The past week was unusually subdued on the pop culture news front. Probably the standout story was a fresh look at Liam Hemsworth in monster-fighting, Henry Cavill-replacing action as Geralt of Rivia in the final two seasons of Netflix’s The Witcher adaptation. For the record, Season 4 arrives on 30 October.
That said, last night, Sunday evening, the 2025 Primetime Emmy Awards (also known as the 77th Primetime Emmy Awards) were held in Los Angeles. Now, the Emmy Awards have struggled in relevance for some time, either rewarding the same projects and people for years on end, or demonstrating “one of us” prejudice as the voting pool prefers to fling accolades at network television over content on streaming services. In recent years, the Emmys have been warming to the latter, but as the most recent batch of results show, some habits are hard to break.
Notably, Seth Rogan’s The Studio (on Apple TV+) set a record for the most wins by a comedy series in a single season, and it’s about a movie studio head trying to produce meaningful work. Whether the show deserves its merits or not, it feels like some serious navel gazing that doesn’t resonate with home viewers. The Studio won four awards during the Primetime ceremony, and a further nine during last week’s Creative Arts Emmys, taking its total Emmy haul in 2025 to 13.
Aligning better with audience popularity were the other two big winners of the evening: the much-talked about limited series Adolescence, on Netflix – about a British teen accused of murder – and HBO Max medical drama The Pitt (now on Showmax in South Africa), which has ER links behind and in front of the camera.
Adolescence won six awards last night, and three Creative Arts Emmys, ending with nine awards. It also made history with its win for 15-year-old Owen Cooper, who became the youngest ever male Emmy winner. Meanwhile, The Pitt picked up three awards during the Primetime show, including for leading man Noah Wyle, and two more Creative Arts accolades, ending with a five-award haul.
| Adolescence | The Studio | The Pitt |
| Outstanding limited or anthology series Outstanding directing for a limited or anthology series or movie: Philip Barantini Outstanding lead actor in a limited or anthology series or movie: Stephen Graham Outstanding supporting actor in a limited or anthology series or movie: Owen Cooper Outstanding supporting actress in a limited or anthology series or movie: Erin Doherty Outstanding writing for a limited or anthology series or movie | Outstanding comedy series Outstanding lead actor in a comedy series: Seth Rogen Outstanding directing for a comedy series: Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg Outstanding writing for a comedy series: Seth Rogen, Evan Goldberg, Peter Huyck, Alex Gregory, Frida Perez | Outstanding drama series Outstanding lead actor in a drama series: Noah Wyle Outstanding supporting actress in a drama series: Katherine LaNasa |
For the record, you can see the 2025 Emmy Wins by Program here, which combine the Primetime and Creative Awards Emmy results. In summary though, the leaders of the TV pack were as follows:
- The Studio (13)
- The Penguin (9)
- Adolescence (8)
- Severance (8)
- SNL50: The Anniversary Special (8)
Out of interest, restaurant drama-comedy The Bear was completely shut out, while dystopian game adaptation The Last of Us took home just one accolade, for sound editing at the Creative Emmys. Similarly, The White Lotus had 23 nominations this year, and only won for its title music.
Now it’s time for a complete rundown of this year’s Primetime Award nominees and winners. See below for the full set.
Outstanding drama series
- Andor (Disney+)
- The Diplomat (Netflix)
- The Last of Us (HBO Max)
- Paradise (Hulu)
- WINNER: The Pitt (HBO Max)
- Severance (Apple TV+)
- Slow Horses (Apple TV+)
- The White Lotus (HBO Max)
Outstanding comedy series
- Abbott Elementary (ABC)
- The Bear (Hulu)
- Hacks (HBO Max)
- Nobody Wants This (Netflix)
- Only Murders in the Building (Hulu)
- Shrinking (Apple TV+)
- WINNER: The Studio (Apple TV+)
- What We Do in the Shadows (Hulu)
Outstanding limited or anthology series
- WINNER: Adolescence (Netflix)
- Black Mirror (Netflix)
- Dying for Sex (Hulu)
- Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story (Netflix)
- The Penguin (HBO Max)
Outstanding lead actor in a drama series
- Sterling K Brown – Paradise (Hulu)
- Gary Oldman – Slow Horses (Apple TV+)
- Pedro Pascal – The Last of Us (HBO Max)
- Adam Scott – Severance (Apple TV+)
- WINNER: Noah Wyle – The Pitt (HBO Max)
Outstanding lead actress in a drama series
- Kathy Bates – Matlock (CBS)
- Sharon Horgan – Bad Sisters (Apple TV+)
- WINNER: Britt Lower – Severance (Apple TV+)
- Bella Ramsey – The Last of Us (HBO Max)
- Keri Russell – The Diplomat (Netflix)
Outstanding lead actor in a comedy series
- Adam Brody – Nobody Wants This (Netflix)
- WINNER: Seth Rogen – The Studio (Apple TV+)
- Jason Segel – Shrinking (Apple TV+)
- Martin Short – Only Murders in the Building (Hulu)
- Jeremy Allen White – The Bear (Hulu)
Outstanding lead actress in a comedy series
- Uzo Aduba – The Residence (Netflix)
- Kristen Bell – Nobody Wants This (Netflix)
- Quinta Brunson – Abbott Elementary (ABC)
- Ayo Edebiri – The Bear (Hulu)
- WINNER: Jean Smart – Hacks (HBO Max)
Outstanding lead actor in a limited or anthology series or movie
- Colin Farrell – The Penguin (HBO Max)
- WINNER: Stephen Graham – Adolescence (Netflix)
- Jake Gyllenhaal – Presumed Innocent (Apple TV+)
- Bryan Tyree Henry – Dope Thief (Apple TV+)
- Cooper Koch – Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story (Netflix)
Outstanding lead actress in a limited or anthology series or movie
- Cate Blanchett – Disclaimer (Apple TV+)
- Meghan Fehy – Sirens (Netflix)
- Rashidah Jones – Black Mirror (Netflix)
- WINNER: Cristin Milioti – The Penguin (HBO Max)
- Michelle Williams – Dying for Sex (Hulu)
Outstanding supporting actor in a drama series
- Zach Cherry – Severance (Apple TV+)
- Walton Goggins – The White Lotus (HBO Max)
- Jason Isaacs – The White Lotus (HBO Max)
- James Marsden – Paradise (Hulu)
- Sam Rockwell -The White Lotus (HBO Max)
- WINNER: Tramell Tillman – Severance (Apple TV+)
- John Turturro – Severance (Apple TV+)
Outstanding supporting actress in a drama series
- Patricia Arquette – Severance (Apple TV+)
- Carrie Coon – The White Lotus (HBO Max)
- WINNER: Katherine LaNasa – The Pitt (HBO Max)
- Julianne Nicholson – Paradise (Hulu)
- Parker Posey – The White Lotus (HBO Max)
- Natasha Rothwell – The White Lotus (HBO Max)
- Aimee Lou Wood – The White Lotus (HBO Max)
Outstanding supporting actor in a comedy series
- Ike Barinholtz – The Studio (Apple TV+)
- Colman Domingo – The Four Seasons (Netflix)
- Harrison Ford – Shrinking (Apple TV+)
- WINNER: Jeff Hiller – Somebody Somewhere (HBO Max)
- Ebon Moss-Bachrach – The Bear (Hulu)
- Michael Urie – Shrinking (Apple TV+)
- Bowen Yang – Saturday Night Live (NBC)
Outstanding supporting actress in a comedy series
- Liza Colón-Zayas – The Bear (Hulu)
- WINNER: Hannah Einbinder – Hacks (HBO Max)
- Kathryn Hahn – The Studio (Apple TV+)
- Janelle James – Abbott Elementary (ABC)
- Catherine O’Hara – The Studio (Apple TV+)
- Sheryl Lee Ralph – Abbott Elementary (ABC)
- Jessica Williams – Shrinking (Apple TV+)
Outstanding supporting actor in a limited or anthology series or movie
- Javier Bardem – Monsters: The Lyle And Erik Menendez Story (Netflix)
- Bill Camp – Presumed Innocent (Apple TV+)
- WINNER: Owen Cooper – Adolescence (Netflix)
- Rob Delaney – Dying For Sex (Hulu)
- Peter Sarsgaard – Presumed Innocent (Apple TV+)
- Ashley Walters – Adolescence (Netflix)
Outstanding supporting actress in a limited or anthology series or movie
- WINNER: Erin Doherty – Adolescence (Netflix)
- Ruth Negga – Presumed Innocent (Apple TV+)
- Deirdre O’Connell – The Penguin (HBO Max)
- Chloë Sevigny – Monsters: The Lyle And Erik Menendez Story (Netflix)
- Jenny Slate – Dying For Sex (Hulu)
- Christine Tremarco – Adolescence (Netflix)
Outstanding reality competition programme
- The Amazing Race (CBS)
- RuPaul’s Drag Race (MTV)
- Survivor (CBS)
- Top Chef (Bravo)
- WINNER: The Traitors (NBC)
Outstanding scripted variety series
- WINNER: Last Week Tonight with John Oliver (HBO Max)
- Saturday Night Live (NBC)
Outstanding talk series
- The Daily Show (Comedy Central)
- Jimmy Kimmel Live! (ABC)
- WINNER: The Late Show with Stephen Colbert (CBS)
Outstanding writing for a drama series
- WINNER: Dan Gilroy – Andor
- Joe Sachs – The Pitt
- R. Scott Gemmill – The Pitt
- Dan Erickson – Severance
- Will Smith – Slow Horses
- Mike White – The White Lotus
Outstanding writing for a comedy series
- Quinta Brunson – Abbott Elementary
- Lucia Aniello, Paul W. Downs and Jen Statsky – Hacks
- Nathan Fielder, Carrie Kemper, Adam Locke-Norton, Eric Notarnicola – The Rehearsal
- Hannah Bos, Paul Thureen, Bridget Everett – Somebody Somewhere
- Seth Rogen, Evan Goldberg, Peter Huyck, Alex Gregory, Frida Perez – The Studio
- Sam Johnson, Sarah Naftalis, Paul Simms – What We Do in the Shadows
Outstanding writing for a limited or anthology series or movie
- WINNER: Jack Thorne, Stephen Graham – Adolescence
- Charlie Brooker, Bisha K. Ali – Black Mirror
- Kim Rosenstock, Elizabeth Meriwether – Dying for Sex
- Lauren LeFranc – The Penguin
- Joshua Zetumer – Say Nothing
Outstanding directing for a drama series
- Janus Metz, Andor
- Amanda Marsalis, The Pitt
- John Wells, The Pitt
- Jessica Lee Gagné, Severance
- Ben Stiller, Severance
- WINNER: Adam Randall, Slow Horses
- Mike White, The White Lotus
Outstanding directing for a comedy series
- Ayo Edebiri, The Bear
- Lucia Aniello, Hacks
- James Burrows, Mid-Century Modern
- Nathan Fielder, The Rehearsal
- WINNER: Seth Rogen, The Studio
Outstanding directing for a limited or anthology series or movie
- WINNER: Philip Barantini, Adolescence
- Shannon Murphy, Dying for Sex
- Helen Shaver, The Penguin
- Jennifer Getzinger, The Penguin
- Nicole Kassell, Sirens
- Lesli Linka Glatter, Zero Day