Breaking Bad was one of the top winners in the 2014 Emmy Awards, with the series winning the Outstanding Drama category, as well as cast members Bryan Cranston (pictured), Aaron Paul, Anna Gunn and writer Moira Walley-Beckett all winning in their respective categories. But before we get to the official rundown of who won 2014 Emmy Awards, here’s how the night progressed.
Seth Meyers killed it in his opening monologue as host of the 66th Primetime Emmy Awards, which was held live from the Nokia Theatre in Los Angeles on Monday, Aug. 25. The late-night funny man started the evening taking jabs at the state of the television industry noting how this year’s Emmy Awards were being broadcast on a Monday night in August opposed to the traditional Sunday night in September.
“If I understand television, it means Emmy’s are about to get canceled,” Meyers said. He went on to blame the start of the football season and MTV, as the MTV Video Music Awards were the night before causing the Monday night Emmy positioning. “That’s right. MTV still has an award show for music videos even though they no longer show music videos,” Meyers quipped. “That’s like network television holding an award show and giving all the awards to cable and Netflix. Why would they do that?”
Meyers gave a shout out to HBO, congratulating the network for having 99 nominations. “HBO is like the kid you grew up with who did way better than you expected. When I first met HBO all they had was Grease 2 and Fraggle Rock. I wish I was nicer to them.” And then he drops his voice and mocks, “one day I’m going to make a show about dragons … sure you will.”
Streaming also was called out with Netflix receiving 31 Emmy nominations. “And no one was happier to see streaming take nominations away from cable than network TV,” Meyers said. “Not very nice when someone younger comes along — is it cable?”
Meyers highlighted the fact that 2014 saw the end of some of our favorite series including Breaking Bad, Dexter and How I Met Your Mother. “If you would have asked which one would have had the saddest ending I would not have picked the one about the nice man telling a story to his children,” Meyers laughed. “That’s right kids — Jesse Pinkman lived. Dexter lived. But, your mother didn’t make it. Sleep tight.
Other notable moments included:
* Gwen Stefani doing a “John Travolta [see Oscars slipups]” mispronouncing Stephen Colbert’s name as [Col-Burt Report] when he won for Outstanding Variety Show. Copresenter, Adam Levine, however, did a good job helping her recover
* Jimmy Kimmel roasting Matthew McConaughey calling him out for being a big-time movie star in the Emmy house. “You got so fat since the Oscars I almost didn’t recognize you,” Kimmel joked. “Why is Matthew McConaughey nominated for a television award? Matthew McConaughey doesn’t even own a television. … You may be the best actor but you just won the Oscar like five months ago, no offense, but how many of those speeches are we suppose to sit through?”
* (pictured) Bryan Cranston grabbing Julia Louis-Dreyfus on her way up for her Outstanding Comedy Actress win for Veep and the two kissing. (Earlier in the show there was a reference to his guest starring on Seinfeld as one of Elaine’s former love interests.)
* Matthew McConaughey, again, giving some worldly Woody Harrelson advice that involved solving problems by just forgetting about them
* Billy Crystal’s moving tribute to Robin Williams
* Weird Al Yankovic’s remakes of some current TV theme songs.
* Bryan Cranston’s acceptance speech for Outstanding Actor in a Drama Series. He dedicated his award to all the Sneaky Pete’s in the world (a nickname his family use to use for him) telling them never to settle – “take a chance, take a risk” and rekindle that passion.
* And, props to that Samsung ad for the Curved Ultra HD television – well done
As for who won the 2014 Emmy award for ….
Below are some of the top honors.
Outstanding Drama Series
√ Breaking Bad
Downton Abbey
Game of Thrones
House of Cards
Mad Men
True Detective
Outstanding Comedy Series
Louie
√ Modern Family
Orange Is the New Black
Silicon Valley
The Big Bang Theory
Veep
Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series
√ Bryan Cranston — Breaking Bad
Kevin Spacey — House of Cards
Jon Hamm — Mad Men
Jeff Daniels — The Newsroom
Woody Harrelson — True Detective
Matthew McConaughey — True Detective
Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series
Michelle Dockery — Downton Abbey
Claire Danes — Homeland
Robin Wright — House of Cards
Lizzy Caplan – Masters of Sex
Kerry Washington — Scandal
√ Julianna Margulies — The Good Wife
Outstanding Writing for a Drama Series
√ Breaking Bad — Written by Moira Walley-Beckett
Breaking Bad — Written by Vince Gilligan
Game of Thrones — Written by David Benioff and D.B. Weiss
House of Cards — Written by Beau Willimon
True Detective — Written by Nic Pizzolatto
Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series
√ Anna Gunn — Breaking Bad
Maggie Smith — Downton Abbey
Joanne Froggatt — Downton Abbey
Lena Headey — Game of Thrones
Christina Hendricks — Mad Men
Christine Baranski — The Good Wife
Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series
√ Aaron Paul — Breaking Bad
Jim Carter — Downton Abbey
Peter Dinklage — Game of Thrones
Mandy Patinkin — Homeland
Jon Voight — Ray Donovan
Josh Charles — The Good Wife
Outstanding Directing for a Drama Series
Boardwalk Empire — Directed by Tim Van Patten
Breaking Bad — Directed by Vince Gilligan
Downton Abbey — Directed by David Evans
Game of Thrones — Directed by Neil Marshall
House of Cards — Directed by Carl Franklin
√ True Detective — Directed by Cary Joji Fukunaga
Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series
Ricky Gervais — Derek
Matt LeBlanc — Episodes
Don Cheadle — House of Lies
Louis C.K. — Louie
William H. Macy — Shameless
√ Jim Parsons — The Big Bang Theory
Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series
Lena Dunham — Girls
Melissa McCarthy — Mike & Molly
Edie Falco — Nurse Jackie
Taylor Schilling — Orange Is the New Black
Amy Poehler — Parks and Recreation
√ Julia Louis-Dreyfus — Veep
Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series
Andre Braugher — Brooklyn Nine-Nine
Adam Driver — Girls
√ Ty Burrell — Modern Family
Jesse Tyler Ferguson — Modern Family
Fred Armisen — Portlandia
Tony Hale — Veep
Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series
Julie Bowen — Modern Family
√ Allison Janney — Mom
Kate Mulgrew — Orange Is the New BlackKate McKinnon — Saturday Night Live
Mayim Bialik — The Big Bang Theory
Anna Chlumsky — Veep
Outstanding Writing for a Comedy Series
Episodes — Written by David Crane and Jeffrey Klarik
√ Louie — Written by Louis C.K.
Orange Is the New Black — Written by Liz Friedman and Jenji Kohan
Silicon Valley — Written by Alec Berg
Veep — Story and teleplay by Simon Blackwell and Tony Roche; Story by Armando Iannucci
Outstanding Directing for a Comedy Series
Episodes — Directed by Iain B. MacDonald
Glee — Directed by Paris Barclay
Louie — Directed by Louis C.K.
√ Modern Family — Directed by Gail Mancuso
Orange Is the New Black — Directed by Jodie Foster
Silicon Valley — Directed by Mike Judge
Outstanding Reality-Competition Program
Dancing With the Stars
Project Runway
So You Think You Can Dance
√ The Amazing Race
The Voice
Top Chef
Outstanding Lead Actor in a Miniseries or a Movie
Chiwetel Ejiofor — Dancing on the Edge
Martin Freeman — Fargo
Billy Bob Thornton — Fargo
Idris Elba – Luther
√ Benedict Cumberbatch — Sherlock: His Last Vow
Mark Ruffalo — The Normal Heart
Outstanding Lead Actress in a Miniseries or a Movie
√ Jessica Lange — American Horror Story: Coven
Sarah Paulson — American Horror Story: Coven
Helena Bonham Carter — Burton and Taylor
Minnie Driver — Return to Zero
Kristen Wiig — The Spoils of Babylon
Cicely Tyson — The Trip to Bountiful
Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Miniseries or a Movie
Frances Conroy — American Horror Story: Coven
√ Kathy Bates – American Horror Story: Coven
Angela Bassett — American Horror Story: Coven
Allison Tolman — Fargo
Ellen Burstyn – Flowers in the Attic
Julia Roberts – The Normal Heart
Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Miniseries or a Movie
Colin Hanks — Fargo
√ Martin Freeman — Sherlock: His Last Vow
Jim Parsons — The Normal Heart
Joe Mantello — The Normal Heart
Alfred Molina — The Normal Heart
Matt Bomer — The Normal Heart
Outstanding Directing for a Miniseries, Movie or a Dramatic Special
American Horror Story: Coven — Directed by Alfonso Gomez-Rejon
Fargo — Directed by Adam Bernstein
√ Fargo — Directed by Colin Bucksey
Muhammad Ali’s Greatest Fight — Directed by Stephen Frears
Sherlock: His Last Vow — Directed by Nick Hurran
The Normal Heart — Directed by Ryan Murphy
Outstanding Lead Actor in a Miniseries or a Movie
Chiwetel Ejiofor — Dancing on the Edge
Martin Freeman — Fargo
Billy Bob Thornton — Fargo
Idris Elba – Luther
√ Benedict Cumberbatch — Sherlock: His Last Vow
Mark Ruffalo — The Normal Heart
Outstanding Television Movie
Killing Kennedy
Muhammad Ali’s Greatest Fight
Sherlock: His Last Vow
√ The Normal Heart
The Trip to Bountiful
Outstanding Miniseries
American Horror Story: Coven
Bonnie & Clyde
√ Fargo
Luther
The White Queen
Treme
Outstanding Variety Series
Jimmy Kimmel Live
Real Time With Bill Maher
Saturday Night Live
√ The Colbert Report
The Daily Show With Jon Stewart
The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon
