Watchmen, the most-nominated show at this year’s unique Emmy awards celebration, picked up an impressive pile of hardware in major categories like Outstanding Limited Series, Best Actress, Best Supporting Actor, and Outstanding Writing for a Limited Series. Regina King kicked off the winning streak for the HBO series, a show in which she stars as a masked hero/vigilante trying to survive in a dystopian alternate reality, the impetus of which is the real-life 1921 Tulsa massacre.With a total of 26 noms from Television Academy voters, it was almost a sure thing that
Watchmen, based on a comic book series written by Alan Moore, would get some love at the Emmys (once the Schitt's Sweep finally ended). And so it did, with King breaking the Canadian winning streak with her Best Actress in a Limited Series triumph (and fresh off of her highly
acclaimed directorial debut at TIFF, too). Wearing a ‘Say Her Name’ t-shirt with Breonna Taylor’s face on it, King thanked her fellow nominees, Kerry Washington, Octavia Spencer, Shira Haas and Cate Blanchett. “It’s an honour to be in this category with you,” said King, before shouting out showrunner (and Outstanding Writing award winner) Damon Lindelof for leading his cast on a journey where they could use “art to speak truth to power.”[video_embed id='-1']RELATED: Regina King wins the Emmy for Outstanding Actress in a Limited Series[/video_embed]And while she was on the topic of power? “You gotta vote,” King reminded viewers at the close of her acceptance speech. “I would be remiss not to mention that, being on a show as prescient as this. Rest in power, RBG,” she added, in a nod to legendary Supreme Court Justice
Ruth Bader Ginsberg, who died over the weekend.When co-writers Lindelof and Cord Jefferson accepted their award, Jefferson made sure to mention the women and men who died in Tulsa. Later when
Watchmen won the big prize for Outstanding Limited Series, Lindelof dedicated the award to them.Like King,
Watchmen actor Yahya Abdul-Mateen II accepted his Emmy for Best Supporting Actor in a Limited Series from the comfort of his living room (or hotel suite) and like Lindelof, he too had a dedication in mind: "I dedicate this award to all the Black women in my life,” said Abdul-Mateen. “The people who believed in me first."As host Jimmy Kimmel pointed out at the beginning of the ceremony, for every trophy they collect, winners will donate $100,000 to No Kid Hungry (totalling $2.8 million by the end of the evening). So far, it looks like a race between
Watchmen and
Schitt's Creek in terms of who will be writing the biggest cheque.[video_embed id='2036580']BEFORE YOU GO: This year's Emmy nominees, presenters and producers represent a diverse group[/video_embed]
