anderson appears onstage during a press preview day for the 75th Primetime Emmy Awards...

At Monday night's Emmys, "The Bear" swept the acting categories, while Quinta Brunson won an emotional and historic prize for "Abbott Elementary" and the Netflix series "Beef" made its own mark with five wins.

The FX dramedy "The Bear," about a bickering family and a faltering restaurant at the heart of a skilled chef's life, earned best actor in a comedy for Jeremy Allen White, best supporting actress in a comedy for Ayo Edebiri, and best supporting actor in a comedy for Ebon-Moss Bachrach. They were all first-time nominees.

"This is a show about family, found family, and real family," Edebiri remarked from the stage as she won the first award of the 75th Primetime Emmy Awards at Los Angeles' Peacock Theatre.

Brunson received the Emmy Award for outstanding actress in a comedy for the show she developed, "Abbott Elementary," being the first Black woman to do so in more than 40 years and the first from a network show in more than a decade.

"I love making 'Abbott Elementary,' and I am so happy to be able to live my dream and act out comedy," Brunson said through tears during her acceptance speech on Fox. The writer-actor was one of the talents who stood out on the Emmys red carpet.

"Beef" won best limited series, and Steven Yeun and Ali Wong became the first Asian Americans to win in their respective categories, with Yeun winning best actor in a limited series and Wong winning best actress. Lee Sung, the show's creator, won Emmys for writing and directing. It had eight Emmys total after three victories at the Creative Arts Emmy Awards last weekend.

Other winners included Matthew Macfadyen and Jennifer Coolidge for "Succession" and "The White Lotus."

Brunson previously won an Emmy for writing for "Abbott Elementary," a mockumentary about a largely Black and chronically underfunded Philadelphia elementary school, but this is her first for acting. In 1981, Isabel Sanford of "The Jeffersons" was the only Black woman to win the category.

Brunson, Edebiri, and Niecy Nash-Betts received significant honours during the first hour of the show on Martin Luther King Jr. Day: best supporting actress in a limited series for "Dahmer - Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story," and best supporting actress in a limited series for "Dahmer - Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story."

Nash-Betts portrayed a serial killer's neighbour whose reports to authorities about his behaviour were ignored.

"I accept this award on behalf of every Black and brown woman who has gone unheard and over-policed," she went on to say.

The show was staged on a holiday due to a four-month delay caused by the writers and performers strikes in Hollywood.

"Is everyone having a good time tonight at the chocolate Emmys?" host Anthony Anderson asked throughout the evening. "We're crushing it tonight!" ... It's like MLK Day and Juneteenth rolled into one!"

Anderson, who has been nominated for lead actor in a comedy seven times without winning for his sitcom "black-ish," continued, "If I was nominated this year, hell, I would have definitely won!"

The altered awards calendar resulted in certain anomalies. Eight days after winning Golden Globes for the second season, Edebiri and White won an Emmy for the show's first season.

Backstage, an Emmys official approached White as he scrolled through congratulatory texts on his phone while waiting to speak in the press room. "I'm a cook myself, so this means a lot to me," he explained before posing for a photo with White.

Macfadyen got the first Emmy of the night for "Succession" and the second of his career for his performance as Tom Wambsgans, the son-in-law who began the HBO series as a hanger-on and concluded it as the closest thing to a victor.

"Succession" was the unanimous favourite in the major drama categories, including best actor, best actress, and best series, which were to be awarded later in the evening. Following Macfadyen's victory, it received Emmy nominations for writing and directing.

Coolidge, the only cast member of HBO's "The White Lotus" cursed vacationers to return for season two, received her second Emmy for best supporting actress in a drama.

Coolidge and her character Tanya garnered an even larger cult following for the second season's Italian storyline than she did for the first season's Hawaiian storyline. This time, the character was nearly a lead, but all of the "White Lotus" cast members were nominated in supporting categories, including five in Coolidge's.

Christina Applegate, who disclosed in 2021 that she was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis, had a standing ovation when she came out using a cane to give the award and was tearful as she presented the winners.

"The Bear" also received honours for comedy directing and writing, bringing its total to nine awards, including four at the Creative Arts Emmys.

At the start of the night, Anderson told the nominees that instead of having their comments cut short by music, his mother, actor Doris Hancox, who was seated in the audience, would tell them when it was time to move on. In the running gag, she, on the other hand, frequently yelled at her kid.

At one point, he yelled back at her, "I'm the host!"

The theme of the 75th Emmy Awards was "Honouring TV History." Anderson opened the event on a "Mr. Rogers" stage, performing TV theme tunes such as "Good Times," and several cast reunions took place throughout the show.

Before presenting awards, cast members from "Martin," "Cheers," and "All in the Family," including Martin Lawrence and Tisha Campbell from "Martin," Ted Danson and Rhea Perlman from "Cheers," and Rob Reiner and Sally Struthers from "All in the Family," did brief skits from recreations of respective comedy sets.

Arsenio Hall returned to the set of his 1990s talk show, while Tina Fey and Amy Poehler reunited to present an award in the guise of "Weekend Update," which they co-hosted on "Saturday Night Live" from 2001 to 2005.

"We've reached the stage in life where we'll only present awards sitting down," she stated.

Katherine Heigl joined Ellen Pompeo and other former "Grey's Anatomy" cast members on a hospital room set after departing the programme, which is now in its 20th season, on less than favourable terms in 2010.

"Yes, there have been changes over the years," Heigl joked, "but the one constant is the amazing fanbase."