Hulu's 'The Handmaid's Tale' Emmy Win Validates Online Streaming as a Hollywood Equal

Hulu had a banner night at the Primetime Emmy Awards on Sunday, spearheaded by “The Handmaid’s Tale” being the first show produced by a streaming service to take home the award for Outstanding Drama Series.

It’s a distinction that validates online streaming as an equal competitor to traditional TV, according to BTIG media and tech analyst Rich Greenfield.

“What’s critical, whether you live on broadcast TV, cable TV, paid TV or the internet, is you can win the same awards and accolades,” Greenfield told TheWrap. “Your ability to be famous is not impaired by working on the internet.”

Also Read: Hulu Boss Predicts 'A Good Day in Terms of Subscribers' After 'Handmaid's Tale' Emmy Win

While it’s an obvious high-water mark for Hulu, the success of “The Handmaid’s Tale” raises the profile of its streaming competitors as well. Netflix, Hulu and Amazon combined for 123 nominations this year — a healthy jump from the 72 noms the three services had last year. (That goes without adding HBO to the mix, which has adjusted to the new landscape as well as any network and lead the way with 111 nominations this year.) Spend five minutes driving around Los Angeles, and you’re inundated with billboards from Netflix, Hulu and Amazon trumpeting their Emmy footprint.

The nominations are critical, according to Greenfield, since they underline the prevalence of streaming in 2017. Beyond attracting new subscribers, this is vital towards reeling in talent. Stars and strong programming, rather than award show wins, is the ultimate recipe for driving streaming subscriptions.

“I don’t think it’s just awards. The nominations and awards help illustrate to talent that you can receive the same, if not greater, recognition on the new platforms as the old platforms,” said Greenfield. “I think [nominations] are important from that standpoint; I don’t think the award in and of itself is why someone is or subscribing or not subscribing to these services.”

Also Read: Hulu Users Lead the Way as Cord-Cutting Accelerates, Study Shows

Of course, the prestige of winning the Emmy’s top prize doesn’t hurt, either. Craig Erwich, Hulu’s head of original content, told TheWrap “Handmaid’s” can help attract new eyeballs to its other shows.

“We really do think about each of these shows as, hopefully, like — this might be an unfortunate term — a gateway drug to the rest of Hulu,” he said. “The real goal is that they come in to watch ‘Handmaid’s’ and then discover a lot of other shows.”

With “The Handmaid’s Tale’s” victory, Hulu — and its rivals — has another feather in its cap when looking to court Hollywood stars. The subscribers will flow from there, and streaming will continue its eclipse of traditional TV.

How Streaming Networks Invaded the Emmys: From 'House of Cards' to 'Handmaid's Tale' (Photos)

The streaming services are taking over the Emmys. Four years after "House of Cards" opened up the major categories to online content providers with three wins, Netflix, Hulu and Amazon have hit an all-time high with a combined total of 126 nominations. But how did we get here?
"House of Cards"
The political thriller became the first streaming-only original series to get nominated in major Emmy categories in 2013. It won three that year, including Outstanding Directing in a Drama Series and Outstanding Casting. The show has been nominated for 53 Emmys in total, six of which turned into major category wins.
Netflix
"Orange is the New Black"
Netflix seemed to be on a critical roll after "Orange is the New Black" debuted in 2014. It was nominated for 12 awards, including five in acting categories. Uzo Aduba, who plays Suzanne Warren, won for Guest Actress in a Comedy Series. She won a second time in 2015.
Netflix
"The Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt"
The Tina Fey-produced comedy was called the "first great sitcom of the streaming era" and the Emmy voters seem to agree. Since premiering in 2015, the show has garnered 16 nominations.
Netflix
"Transparent"
"Transparent" was -- and still is -- Amazon Prime's flagship show. In 2015, following its debut season, it won an unprecedented five Emmy awards, including Outstanding Directing in a Comedy Series for Jill Soloway and Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy for Jeffrey Tambor. The show has been a continuous staple at the Emmys since.
"Grace and Frankie"
2015 was a big year for streaming services at the Emmys. "Grace and Frankie" was yet another Netflix series that earned nominations in major categories. The show has continued to be a consistent presence at the awards ever since -- specifically in acting categories.
Netflix
"Jessica Jones"
The Marvel Netflix show became the first of the Defenders universe to get an Emmy win, for Outstanding Original Main Title Theme Music.
Netflix/Marvel
"Master of None"
The big addition at the 2016 Emmys was the Aziz Ansari-led comedy "Master of None." The Netflix series earned Ansari nominations for acting, writing and directing -- and a win for writing with his colleague Alan Yang. He'll get another shot in 2017 with more nominations in the same categories, including Outstanding Comedy Series.
TheWrap
"Stranger Things"
2017 is a huge year for Netflix, with 91 nominations for the streaming giant overall. And sleeper hit "Stranger Things,"created by relative newcomers Matt and Ross Duffer, earned a staggering 18 of them, including Outstanding Drama Series. For a genre show released with little marketing, this is quite a feat.
Netflix
"The Crown"
The hugely popular (and acclaimed) period drama about the life of Queen Elizabeth II earned Netflix five Emmy nominations this year.
Netflix
"Handmaid's Tale"
In 2017, Hulu established itself as a serious original programming contender with this adaptation of Margaret Atwood's seminal novel. The highly acclaimed series not only became arguably the defining political commentary of the early Trump-Era, it also went on to make history for Hulu with 13 nominations.
Hulu
"The Beatles: Eight Days a Week"
Hulu didn't stop with "The Handmaid's Tale." This documentary about the Beatles earned five nominations.
Getty Images
"Black Mirror"
The anthology series didn't qualify for the main Emmys until the third season arrived on Netflix. It got three nominations in 2017, including two for the episode "San Junipero" -- which was nominated for Outstanding Television Movie, despite being a part of an anthology.
Netflix

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Netflix, Hulu and Amazon have a combined 126 nominations this year

The streaming services are taking over the Emmys. Four years after "House of Cards" opened up the major categories to online content providers with three wins, Netflix, Hulu and Amazon have hit an all-time high with a combined total of 126 nominations. But how did we get here?

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How Streaming Networks Invaded the Emmys: From 'House of Cards' to 'Handmaid's Tale' (Photos)

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