
Emmys 2018: Game of Thrones takes out top gong
GAME of Thrones has taken out the top gong at the Emmy Awards.
The popular fantasy series, which recently finished filming its eighth and final season, led this year's nominations but only managed to convert two: Best Drama and Best Support Actor in a Drama (Peter Dinklage).
Peter Dinklage on the 'very sad' final day of shooting #GameOfThrones https://t.co/mf6GUyp3GQ
— Variety (@Variety) September 18, 2018
The 70th Emmy Awards turned out to be an eventful evening with an actor in bizarre disguise, clean sweeps in the comedy series and an acceptance speech that turned into "the best moment in Emmys history".
Saturday Night Live comedians Colin Jost and Michael Che were on hosting duties - but they didn't open the show.
That was left to an appropriately diverse cast including Kate McKinnon, Ricky Martin, Titus Burgess and RuPaul, who surprised by opening the show with a skit and song about diversity, claiming to have 'solved' Hollywood's diversity problem, before finally conceding they had a long way to go.
Hollywood veteran actor Henry Winkler was an early winner, taking out the Emmy Award for Best Supporting Actor in a Comedy for his role in Barry.
Winkler, aka The Fonz from Happy Days, told the audience: "If you stay at the table long enough, the chips come to you. Tonight, I got to clear the table," as he got a standing ovation.

To his children, he said: "You can go to bed now, daddy won!"
Amazon's The Marvelous Mrs Maisel swept the rest of the comedy categories
The best and worst dressed at the Emmy Awards
The biggest snub of the night was The Handmaid's Tale, which failed to win any awards. Star Elisabeth Moss had been a favourite to win Lead Actress in a Drama Series, but she lost out to The Crown's Claire Foy.
HANNAH STEALS THE SHOW
Australian comedian Hannah Gadsby, still riding a wave of adulation for her Netflix stand-up special Nanette, presented the award for Directing for a Drama Series - but got in a few well-received jokes beforehand.
Pardon my ignorance, I don’t know who this is. A comedian? She’s hilarious 😂😂😂😂😂#Emmys pic.twitter.com/obtCymZie2
— 𝐻𝑒𝓇𝑀𝓊𝓈𝒾𝓃𝑔𝓈 💬 (@flutterpolitely) September 18, 2018
She said presenting was a good gig "for somebody like me, a nobody from nowhere: gets this sweet gig, free suit and new boots…. just because I don't like men!"
"Just jokes, 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.
After she announced The Crown director Stephen Daldry as the winner, she noted that he was not actually present.
"Stephen could not be here tonight to accept the Emmy on… his own behalf. SO I think I just leave now, and that's… well done him," she said, shrugging as she backed off the stage.
She was on stage for a grand total of less than 100 seconds, but Gadsby certainly made an impression - and gained a lot of new fans:
I don’t know who Hannah Gadsby is, but can she host next year? #Emmys
— Korynn (@Korynn_W) September 18, 2018
Er, #Emmys — y'all should have had Hannah Gadsby host. Those 2 mins were the funniest/timeliest of the entire show.
— Nigel M. Smith (@nigelmfs) September 18, 2018
A SURPRISE PROPOSAL
You'd be forgiven for tuning out a bit when Glenn Weiss took to the stage to accept the award for Directing a Variety Special - surely this won't be exciting, right?
Wrong. Weiss reeled off a list of thank yous before moving on to his partner, seated in the audience. "You wonder why I don't ever call you my girlfriend - it's because I want to call you my wife."
BOOM. There it is: A marriage proposal live on TV and front of a worldwide audience, and one that Weiss' girlfriend clearly wasn't prepared for:
Did someone say #EMMYS PROPOSAL? pic.twitter.com/z2epNdkaWz
— Entertainment Weekly (@EW) September 18, 2018
And Glenn came prepared. He produced his late mother's ring, asking his girlfriend to join him on stage.
She took to the stage - amid a standing ovation from the stunned A-list crowd - to stand in front of Glenn as he knelt before her, properly proposing.
It's a yes! And sure, he totally hijacked the award show for his own benefits, but in this often dark and depressing world, wasn't it just a little bit magic?
COLIN AND MICHAEL'S BEST OPENING MONOLOGUE JOKES

"This year the audience is allowed to drink in their seats - because the one thing Hollywood needs right now is people losing their inhibitions at a work function."
The pair said hello to the "thousands in the audience, and the hundreds watching at home."
"Our network, NBC, has the most nominations of any broadcast network - which is kind of like being the sexiest person on life support. It's not good."
They said the swath of Netfix nominations is the scariest thing you can hear as a network exec - except, 'Sir, Ronan Farrow is on line one'."
The Handmaid's Tale is "what black people call history. It's Roots for white women. Roots with bonnets!"
On Netflix's reputation for churning out productions: "How is Netflix getting all that money? It's $9 a month and everyone I know shares an account. Netflix is like that Instagram model that's always in Dubai and you're like, yeah - but what do you REALLY do?"
"TV has always had a diversity problem. They did 15 seasons of ER without ONE Filipino nurse? Have you BEEN to a hospital?"
A CREEPY DISGUISE
There's been speculation about whether Atlanta star and director Donald Glover - aka Childish Gambino, of This Is America fame - turned up to the awards in a super-creepy 'whiteface' disguise.
Here's the rather odd-looking man in question:

The reason for the conjecture? That creepy looking white dude is 'Teddy Perkins', a character from Atlanta who Glover plays. The context behind the character is that Teddy Perkins is a Michael Jackson-type fallen idol, so it's not whiteface per se.
Wait is that Teddy Perkins on the front row?!!! #emmys #AtlantaFX #DonaldGlover pic.twitter.com/JTzbTqKWdK
— Kim Jordan (@ldykj) September 18, 2018
But wait: Glover's also in the audience, looking dapper as hell. So who's the creepy Teddy Perkins dude? Fans are speculating it could be fellow African-American Atlanta actor Lakeith Stanfield.
Yo — Donald Glover has me shook 🤯#Emmys pic.twitter.com/aZGApxYWKP
— Timōthy (@thehalfrican06) September 18, 2018
Here is the full list of 2018 Emmys winners:
DRAMA SERIES
The Americans
The Crown
Game of Thrones - WINNER
The Handmaid's Tale
Stranger Things
This Is Us
Westworld

COMEDY SERIES
Atlanta
Barry
Black-ish
Curb Your Enthusiasm
GLOW
The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel - WINNER
Silicon Valley
Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt

LEAD ACTOR, DRAMA
Jason Bateman, Ozark
Sterling K. Brown, This Is Us
Ed Harris, Westworld
Matthew Rhys, The Americans - WINNER
Milo Ventimiglia, This Is Us
Jeffrey Wright, Westworld

LEAD ACTRESS, DRAMA
Claire Foy, The Crown - WINNER
Tatiana Maslany, Orphan Black
Elisabeth Moss, The Handmaid's Tale
Sandra Oh, Killing Eve
Keri Russell, The Americans
Evan Rachel Wood, Westworld
LEAD ACTOR, COMEDY
Anthony Anderson, Black-ish
Ted Danson, The Good Place
Larry David, Curb Your Enthusiasm
Donald Glover, Atlanta
Bill Hader, Barry - WINNER
William H. Macy, Shameless
The winner for Outstanding #LeadActor in a #ComedySeries is #BillHader for #Barry! #IMDbLive #Emmys https://t.co/RR1S4yt3lb pic.twitter.com/dbVQSBrHx8
— IMDb (@IMDb) September 18, 2018
LEAD ACTRESS, COMEDY
Pamela Adlon, Better Things
Rachel Brosnahan, The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel - WINNER
Allison Janney, Mom
Issa Rae, Insecure
Tracee Ellis Ross, Black-ish
Lily Tomlin, Grace and Frankie
Rachel Brosnahan uses her acceptance speech to urge people to vote: "One of the most important ways to find and use your voice is to vote." #Emmys (via THR) pic.twitter.com/xFbHoLZQrO
— Kyle Griffin (@kylegriffin1) September 18, 2018
SUPPORTING ACTOR, DRAMA
Nikolaj Coster-Waldau, Game of Thrones
Peter Dinklage, Game of Thrones - WINNER
Joseph Fiennes, The Handmaid's Tale
David Harbour, Stranger Things
Mandy Patinkin, Homeland
Matt Smith, The Crown

SUPPORTING ACTRESS, DRAMA
Alexis Bledel, The Handmaid's Tale
Millie Bobby Brown, Stranger Things
Ann Dowd, The Handmaid's Tale
Lena Headey, Game of Thrones
Vanessa Kirby, The Crown
Thandie Newton, Westworld - WINNER
Yvonne Strahovski, The Handmaid's Tale
#Westworld star @thandienewton wishes her daughter a happy birthday during #Emmys acceptance speech: “I get to guide you and love you and protect you." pic.twitter.com/UfqIKSeJbH
— Hollywood Reporter (@THR) September 18, 2018
SUPPORTING ACTOR, COMEDY
Louie Anderson, Baskets
Alec Baldwin, Saturday Night Live
Tituss Burgess, Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt
Brian Tyree Henry, Atlanta
Tony Shalhoub, The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel
Kenan Thompson, Saturday Night Live
Henry Winkler, Barry - WINNER
Pals at the Emmys pic.twitter.com/lLHoadkltP
— Henry Winkler (@hwinkler4real) September 17, 2018
SUPPORTING ACTRESS, COMEDY
Zazie Beetz, Atlanta
Alex Borstein, The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel - WINNER
Aidy Bryant, Saturday Night Live
Betty Gilpin, GLOW
Leslie Jones, Saturday Night Live
Kate McKinnon, Saturday Night Live
Laurie Metcalf, Roseanne
Megan Mullally, Will & Grace
There's like, water on our face. Congrats to @AlexBorstein on her #Emmys win for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series! #MrsMaisel pic.twitter.com/lQqQ7oMaYt
— The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel (@MaiselTV) September 18, 2018
LIMITED SERIES
The Alienist
The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story - WINNER
Genius: Picasso
Godless
Patrick Melrose

LEAD ACTRESS, LIMITED SERIES OR MOVIE
Jessica Biel, The Sinner
Laura Dern, The Tale
Michelle Dockery, Godless
Edie Falco, Law & Order True Crime: The Menendez Murders
Regina King, Seven Seconds - WINNER
Sarah Paulson, American Horror Story: Cult
Also, Leslie Jones' reaction to Regina King winning DESERVES an #Emmy pic.twitter.com/rQwy6hGF9P
— Strong Black Lead (@strongblacklead) September 18, 2018
LEAD ACTOR, LIMITED SERIES OR MOVIE
Antonio Banderas, Genius: Picasso
Darren Criss, The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story - WINNER
Benedict Cumberbatch, Patrick Melrose
Jeff Daniels, The Looming Tower
John Legend, Jesus Christ Superstar Live in Concert
Jesse Plemons, U.S.S. Callister (Black Mirror)

SUPPORTING ACTRESS, LIMITED SERIES OR MOVIE
Sara Bareilles, Jesus Christ Superstar Live in Concert
Penélope Cruz, The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story
Judith Light, The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story
Adina Porter, American Horror Story: Cult
Merritt Wever, Godless - WINNER
Letitia Wright, Black Museum (Black Mirror)
SUPPORTING ACTOR, LIMITED SERIES OR MOVIE
Jeff Daniels, Godless - WINNER
Brandon Victor Dixon, Jesus Christ Superstar Live in Concert
John Leguizamo, Waco
Ricky Martin, The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story
Edgar Ramírez, The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story
Michael Stuhlbarg, The Looming Tower
Finn Wittrock, The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story

VARIETY SKETCH SERIES
At Home with Amy Sedaris
Drunk History
I Love You, America
Portlandia
Saturday Night Live - WINNER
Tracey Ullman's Show
OUTSTANDING REALITY COMPETITION SERIES
The Amazing Race
American Ninja Warrior
Project Runway
RuPaul's Drag Race - WINNER
Top Chef
The Voice
RuPaul: "Listen, if you can't love yourself, how in the hell you gonna love somebody else? Can I get an amen in here? Now let the music play" #Emmys https://t.co/0T9BwigEAF pic.twitter.com/WXDPnM1xdL
— Variety (@Variety) September 18, 2018
OUTSTANDING VARIETY TALK SERIES
The Daily Show with Trevor Noah
Full Frontal with Samantha Bee
Jimmy Kimmel Live
Last Week Tonight with John Oliver - WINNER
The Late Late Show with James Corden
The Late Show with Stephen Colbert
John Oliver: "On behalf of everyone in this room, I would like to thank Glenn Weiss' fiancee for saying yes. This could have been a very different evening. You really came through" #Emmys https://t.co/0T9BwigEAF pic.twitter.com/tH1SeONrLq
— Variety (@Variety) September 18, 2018
WRITING FOR A DRAMA SERIES
David Benioff, D.B. Weiss, Game of Thrones
Phoebe Waller-Bridge, Killing Eve
The Duffer Brothers, Stranger Things
Joel Fields, Joe Weisberg, The Americans - WINNER
Peter Morgan, The Crown
Bruce Miller, The Handmaid's Tale
WRITING FOR A COMEDY SERIES
Donald Glover, Atlanta
Stefani Robinson, Atlanta
Alec Berg, Bill Hader, Barry
Liz Sarnoff, Barry
Alec Berg, Silicon Valley
Amy Sherman-Palladino, The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel - WINNER