Succession and Watchmen take awards at pandemic-hit Emmys

Quirky comedy Schitt’s Creek, media family saga Succession and dystopian drama Watchmen dominated the Emmy Awards on Sunday in a show where the coronavirus pandemic meant most celebrities across the world took part from their sofas or small events of their own.

“Hello, and welcome to the PandEmmys!,” said Jimmy Kimmel, as he opened the show, peppering the event with multiple skits and jokes about life under lockdown.

HBO’s Succession, the tale of a powerful, backstabbing media family, was named best drama series, while Jeremy Strong won best actor for his role as a downtrodden son. Succession also won for writing and directing.

The biggest shock of the night came when former Disney Channel actress Zendaya, 24, was named best actress in a drama for playing a teen drug addict in HBO’s Euphoria, beating front-runners Laura Linney (Ozark) and Jennifer Aniston (The Morning Show).