Tears, laughs and shout-outs to wives dominated at the 68th annual Primetime Emmy Awards.
After showing off their heels and gowns on the red carpet on Sept. 18, television’s biggest stars were recognized for their outstanding work on the small screen.
Thanks to host Jimmy Kimmel and a mouthwatering roster of A-list entertainers, there was no shortage of humor.
Here is a look at some of the best reactions from the biggest night on TV.
1. Emotions were running high for Julia Louis-Dreyfus, who accepted her fifth consecutive Best Actress in a Comedy award for her role on “Veep.” During her acceptance speech, Louis-Dreyfus wept while honoring her late father, Gerard Louis-Dreyfus.
“I’d like to dedicate this to my father, William Louis-Dreyfus, who passed away on Friday,” she said. “I’m so glad he liked ‘Veep’ because his opinion was the one that really mattered.”
Watch on FN
2. A surprising announcement that Bill Cosby would be taking the stage initially caused some confusion before Kimmel explained it was a rouse: “Don’t worry, he’s not really here — I just wanted to see what you guys would do.”
3. “Saturday Night Live” star Leslie Jones brought laughs to the usually humorless ballot-security presentation by award show accountants. Interrupting the executives from Ernst and Young, the comedic actress poked fun at how her nude photos were hacked over the summer.
“I appreciate all of the hard work you do, but let’s be real: Y’all are protecting something nobody is trying to steal!” she said. “Don’t nobody want to know about boring Emmy secrets, OK? But since you’re good at keeping things safe, I got a job for you: My Twitter account! Put that in the vault, please.”
She continued, “Y’all over here using your skills to protect Best Voice-over in a French Sitcom. Meanwhile, I’m butt-naked on CNN! … I just wanted to feel beautiful, y’all! Can’t a sister feel beautiful?”
4. Jimmy Kimmel took part in a hilarious bit from James Corden’s “Carpool Karaoke” segments on his “Late Late Show.” The comedians belted out the Wham! hit “Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go” in a car and later re-created the ’80s music video.
5. Matt Damon — a friend of Kimmel’s — made a hilarious appearance during the program after Kimmel lost to fellow late-night host John Oliver in the Variety Talk Series category.
“You probably want to go home, curl up and cry,” Damon said with a deadpan delivery. “You’re a pretty big loser.”
6. Sterling K. Brown kick started a wave of winners thanking their wives after he dropped lyrics from Jay Z’s 2003 song “Public Service Announcement” in his acceptance speech after winning the Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Limited Series or Movie category for his role in FX’s “The People v. O.J. Simpson: American Crime Story.”
“And contrary to popular belief, I got the hottest chick in the game rocking my chain. Ryan Michelle Bathe, you make this whole thing go. I love you. Thank you,” he said, wrapping up his speech.
7. Brown’s costar Courtney B. Vance also followed up with praise for his wife, actress Angela Bassett, during his speech when he accepted the award for Outstanding Lead Actor for “The People v. O.J. Simpson.”
