Eddie Murphy’s long-awaited return to Saturday Night Live late last year has earned the legendary comedian and actor his first-ever Emmy Award.
During the fourth and final night of the Creative Emmy Awards, Murphy won Outstanding Guest Actor in a Comedy Series for his turn hosting SNL. The December 2019 episode marked Murphy’s first time hosting the sketch comedy show in 30 years, and saw him reprise many beloved characters from his time as a cast member, including Mister Robinson, Gumby, Buckwheat, and Velvet Jones.
Murphy had been nominated for Emmys twice before during his time on SNL in the early 1980s, but this marks his first-ever victory.
Meanwhile, Maya Rudolph’s SNL portrayal of Democratic vice presidential candidate Kamala Harris earned her Outstanding Guest Actor in a Comedy Series, the fifth Emmy Award of her career. Rudolph is set to reprise her portrayal of Harris in SNL’s upcoming 46th season.
Other winners during tonight’s Creative Emmy Awards included ESPN’s Michael Jordan doc The Last Dance, which captured Best Documentary or Nonfiction Series, and comedian Dave Chappelle, whose Netflix special Sticks & Stones won the award for Best Variety Special (Pre-Recorded).
Earlier in the week, Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross’ score for Watchmen won Outstanding Music Composition for a Series. It marked the duo’s first Emmy Award and brought them one step closer to achieving EGOT status.
Of course, this week’s Creative Emmys were merely a prelude to tomorrow night’s main event. Check out our predictions for this year’s winners, and stay tuned for our full coverage of the festivities.
