Emmy Awards 2025 winners: Stephen Colbert shocks as talk show earns massive win despite cancellation

The 61-year-old comedian accepted the honor for The Last Show With Stephen Colbert which won over The Daily Show and Jimmy Kimmel Live! 

Despite the cancellation he thanked the network as he said: ‘I want to thank CBS were giving us the privilege to be part of the late-night tradition, which I hope continues long after we are no longer doing this show.’

He thanked the crew for the chat show and his entire family before ending on a sweet, positive, and patriotic note.

Stephen said: ‘I have never loved my country more desperately. God bless America. Stay strong, be brave, and if the elevator tries to bring you down, go crazy and punch a higher floor! Whoo!’

Back in July, CBS announced the cancellation of the late night show just days after the host blasted the network’s $16million settlement with President Trump as a ‘big fat bribe.’ 

Colbert’s show, which began in 2015, will now come to an end in May 2026, executives with the network and Paramount, its new parent company, announced on July 17.

‘The Late Show with Stephen Colbert will end its historic run in May 2026 at the end of the broadcast season,’ they said in a statement at the time.

Meanwhile, Saturday Night Live has earned Outstanding Variety Special (Live) at the Emmy Awards 2025 amid the controversial cast bloodbath which has included star Ego Nwodim abruptly quitting.

The show was recognized for its star-studded three-hour live television special which aired on February 16, 2025 and commemorated the 50th anniversary season of the series.

The longstanding program won over Beyonce Bowl, The Oscars, The Apple Music Super Bowl LIX Halftime Show Starring Kendrick Lamar, and SNL50: The Homecoming Concert.

Longtime showrunner Lorne Michaels accepted the honor but did not mention the mass exodus from the show during his acceptance speech.

He said: ‘I won this award for the first time 50 years ago in 1975. I was younger and I had a lot of dreams about what would happen, and one of those dreams was that I would still be doing the same show for the next 50 years. However, here we are.’

 Lorne also surprisingly touched on reports that the longtime variety series was losing millions as he said: ‘The show was two years in the planning, and they said, we don’t care what it costs, as long as it’s good. 

‘Maybe they didn’t say that, maybe that’s just the way I heard it.’

Earlier this week longtime cast member Ego announced her departure amid a massive cast shake-up.

This came after Heidi Gardner, a beloved veteran of eight years, was let go, following the recent exits of Michael Longfellow, Emil Wakim and Devon Walker.

Seth Rogen took home the first award of the night at the 2025 Emmy Awards.  

The 43-year-old actor took home the coveted Best Actor in a Comedy Series Award for his work in AppleTV+’s The Studio.

He triumphed over an impressive field including: Adam Brody: Nobody Wants This, Jason Segel: Shrinking, Martin Short: Only Murders in the Building, and Jeremy Allen White: The Bear.

Seth was taken aback by the honor as he said during his acceptance speech: ‘Thank you. Wow, this is amazing. I so could not wrap my head around this happening that I literally prepared nothing. I’ve never won anything in my life. 

‘When I was a kid I bought a used bowling trophy at an estate sale, and my parents were like “Yeah, that’s a good idea, you should probably buy that.”‘

He went on to thank his wife, mom, cast and crew from his show, agent, and manager before concluding his speech.

Seth and his writing partner Evan Goldberg later earned Best Writing for a Comedy Series for The Studio. 

In the series, Seth portrays Matt Remick, who is the newly-appointed head of a legacy Hollywood movie studio striving to survive in a world where it is increasingly difficult for art and business to live together. 

Jean Smart was once again the big winner in the Best Actress in a Comedy Series category which she won for the third time.

The 74-year-old actress beat out: Uzo Aduba: The Residence, Kristen Bell: Nobody Wants This, Quinta Brunson: Abbott Elementary, and Ayo Edebiri: The Bear.

She hobbled to the podium to accept the honor and revealed why during her acceptance speech as she said: ‘If I was walking like John Wayne, it’s because I broke my knee this summer and it’s not quite repaired.’

After thanking the cast and crew including costar Hannah Einbinder she ended her speech with a positive note as she urged the crowd: ‘Let’s be good to each other.’ 

Not long after it was Hannah’s time to shine as she earned Best Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series for her work on the HBO Max comedy.

The 30-year-old actress took home the honor over Liza Colón-Zayas: The Bear, Kathryn Hahn: The Studio, Janelle James: Abbott Elementary, Catherine O’Hara: The Studio, Sheryl Lee Ralph: Abbott Elementary, and Jessica Williams: Shrinking.

Hannah was grateful as she began her speech by joking: ‘I was just really committed to the personal narrative I had that it’s actually cooler to continue to lose. 

‘I was pretty committed to that. Had to be, right? But this is cool, too. This is also a punk rock.’

She went on to thank the creators of Hacks – Lucia Aniello, Paul W. Downs, and Jen Statsky – and her aforementioned costar Jean.

Hannah – who is very vocal about political issues on social media – ended her speech by saying: ‘Go Birds, f*** ICE, and free Palestine.’ 

Hacks explores a dark mentorship that forms between Deborah Vance (Smart), a legendary Las Vegas comedian, and an entitled, outcast comedy writer in their mid-20s (Einbinder). 

Britt Lower was one of the biggest winners of the night for Severance as the talented star earned Best Actress in a Drama Series

The 40-year-old actress triumphed over an impressive field including: Kathy Bates: Matlock, Sharon Horgan: Bad Sisters, Bella Ramsey: The Last of Us, and Keri Russell: The Diplomat. 

She made sure to recognize those in her field as she said: ‘First, it is a privilege even be mentioned alongside such an incredible group of artists.’

Britt’s costar Tramell Tillman was also a winner as he earned Best Supporting Actor in a Drama Series and effectively made history as the first Black man to win the honor.

The 40-year-old actor triumphed over a field which included a couple of his costars including Zach Cherry and John Turturro in addition to James Marsden for Paradise and Walton Goggins, Jason Isaacs, and Sam Rockwell for The White Lotus.

Tramell was emotional as he called his mother his ‘first acting coach’ before making a sweet dedication to her.

He said: ‘Mama, you are there for me when no one else was, and no one else would show up. Your loving-kindness stays with me. And this is for you.’

 Severance is centered around Adam Scott’s character Mark Scout who leads a team of office workers whose memories have been surgically divided between their work and personal lives. When a mysterious colleague appears outside of work, it begins a journey to discover the truth about their jobs.

One of the most emotional moments of the night came when Cristin Milioti took home Best Actress in a Limited or Anthology Series or Movie for The Penguin. 

The 40-year-old actress triumphed in an impressive field which included: Cate Blanchett: Disclaimer, Meghann Fahy: Sirens, Rashida Jones: Black Mirror, and Michelle Williams: Dying For Sex.

Cristin had tears in her eyes as she talked about her role portraying Sofia Falcone while accepting the honor as she said: ‘Thank you so much. I am so profoundly grateful. 

‘Sorry, I wrote this on the back of notes I took in therapy the other day. So don’t look at the back. I loved making this show and I loved playing Sofia so much. 

‘It’s very hard to make sense of being alive right now in this world so I’m deeply grateful for the bright spots and making this show with our incredible cast and crew, and getting to inhabit this woman was a bright spot for me. Despite it being very grisly. Playing her felt like flying.’

The Penguin follows the events of 2022 film The Batman as Oz Cobb (Colin Farrell), a.k.a. the Penguin, makes a play to seize the reins of the crime world in Gotham.

In one of the sweetest moments of the night 15-year-old Owen Cooper triumphed in the Best Supporting Actor in a Limited or Anthology Series or Movie for his work in Adolescence.

The young British actor shined over Javier Bardem: Monsters: The Lyle And Erik Menendez Story, Bill Camp: Presumed Innocent, Rob Delaney: Dying For Sex, Peter Sarsgaard: Presumed Innocent, and Ashley Walters: Adolescence.

Owen sent an inspiring message with his acceptance speech as he said: ‘Standing up here, wow, it is so surreal. Honestly, when I started drama classes a couple years back, I didn’t expect to be even in the United States, never mind here.

‘I think tonight proves that, if you listen and you focus and you step out of your comfort zone, you can achieve anything in life. I was nothing about three years ago. I’m here now.’

His costar Erin Doherty also triumphed for Adolescence in the Best Supporting Actress in a Limited or Anthology Series or Movie category.

The 33-year-old actress won over Ruth Negga: Presumed Innocent, Deirdre O’Connell: The Penguin, Chloë Sevigny: Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story, Jenny Slate: Dying for Sex, and Christine Tremarco: Adolescence.

Adolescence is centered around a 13-year-old named Jamie Miller (Cooper) who is accused of the murder of a classmate, his family, therapist and the detective in charge are all left asking what really happened.

Katherine LaNasa earned  Best Supporting Actress in a Drama Series for The Pitt.

The 58-year-old actress beat out four stars from The White Lotus including: Carrie Coon, Parker Posey, Natasha Rothwell, and Aimee Lou Wood in addition to Patricia Arquette from Severance and Julianne Nicholson from Paradise.

Katherine  made sure to thank iconic showrunner and executive producer John Wells who previously worked on ER, Third Watch, and The West Wing during her acceptance speech.

She said: ‘My whole career I wanted to work for John Wells, and he elevates everything in his wake.

‘John, I am so much better when you are around. Mostly because I don’t want to get fired.’

The Pitt is centered around the daily lives of healthcare professionals in a Pittsburgh hospital as they juggle personal crises, workplace politics, and the emotional toll of treating critically ill patients, revealing the resilience required in their noble calling. 

Grammy-nominated comedian Nate Bargatze is made his debut hosting the ceremony after becoming a stand-up star and a popular repeat guest on Saturday Night Live in recent years.

He kicked off the award show with a hilarious sketch alongside SNL castmembers Bowen Yang, Mikey Day, and James Austin Johnson in the vein of his popular George Washington sketch from the variety show but this time about television.

The 77th Emmy Awards are honoring the best of television tonight, with the star-studded ceremony being held at the Peacock Theater in Los Angeles.

The three-hour show begins at 8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. PT on Sunday, September 14, and is being broadcast live on CBS. Paramount+ premium subscribers can also stream the Emmys live or on demand, while base-tier subscribers can stream on-demand the day after.   

Apple TV+’s hit series Severance leads the nominees this year with an impressive 27 nods, including for Best Drama Series and most of the drama acting categories.

Nominees Adam Scott and Britt Lower star as office coworkers at a secretive company that uses a proprietary brain surgery to ‘sever’ their personality, creating a separate version of themselves at work that never knows what happens outside the office.

It’s competing in the Best Drama Series category against Andor, The Diplomat, The Last of Us, Paradise, The Pitt, Slow Horses and The White Lotus.

The Colin Farrell–starring HBO series The Penguin is in second place with 24 nominations, including for Best Limited or Anthology Series, along with acting nominations for Farrell and his costar Cristin Milioti.

The show takes a dark, realistic tone as it creates a backstory for the iconic comic book villain after Farrell played the character in the Robert Pattinson–starring blockbuster The Batman. 

 Apple’s The Studio and HBO’s The White Lotus season three are both tied for 23 nominations, with the latter series scoring multiple supporting and guest actor nominations for its ensemble cast.

Seth Rogen, Catherine O’Hara, Ike Barinholtz, Chase Sui Wonders and Kathryn Hahn star in The Studio as Hollywood executives trying too revive a struggling studio, and the series features a bevy of A-list guest stars in cameo roles as themselves.

White Lotus stars Walton Goggins, Jason Isaacs, Sam Rockwell, Carrie Coon, Parker Posey, Natasha Rothwell, Aimee Lou Wood and Scott Glenn will all be competing for acting honors, while creator Mike White is nominated in the writing and directing categories.

Fans will be watching for any signs of tension between Goggins and Wood after they struck up controversy after Goggins unfollowed his on-screen love interest on Instagram despite offering surprisingly effusive praise for Wood just weeks beforehand.

Goggins later claimed that it’s his standard practice to cut off communications with his costars after finishing up a big project.

‘When I left Justified . . . I didn’t talk to [costar Timothy Olyphant] for almost two years,’ he told Variety in June. ‘I’ve done that with every single thing that I’ve done.’

Pedro Pascal’s zombie video game adaptation The Last Of Us follows with 16 nominations, while Disney+’s Star Wars prequel series Andor and HBO’s previous Emmy winner Hacks both have 14 nominations. 

Hacks star Jean Smart, who has already won Best Lead Actress in a comedy for the past three years, is again nominated.

Her costar, Hannah Einbinder, is also nominated in the Supporting Actress category, even though she also has a lead role as a struggling comedian working to help an aging stand-up star (Smart) make it back to the A-list. 

This will be Einbinder’s fourth nomination, but so far she hasn’t been able to clinch the prize.

The Bear will hope to repeat its Emmys success with 13 nominations, and newcomers The Pitt and Adolescence are tied with it. 

This year marks the first Emmy nomination for Harrison Ford for his work in Apple TV+’s dramedy Shrinking.

The line between film and television was further blurred when filmmakers Martin Scorsese and Ron Howard received their first-ever acting Emmy nominations for guest appearances on Seth Rogen’s Hollywood satire The Studio. 

Many of the biggest stars of film and television will be on hand to present this evening, including Elizabeth Banks, Ike Barinholtz, Angela Bassett, Jason Bateman, Kathy Bates, Kristen Bell, Sterling K. Brown, Stephen Colbert, Jennifer Coolidge, Alan Cumming, Eric Dane, Colman Domingo, Tina Fey, Walton Goggins, Kathryn Hahn, Mariska Hargitay, Charlie Hunnam, Jude Law, James Marsden, Christopher Meloni, Jenna Ortega, Sarah Paulson, Evan Peters, Parker Posey, Jeff Probst, Phylicia Rashad, Hiroyuki Sanada, Sydney Sweeney, Sofia Vergara, Jesse Williams and Catherine Zeta-Jones. 

It hasn’t sunk in yet for comedian Nate Bargatze, 46, that he’s about to perform for his biggest audience ever.

‘This is the first I’m thinking about it, was this week,’ he joked in his trademark deadpan tone while speaking to CBS last week.

Bargatze, who favor clean comedy at his arena-filling shows, said he planned to avoid ‘mean’ jokes at the Emmys. 

‘I was like trying to think of like how, which way you want to go and it’s like . . . even we’ve had stuff written that I think was a little more roast stuff and then it’s like after you think about it a couple of days, I’m like, “Nah, let’s go back another way,”‘ he said, adding, ‘We have some fun stuff though that’s planned.’

In addition to hosting, Bargatze will be competing in the Best Variety Special and Best Writing for a Variety Special categories for his stand-up special Your Friend, Nate Bargatze