The red carpet at this year’s Emmy Awards took a virtual turn. Instead of stars arriving in their best glam and sitting next to each other in a packed Staples Center, we got to see the stars come together via video call in pure social distancing fashion. Despite the mixed reactions of conducting the 72nd awards during this time, this year’s host Jimmy Kimmel opened the show by emphasizing how “our old pal television” became a sense of comfort during this difficult time. “The world may be terrible, but television has never been better,” he said.
All the nominees had to log in through cameras and microphones sent to their homes by the crew. While video calls usually consist of its attendees only dressing up half of their bodies to save time and energy, this year’s Emmy nominees stuck to the red carpet spirit and glammed up for the historical night. Here are our favorite looks from the television stars.
Zendaya
This was a big night for Zendaya who made history by becoming the youngest winner of the outstanding lead actress in a drama award for “Euphoria.” Surrounded by her family and team, she accepted the award in a crystal bandeau top with a black and powder-pink polka dot skirt by Giorgio Armani Privé. The 24-year-old actress joyfully accepted the award and appeared to have winged her acceptance speech on the spot. Still, she delivered a clear message and thanked the team behind “Euphoria” and addressed the youth saying, “There is hope for young people out there…To all my peers out there doing the work in the streets, I see you, I admire you…thank you so so much.”
Sandra Oh
The “Killing Eve” actress took the opportunity of this year’s lack of dress code to make a powerful statement. She graced our screens in a royal purple bomber jacket with a matching facemask from LA brand KORELIMITED featuring symbols honoring the Black community and Oh’s Korean heritage. “After George Floyd’s death and the protests that followed, I felt that as an Asian-American, a Korean-American person, I wanted to express my support for the Black community in a way that felt personal to my community,” she told British Vogue.
“It’s in a royal purple color—which is a super Korean color and brings a certain mindset for me—and it says ‘Black Lives Are Precious’ in Korean writing, because the literal translation of Black Lives Matter is impossible in Korean. The characters have to be read top to bottom, right to left, [a traditional way of writing Korean script] and there are dashes, or taegukgi, lifted from the Korean flag, which represent celestial bodies and the natural elements and all of that good stuff. And then on the right there’s a mugunghwa [hibiscus], the national flower of Korea,” the actress explained.
Billy Porter
Nominated once again for outstanding lead actor in a drama series, the “Pose” star appeared clad in a pure white ensemble consisting of a sash draped over a custom-tailored jacket which cascaded behind him like a cape and chic flared pants. Known for serving looks in award shows (come on, he gave us the crystal curtain opening moment at the Grammys before), he gave Instagram a first look to his fit and said, “Never in a million years, as a gay Black man who came out in the 80s during the AIDS crisis, did I imagine that a show like ‘Pose’ and a character like Pray Tell could exist.”
“I would describe my style as free. I’ve worked a long time to find a space where I don’t care what other people think about me. That’s a [really] interesting and hard place to get to,” he said. “I’m there. I’m free.”
Tracee Ellis Ross
Nominated for the outstanding lead actress in a comedy series award for “Black-ish,” the actress came in a stunning gold dress by Alexandre Vauthier. Not only did Ross match her facemask with her golden getup, she also strutted on her own red carpet at home.
Dan Levy
Although the majority of the nominees attended the show from their homes, the cast of “Schitt’s Creek” accepted all seven of their awards together from a private events venue—complete with facemasks and socially distant tables. Daniel Levy took home the outstanding supporting actor in a comedy series award and stayed true to his character David Rose by coming in mismatched socks and a grey suit that—instead of pants—was paired with a pleated skirt by Thom Browne.
Laverne Cox
The “Orange is the New Black” actress had us in awe with her all-black sheer look by Kim Kassass Couture. Being the first openly trans woman to be nominated four times for outstanding guest actress in a drama series since 2014, it’s not the first time Laverne Cox took our breaths away. While we still wait for the Emmys to give her a win under that category, she killed it last night when she debuted the printed (are those hieroglyphs?) suit and presented the outstanding writing for a drama series award to Jesse Armstrong.
Art by Dana Calvo
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