Jimmy Kimmel Quinta Brunson Emmy Awards Controversy

Overview

The Jimmy Kimmel Quinta Brunson Emmy Awards Controversy refers to a controversial event stemming from a moment during the 74th Primetime Emmy Awards in September 2022 where comedian Jimmy Kimmel played dead on the stage while actress Quinta Brunson accepted her first Emmy award for Outstanding Writing for a Comedy Series for her TV show Abbott Elementary, where Brunson stepped over him laying on the ground to accept her award. The event inspired accusations of racism, sexism and stealing Brunson's limelight toward Kimmel by some online, while others argued it was inconsequential. Brunson later said the stunt "didn't bother [her] too much" when asked about it after the award show.

History

On September 12th, 2022, the 74th Primetime Emmy Awards aired on television. Quinta Brunson was awarded the Emmy for Outstanding Writing for a Comedy Series for her show Abbott Elementary, her first Emmy Award. The award was presented by actor Will Arnett and talk show host Jimmy Kimmel. That night, Kimmel had lost the award for Variety Talk Series to Last Week Tonight With John Oliver. After the nominees for Outstanding Writing were read, Arnett pulled Kimmel onto the stage by his feet as if Kimmel was dead as part of a skit, joking that he died after losing the Variety Talk Series award. Arnett announced Brunson as the winner but Kimmel continued to play dead on stage as she walked up to the stage and made her acceptance speech (shown below).

People began discussing the skit online shortly after it happened. Brunson responded to the skit that night during an interview in the Emmys press room after the show. During the interview, she said she knows and likes Kimmel and says the bit "didn't bother [her] that much," saying, "I don't know what the internet thinks, but I don't know." She also praised Kimmel for giving her her first big late-night spot and supporting Abbott Elementary. She then revealed she'd be going on his show the next week, saying, "Tomorrow, maybe I'll be mad at him. I'm going to be on his show on Wednesday, so I might punch him in the face. I don't know what's going to happen" (shown below, left). Kimmel also praised Brunson in an interview with Entertainment Tonight after the show (shown below, right).

Online Reactions

Shortly after the award was given out, people online then began criticizing Kimmel for staying on stage and playing dead as Brunson accepted her award, some framing Kimmel's bit as racist and sexist, others saying it was disrespectful and took away from her time in the spotlight (examples shown below, left and right).

On September 12th, 2022, Twitter^[1] user @CandiceBenbow wrote, "Jimmy Kimmel owes Quinta an apology but the messed up part is every image of her accepting her award has his ass in it. White men really are insufferable," garnering over 22,000 likes in a day. That same night, Twitter^[2] user @gpirnia wrote, "Quinta Brunson deserved better than giving her acceptance over Jimmy Kimmel’s 'dead' body," garnering over 34,000 likes in a day. BuzzFeed tweeted^[3] celebrating her win, commenting with a photo of Kimmel on the stage, writing, "Jimmy Kimmel, get out of the way! #Emmys2022," garnering over 2,000 likes in a day. Twitter^[4] user @InspectorNerd wrote a tweet suggesting Kimmel was jealous of her win, which is why he stayed on stage, garnering over 2,000 likes in a day.

The controversy was reported on by numerous media outlets into the following day, including People,^[5] CNN,^[6] BuzzFeed^[7] and Entertainment Tonight.^[8]

Search Interest

External References