TELEVISION programs and movies have been in a holding pattern due to the new coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak, so what’s happening with the Emmys? TV’s biggest night is currently still scheduled to go, but the big event could be very different this year, if you do not move forward.
As of the most recent update in the Emmys web site on the 27th of March, the Emmy Awards, have not been postponed or altered in any way. Nominees are still scheduled to be announced on the 28th of July, and the ceremony is still scheduled for Sunday, Sept. 20. The window of eligibility includes shows that aired between June 1, 2019 and on May 31, 2020.
The red carpets are famous, crowded events, and on top of that, the ceremony of delivery of the packages of thousands of people in an auditorium for several hours in the vicinity.
There are a couple of possible problems that could prevent the Emmys, however. The first is the issue of fairness in the judging. As we know by now, a large number of TELEVISION programs were forced to close the production early due to the pandemic. As a result, any shows that were still filming during the first few months of 2020 — that includes almost all of the network TV programs — ended with short periods and stories left hanging in unforeseen ways. This can present a challenge to the nominators and voters: how can you judge the seasons that are incomplete, through no fault of their own against those who, by sheer luck of scheduling, arrived to complete their plans narratives?
It is possible that this will not have an impact as large as it might have years. In recent years, network TV programs, which are largely those most impacted by the principles of stops — I have not done well in the Emmys, doesn’t get more than a handful of nominations. For the most part, the Emmy awards have been dominated by the transmission of shows, and premium cable channels, most of which were able to complete their plans seasons of this year. Previous winners such as The Wonderful Lady Maisel and The Crownamong others, exhibited their eligible seasons long before the pandemic and had filmed several months before the coronavirus was even known.
Even once the problems of judging are out of the way, there is the matter of the ceremony itself. Be sure to keep a big, full of people to meet at the end of September, with the concern of a possible second wave? The red carpets are famous, crowded events, and on top of that, the ceremony of delivery of the packages of thousands of people in an auditorium for several hours in the vicinity. Even a couple of months down the line, this seems to be the exact type of event that it would be prudent to have as long as the virus is still a threat. But unlike the Oscars, which may have a smaller pool of candidates, or the tony awards, that is unlikely to happen since a large part of the season of Broadway was cancelled, the Emmys have had almost a full season of potential candidates; it is not practical to skip or combine the awards in a year. So, what to do?
No plans have been publicly announced, and it is likely that the organizers of the ceremony are waiting to see what the situation is like in a couple of months. Possibilities could include the elimination of the red carpet, or only allowing a couple of photographers and a widely-spaced arrivals, eliminating all non-nominated guests and the institution of social distancing in the seats, which require masks and temperature controls, or other techniques to reduce the risks. In the worst cases, a virtual ceremony could be broadcast, with the candidates and the host broadcasting remotely from their respective homes. This is all speculation, so we’ll have to wait and see how the Emmys decide to handle the ceremony this year is unprecedented.
