2025 Creative Arts Emmy Awards Night Two: ‘SNL50’ Dominates, ‘Pee-Wee as Himself’ Wins Big
Night Two of the Creative Arts Emmy Awards took place tonight where SNL50: The Anniversary Special was the dominate winner with eight awards, including Outstanding Variety Special (Live), as well as writing and directing. The writing win made SNL regulars Michael Che, Mikey Day and Colin Jost first time Emmy winners. The Saturday Night Live main show also brought in three awards, bringing the franchise total tonight to 11.
Next up was the Emmys’ new favorite reality show, The Traitors. With five wins, including the second in a row for Alan Cumming as Outstanding Host, the Peacock show has replaced RuPaul’s Drag Race as the favorite competition series of the Television Academy.
Pee-Wee as Himself, the two-part non-fiction series about the late Paul Reubens, who passed away before filming ended, was a triple winner: Outstanding Documentary or Nonfiction Special, Directing and Picture Editing. As executive producers, writers/direcors/producers Benny and Josh Safdie are now Emmy winners.
Queer Eye won the Emmy for Outstanding Structured Reality Program for the 7th time. It previously won six years in a row, lost to Shark Tank last year, then regained the crown tonight, its first season with Bobby Berk’s replacement, interior designer Jeremiah Brent.
Former President Barack Obama won his 3rd Emmy for Outstanding Narrator (for Netflix’s Our Oceans), going 3/3 on his nominations in that category.
While there are no official hosts for the Creative Arts Emmy Awards, like Maya Rudolph on night one, comedian Sarah Silverman, who was nominated tonight but eventually lost, opened the show.
“This one is the real Emmys, for the people who make television happen,” she said. “For the artists and the crafts people who build, light, design and dress the stages and the sets. The music makers, the dancing artists, the directors and the assistant directors and the stage managers who keep everything on track, the sound department… but I’m gonna be honest, this is the Emmys for the people, the people who run the Emmys don’t think should be seen on network TV. And I think that’s despicable. You know, you are the backbone of this industry, and they want you kept in the back. It’s bullshit!”
Here is the complete list of winners from night two of the Creative Arts Emmy Awards (see night one winners here). Next Saturday, September 13, FXX will air a televised version of both nights. The 77th Primetime Emmy Awards will air live on CBS and Paramount+ on Sunday, September 14 at 5pm PT.
Outstanding Casting for a Reality Program: Love on the Spectrum
Outstanding Choreography for Variety or Reality Programming: The 67th Annual Grammy Awards (Doechii Musical Performance)
Outstanding Cinematography for a Nonfiction Program 100 Foot Wave
Outstanding Cinematography for a Reality Program: The Traitors
Outstanding Commercial: Brian Cox Goes to College (Uber One for Students)
Outstanding Costumes for Variety, Nonfiction or Reality Programming: Beyoncé Bowl
Outstanding Directing for a Documentary/Nonfiction Program: Matt Wolf, Pee-wee as Himself
Outstanding Directing for a Reality Program: Ben Archard, The Traitors
Outstanding Directing for a Variety Series: Jim Hoskinson, The Late Show with Stephen Colbert
Outstanding Directing for a Variety Special: Liz Patrick, SNL50: The Anniversary Special
Outstanding Documentary or Nonfiction Series: 100 Foot Wave
Outstanding Documentary or Nonfiction Special: Pee-wee as Himself
Outstanding Emerging Media Program: SNL 50th The Anniversary Special: Immersive Experience
Outstanding Exceptional Merit in Documentary Filmmaking: Patrice: The Movie
Outstanding Game Show: Jeopardy!
Outstanding Hairstyling for a Variety, Nonfiction or Reality Program: SNL50: The Anniversary Special
Outstanding Host for a Game Show: Jimmy Kimmel, Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?
Outstanding Host for a Reality or Reality Competition Program: Alan Cumming, The Traitors
Outstanding Hosted Nonfiction Series or Special: Conan O’Brien Must Go
Outstanding Innovation in Emerging Media Programming: White Rabbit
Outstanding Lighting Design/Lighting Direction for a Variety Series: Saturday Night Live
Outstanding Lighting Design/Lighting Direction for a Variety Special: The 67th Annual Grammy Awards
Outstanding Makeup for a Variety, Nonfiction or Reality Program: SNL50: The Anniversary Special
Outstanding Music Composition for a Documentary Series or Special (Original Dramatic Score): Chef’s Table
Outstanding Music Direction: The Apple Music Super Bowl LIX Halftime Show Starring Kendrick Lamar
Outstanding Narrator: Barack Obama, Our Oceans
Outstanding Picture Editing for a Nonfiction Program: Pee-wee as Himself
Outstanding Picture Editing for a Structured Reality or Competition Program: The Traitors (“Let Battle Commence”)
Outstanding Picture Editing for an Unstructured Reality Program: Welcome to Wrexham (“Down to the Wire”)
Outstanding Picture Editing for Variety Programming: Cunk on Life
Outstanding Picture Editing for Variety Programming (Segment): SNL50: The Anniversary Special: “Physical Comedy”
Outstanding Production Design for a Variety Special: The Oscars
Outstanding Production Design for a Variety or Reality Series: Saturday Night Live
Outstanding Short Form Comedy, Drama or Variety Series: The Daily Show: Desi Lydic Foxsplains
Outstanding Short Form Nonfiction or Reality Series: Adolescence: The Making of Adolescence
Outstanding Sound Editing for a Nonfiction or Reality Program: Music by John Williams
Outstanding Sound Mixing for a Nonfiction Program: Beatles ’64
Outstanding Sound Mixing for a Reality Program: Welcome to Wrexham (“Down to the Wire”)
Outstanding Sound Mixing for a Variety Series or Special: SNL50: The Anniversary Special
Outstanding Structured Reality Program: Queer Eye
Outstanding Technical Direction and Camerawork for a Series: Saturday Night Live (“Host: Jack Black”)
Outstanding Technical Direction and Camerawork for a Special: SNL50: The Anniversary Special
Outstanding Unstructured Reality Program: Love on the Spectrum
Outstanding Variety Special (Live): SNL50: The Anniversary Special
Outstanding Variety Special (Pre-Recorded): Conan O’Brien: The Kennedy Center Mark Twain Prize for American Humor
Outstanding Writing for a Nonfiction Program: The Daily Show Presents: Jordan Klepper Fingers the Pulse: MAGA: The Next Generation
Outstanding Writing for a Variety Special: SNL50: The Anniversary Special
He is a Rotten Tomatoes-approved critic, accredited by the Cannes Film Festival, Telluride Film Festival, Toronto International Film Festival and more, is a member of the International Cinephile Society (ICS), The Society of LGBTQ Entertainment Critics (GALECA), Critics Choice Association (CCA), San Francisco Bay Area Film Critics Circle (SFBAFCC) and the International Press Academy. Among his many achieved goals with AwardsWatch, he has given a platform to underrepresented writers and critics and supplied them with access to film festivals and the industry and calls the Bay Area his home where he lives with his husband and son.
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