According to RECODE ,When Hulu’s “The Handmaid’s Tale” won an Emmy last night for outstanding television drama, it wasn’t just a win for Hulu, which distributes the show, but a win for streaming TV more broadly.
Streaming services Netflix, Amazon and Hulu have been pouring money into original programmingin recent years and their investments are paying off, as evidenced by their spate of Emmys.
To illustrate, we took a look at Emmy winners since 2010 for outstanding series, actress, actor and direction in both comedy and drama categories. This year, Hulu’s dystopian “The Handmaid’s Tale”took home Emmys for leading actress Elizabeth Moss and director Reed Morano in addition to being the winning drama series — firsts for the streaming company. Netflix’s “House of Cards” was the first streaming company to win an Emmy for direction in 2013. Amazon’s “Transparent” won Emmys for both lead actor and direction in 2015 and 2016.
These streaming companies have also swarmed other awards not included in the chart above. Lena Waithe and Aziz Ansari from Netflix’s “Master of None” won in the comedy writing category this year, for example. In total, streaming companies picked up 32 Emmys this year (HBO took home 29).
These awards should scare the traditional “Big Three” TV networks CBS, ABC and NBC, which have seen viewership decline, in part as consumers cut the cord and find entertainment over the internet — including through Netflix, Amazon and Hulu
CNN also report that Hulu executives were ecstatic. Immediately after the awards telecast, Hulu CEO Mike Hopkins celebrated with the cast and producers.
“This is an incredible night for Hulu and ‘The Handmaid’s Tale,'” Hopkins told CNNMoney via email from backstage. “We’re so proud and grateful that this groundbreaking story has made Emmys history!”
All told, “The Handmaid’s Tale” won five Emmys on Sunday night and picked up three more at the Creative Arts Emmy Awards ceremony last week.
This was the drama’s first season, which makes the sheer number of wins even more remarkable.
Hulu ordered a second season of the show back in May.
On Sunday night Elisabeth Moss won the award for lead actress in a drama and Ann Dowd won in the supporting actress category. The show was also honored for writing, directing and cinematography.
The drama’s stars and producers celebrated at a late-night bash hosted by Hulu in Los Angeles. The streaming service evidently picked the right year to start throwing an Emmys party.
The Emmys are as self-congratulatory as anything in Hollywood. But the awards matter, at least a little bit, because they secure bragging rights and industry-wide recognition. Winners always hope that the awards and the news media attention will encourage new viewers to sample their shows.
For Hulu, there’s also an opportunity to convert viewers to paying subscribers.
Overall, this year’s Emmys demonstrated the ongoing competition between traditional TV networks (which now have streaming options) and newer streaming services.
HBO finished Emmys season with 29 Emmy statues, leading the pack for the 17th consecutive year. Netflix picked up 20, NBC had 15, and Hulu had 10.
Hulu has millions of fans, but it’s much smaller than Netflix. The company launched in 2008 as a platform for catching up on shows that had already aired on NBC, Fox and other networks.
READ ALSO – The complete list of 2017 Emmy winners and nominees
The company’s evolution mirrors the dramatic changes that have happened in the TV business since then.
Hulu is now a joint venture between four big media companies — 21st Century Fox, Disney, Comcast, and Time Warner. (CNN is a unit of Time Warner.) It still carries shows from other networks, but it is prioritizing its original shows, like “The Handmaid’s Tale,” “Casual,” and “Difficult People.”
The company is also promoting its paid subscriptions, which give users full access to shows, and a new live TV option, which mimics the cable bundle.
Hulu oftentimes finds itself in the shadow of Netflix and Amazon. Netflix was seen as a party-crasher back in 2013 when “House of Cards” was nominated for multiple Emmys.
But now, in 2017, it’s presumed that the streaming services will compete in virtually every major Emmys category with the traditional TV networks. What a difference a few years makes.
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