Missing at the Emmys: #MeToo
Those who were waiting for a #MeToo moment during Monday night’s Emmy Awards just kept waiting.
Unlike at previous awards shows this year, emblems of the movement weren’t pinned to lapels or sequined gowns. #MeToo was mostly absent from acceptance speeches and even from the monologue — except for fleeting jokes by the hosts, Michael Che and Colin Jost.
Che welcomed “the many, many talented people in Hollywood who haven’t been caught yet.” Jost joked that the scariest words a network executive could hear are: “Sir, Ronan Farrow is on line one.”
Farrow, a journalist, has worked to expose powerful men accused of bad behaviour in the #MeToo era.
The elephant in the room, Les Moonves, went unmentioned. Moonves, one of the most influential men in television, stepped down as the longtime chief executive of CBS this month after multiple allegations against him. Moonves has denied the accusations.
This was the first Emmys event since #MeToo, which was catalyzed by the downfall of the movie mogul Harvey Weinstein last October.
Other celebrities who have been forced out since: Matt Lauer, Charlie Rose, Louis C.K. and Mark Halperin. But mum was the word on their undoing.
On Monday, the words “Times Up” were uttered only once from the stage, when Amy Sherman-Palladino — creator of The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel who earned back-toback awards — teased that the carpet leading to the stage was not made for women.
Rachel Brosnahan, who won the best actress in a comedy series for The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, made the most political statement from the microphone, imploring women to vote.
The comedian Hannah Gadsby, who took on toxic masculinity in her acclaimed Netflix special Nanette, mostly played it safe as a presenter.
In January, most of the attendees of the Golden Globes wore black to make a statement about sexual harassment in Hollywood and other industries. Many wore #TimesUp pins.
At the Oscars in March, host Jimmy Kimmel didn’t mince words about the issue in his monologue. “Over the course of this evening, I hope you will listen to many brave and outspoken supporters of movements like Me Too and Time’s Up and Never Again, because what they’re doing is important,” he said.
That solidarity was not evident at the Emmys.
Also, unlike previous awards shows this year, President Donald Trump’s name was not mentioned. The most direct political message — “Stop Kavanaugh” — was scrawled on the arm of activist Sarah Sophie Flicker, wife of director Jesse Peretz, who was nominated for his work on the Netflix comedy Glow.
There was a buzzword Monday night, though, and that was “diversity.” It was put to music in an ironic, but tame, song-and-dance number called We Solved It at the top of the show. While the nominees this year were more diverse than ever, the vast majority of winners were white.