“The Crown” swept the drama awards at the Emmys on Sunday (Monday in the Philippines) to finally coronate Netflix with a top prize on television’s biggest night, as the streaming giant also claimed best limited series honors for “The Queen’s Gambit.”
Netflix has transformed the TV landscape since creating its first original show in 2012, but had never won any top series prize before Sunday’s ceremony — the small-screen equivalent of the Oscars.
In the comedy categories, Apple TV+’s “Ted Lasso” was the big winner.
A reduced audience of top television stars gathered in person for the event in Los Angeles for the first time in two years — it was held at a partially outdoor venue due to ongoing COVID-19 concerns.
The fourth season of the wildly popular British royal series depicted the ill-fated marriage of Prince Charles and Princess Diana.
Olivia Colman — who previously won an Oscar for playing Britain’s Queen Anne in “The Favourite” — scooped best actress for portraying her descendant Queen Elizabeth II.
Colman paid tribute to her father who died during the COVID-19 pandemic and “would have loved all of this,” as she collected an award that had been widely expected to go to her co-star Emma Corrin, who portrayed a young Diana.
Josh O’Connor, named best actor for playing Charles, praised Corrin as a “force of nature” and said making the show had been “the most rewarding two years of my life.”
“The Crown” also won both supporting actor prizes — including one for Gillian Anderson for her portrayal of Margaret Thatcher — and awards for best writing and directing.
Its tally including technical awards handed out before Sunday’s ceremony came to 11 — tied this year with “The Queen’s Gambit,” and one short of the drama record held by “Game of Thrones.”
“The Queen’s Gambit,” a limited series about a troubled orphaned girl who storms the world of professional chess, sent chessboard sales skyrocketing worldwide on its release last October.
