While drama and comedy felt like foregone conclusions, the 2021 Emmys’ limited-series race didn’t lack drama or tension: A group of hugely popular, star-driven productions were left to duke it out, backed by the biggest industry players in the game right now.
It says a lot that Netflix felt like old news here—its big contender, The Queen’s Gambit, established itself as the front-runner almost a full year ago, one of 2020’s great lockdown binges. The industry showered it with year-end prizes, from the Screen Actors Guild Awards to the Producers Guild of America Awards, and critics did too. But then came along a far more surprising contender, from Marvel of all places—in Disney+’s WandaVision. And then, to make matters even messier, category stalwart HBO got back into the game with a last-minute drop of Mare of Easttown, the crime drama that kept us on the edge of our seat this past spring.
In the end, though, their buzz cycles weren’t robust enough to cool the heat on Gambit, which had everything going for it: popularity, gorgeous crafts work, a true star-making lead performance, and an addicting narrative that didn’t only go down easy, but felt satisfying and detailed in a way most binges don’t (ripe for rewatches). Also, helpfully, it wasn’t the most challenging show of the year—this Emmy season was very much about shows that aired during the height of COVID-19, and unlike brilliant competition I May Destroy You and The Underground Railroad, Gambit provided glossy, involving escapism.
Things felt a little dicey when nominations were announced. There were shocking snubs for seeming supporting-actor front-runner Bill Camp, as well as scene-stealer Marielle Heller, in favor of a bunch of Hamilton actors. Then there was the huge showing for WandaVision, which swiftly emerged as the biggest competition. But bolstered by its below-the-line bona fides, Gambit got off to a huge start at last weekend’s Creative Arts Emmys, which forecast its triumph tonight. Overall, the Scott Frank-helmed show won a staggering 11 Emmys—narrowly missing out on John Adams’s record for a limited series (13). In addition to the top award, Frank—who lost all three of his noms for his last Netflix hit, Godless—won the directing prize over heavyweights like Barry Jenkins, a true show of the series’ strength.
It speaks to the overall closeness of the race that much of the night did not seem to be going Gambit’s way, despite the writing being on the wall; even its much-beloved breakout star, Anya Taylor-Joy, could not stop the Mare acting wave, specifically its lead star Kate Winslet. And in a nice departure from the night of sweeps, Michaela Coel pulled off a writing win over Frank, who had to settle for…all the rest.
Gambit was, perhaps, the most obvious choice for the Television Academy—the generalist pick in a field that yielded everything from auteur masterpieces to superhero smashes. But Netflix, suddenly more of an old-guard player in the streaming wars, can exhale and claim this much-awaited victory with pride. After years of campaigns and millions of dollars spent, it finally has its first-ever major program Emmy win to its name. Actually, make that two.
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