STARS FLOCK TO EMMYS FOR TV’S BIG NIGHT
LOS ANGELES: Television’s biggest stars were dusting off their designer frocks and getting suited and booted yesterday for their chance to snag the biggest prizes for the small screen.
With awards juggernaut Downton Abbey finished and Game of Thrones ineligible, this year’s Emmys are seen as the first in years in which any show can take home the prestigious statuettes.
There will be fierce competition among a host of acclaimed first-timers, including HBO sci-fi Western show Westworld, Hulu’s dystopian The Handmaid’s Tale and Netflix’s 1980s-set horror series Stranger Things.
The three series have 13 statuettes between them from last weekend’s Creative Arts Emmys, which recognise behind-thescenes talent as well as guest acting appearances.
The glitzy ceremony here — the first under the administration of President Donald Trump — is expected to have a distinctly political flavour, with host Stephen Colbert likely not to pull his punches.
NBC’s long-running comedy sketch show Saturday Night Live received 22 nominations — the joint-highest total alongside Westworld — after a year of mercilessly spoofing the new commander-in-chief.
Its haul of five Creative Arts statuettes included outstanding guest actress in a comedy series for Melissa McCarthy, whose “Unhinged Spicey” take on embattled former White House press secretary Sean Spicer.
The show is in the running for five more gongs at the main ceremony, with Alec Baldwin and Kate McKinnon nominated for their turns as Trump and campaign rival Hillary Clinton. AFP