With the 2021 Emmy Awards wrapped up, here are some of the highs and lows of this year’s awards show.
Worst: Rita Wilson (and more) lip-sync rap in Biz Markie tribute opener The tribute to Biz Markie was a good idea. Whatever this was…. was not.
Best: Brett Goldstein channels his “Ted Lasso” character Roy Kent in accepting his award for playing Roy Kent Goldstein, who won for Outstanding Supporting in a Comedy with a short speech that included two f-bombs. So… the best kind of award speech.
Worst: “Outside” Emmys not really outside Because of the still-ongoing pandemic and the spread of the Delta variant, the Emmys were held “outside.” We put that in quotes because though a hermetically sealed tent is technically outside, it’s not much different than inside a giant theater.
Worst: Stephen Colbert Reminds Us About the California Recall Election Well we almost had a politics-free night, but Colbert had to remind us of the blink-and-you-missed it California Governor recall election that was over in less time than an episode of “Late Show.”
Best: Michael K. Williams and Norm MacDonald get well-deserved shout outs Kerry Washington made sure to mention Williams, who was nominated for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama, got his proper due, while “Last Week Tonight” host John Oliver paid tribute to MacDonald while accepting his award for Outstanding Variety Talk Series.
Worst: “All Flies Matter” The Emmys go 0-2 with political jokes, including this cringe-worthy “All Flies Matter” bit that for some reason thought we needed a reminder of the 2020 Election.
Best: Schitt’s Creek cast ruined by teleprompter sabotage Eugene Levy should have known what would have happened when he told a bunch of a comedy writers to “tighten up” his words.
Worst: Emmys So White? RuPaul Charles got his well-deserved 11th Emmy, becoming the winningest Black artist in Emmy history. Unfortunately, outside of Michaela Coel (who won for Writing in a Limited Series) that was about it in terms of diversity on Sunday night.
Best: In memoriam closes with poignant Michael K. Williams quote We bet there wasn’t a dry eye in the house after the Emmys ended the annual segment with a fitting tribute to Williams, who tragically died earlier this month.
