On the eve of the Emmy Awards, it’s become tradition for TV’s top nominees to celebrate their achievements at the annual FX and Vanity Fair Emmy Party. Saturday night’s blowout bash was no exception. The soirée buzzed with animated conversations—from the hectic Emmy ceremony schedule at the Peacock Theater in downtown Los Angeles to highly anticipated upcoming television projects in the works. Cast and creators from The Bear, Dying For Sex and What We Do in the Shadows mixed and mingled over cocktails and enjoyed the relaxing scene ahead of TV’s biggest night on Sunday.
FX received 35 Emmy nominations total this awards cycle. Season three of The Bear was the network’s most celebrated title, cooking up 13 nods including outstanding comedy series. The limited series Dying For Sex, starring Michelle Williams, received six nominations, including for outstanding limited or anthology series and lead actress.
Hosted at the historic Chateau Marmont, the opulent cocktail party unfolded across the hotel’s cozy living room and lavish outdoor terrace, where about 180 guests from the network sipped on cocktails and nibbled on lobster rolls, wagyu sliders and fries. The Bear’s Ebon Moss-Bachrach was the first guest to arrive with his wife, photographer Yelena Yemchuk. Last year, Moss-Bachrach won his second consecutive Emmy for best supporting actor in a comedy series for playing Richie, an abrasive friend of Carmy (Jeremy Allen White) who finds redemption after a period of personal loss and struggle. His winning streak at the Emmys may not have come to an end yet: Moss-Bachrach is nominated once again in the same category at Sunday’s ceremony, and is a top contender to win a third time.
“I never really dreamed or thought about winning awards. I was just trying to get jobs to pay my bills,” said Moss-Bachrach while taking a quick breather from mingling. “I feel very gratified that something I care so deeply about has been accepted and lauded by my community and the world. It feels really great. I know I’m lucky.”
Moss-Bachrach set the party’s lively tone, making the rounds and socializing with nearly everyone. He caught up with his Bear costars Abby Elliott, Lionel Boyce, Edwin Lee Gibson, Matty Matheson, and Molly Gordon, as well as his Brooklyn neighbors Keri Russell and Matthew Rhys (who famously fell in love while starring on FX’s The Americans). At one point, Moss-Bachrach even exchanged phone numbers with Jenny Slate, a nominee for her work in Dying For Sex. Later in the evening, he connected with Michael Chiklis, the 2002 best actor Emmy winner for the FX police drama series The Shield. The two laughed as a guest noted that had played The Thing in different versions of the Fantastic Four franchise.
Anna Sawai, last year’s winner of best actress in a drama series for Shōgun, showed up at the soirée in a stunning white frock and met with her costar Hiroyuki Sanada, who earned the best actor in a drama series Emmy last year. The duo will return to the Emmy stage on Sunday as presenters for the first time since Shōgun nabbed 18 Emmy awards—the most of any show in television history. As Sawai’s reign ends, she has some tips for the 33 performers who received their first Emmy nominations for acting this awards cycle.
“I was so nervous, and I know everyone is going to be that way. So my advice is try to be in the moment and try to enjoy it ‘cause it’s a once in a lifetime experience,” she said. “And maybe don’t drink too much. I wasn’t drinking anything ‘cause I didn’t want to go to the bathroom and miss my category. So bring a snack, like a gummy.”
Slate is among those who have their first shot at Emmy gold on Sunday. She’s nominated in the limited series supporting actress category for Dying for Sex. Slate likened getting her Emmy nod to “jumping into a swimming pool on a very hot day.” The Saturday Night Live and Parks and Recreation alum also said that the recognition is “a relief, in terms of meeting my own goals or my own expectations for evolving as a performer. I’m just incredibly happy,” she said. “From this role, I’ve learned to respect my intensity and not shy away from exploring my extremes. It’s a power of mine, and not a liability.”
While Slate prepares for the ceremony, she’s slightly worried about one thing: “I’m always nervous when I don’t know where the food or bathroom will be.”
Soon, Slate linked up with her Dying For Sex showrunner Liz Meriwether and her costar Michelle Williams, who could win her second Emmy Award for a heart-wrenching role based loosely on the real-life experiences of Molly Kochan. After Williams’s Molly is diagnosed with stage IV metastatic breast cancer, she leaves her husband of 15 years so that she can explore her sexuality. Williams’s first Emmy was for FX’s Fosse/Verdon in 2019.
“Taking this role was honestly scary, but I like to do things that I haven’t done before,” Williams said after posing for some photos with Meriwether. “The immediate draw was I really wasn’t sure if I could do it. But I want to try it, and it’s taught me a lot. I think about Molly and her enduring effect on how I live and, the way I want to live to the extent of her bravery and her pursuit of pleasure without shame. I continue to aspire to her level of bravery.”
John Solberg, FX’s Executive Vice President of Publicity, officially kicked off the evening’s festivities by corralling partygoers—including Dana Walden, co-chairman of Disney Entertainment—into the garden terrace for a toast. He reminded the crowd that the FX and Vanity Fair Emmy Party started in 2016, and introduced Nick Grad and Gina Balian, both presidents of FX Entertainment. “We are in a room full of people that we admire whose work represents the best of the best,” he said. “Our job is to help you—the storytellers—to bring joy, understanding and a few scares to audiences all over the world.”
Grad gave a shout-out to all the individual nominees and also took a moment to recognize Solberg, who is retiring from a role that he’s had for 28 years. “He’s been FX’s greatest champion, and he did his job with integrity, sincerity, passion and with a big Texas laugh,” Grad told the crowd. “So much of who we are has been cultivated by you John.”
Also saying farewell is What We Do in the Shadows. The sixth and final season of the horror/comedy series scored six Emmy nominations, including outstanding comedy series for the fourth time. “This is a niche kind of show and to get any kind of nomination from a show that isn’t mainstream is an achievement,” said Matt Berry, who stars as Laszlo, one of four vampires living in Staten Island. “I can honestly say we’ve really enjoyed this, and it ended at the right time. Everyone was at the top of their game. The show ended in the right way.”
The rousing night also included Sydney Chandler, Alex Lawther, and Richa Moorjani, who star on Alien: Earth—FX’s new science fiction horror series created by Noah Hawley, the director behind the critically acclaimed series Fargo. It is the first television series in the Alien franchise, set two years before the events of the 1979 film Alien.
As the party drew to a close and guests said their goodbyes, Moss-Bachrach summed up the evening: “These awards are weird, because most of the room loses. But parties like these are better,” he said. “Everyone still leaves as a winner.”
Set designer: Colin Phelan. Producer: Preiss Creative. Sittings editor: Jake Sammis. On-set hairstylist: Ramsell Martinez. On-set makeup artist: Carla Perez.
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