The 71st Annual Primetime Emmy Awards, one of the biggest award shows in television, have been officially delayed due to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. The awards ceremony had been scheduled to take place on September 22, 2020, but the organizers have been forced to postpone it in order to protect the safety of staff and participants.
The ceremony as well as the related activities of red carpets, press junkets and backstage interviews usually take a lot of preparation and involve a large number of personnel, which would have been impossible under the present circumstances. The Emmy Awards is an event usually attended by television stars from all over the world, and with so many international travelers having to quarantine, a large-scale event like this was impossible to manage.
The organizers of the Emmy Awards, the Television Academy, had promised to review the situation and offered regular updates about the situation but they have now officially confirmed the delay of the Emmy Awards based on the current health crisis.
In a statement, the organizers said that, “The health and safety of all those who work in television and contribute to making the Emmy Awards one of television’s most prestigious events remain of utmost priority”. The new date for the Emmy Awards has yet to be announced.
However, the Television Academy has already taken steps to start the Emmy nomination process. Submissions that had been accepted in March have now been extended through to the end of this month. This would allow more time for any unfinished projects and allow for any last-minute submissions.
The Television Academy is also encouraging members of the Academy to take part in the Creative Arts Emmy Awards which does not require the same scale of production as the usual awards ceremony and can be completed remotely.
The coronavirus pandemic has already disrupted the entertainment industry for several months now and this delay is likely to further disrupt the 2020 Television season. With so many of the 2020 Television season shows and movies yet to premier, the delay of the Emmy Awards could mean that these projects would be unable to compete for this year’s awards unless the network or studio manages to make an early submission.
The delay of the Emmy Awards has caused uncertainty about the future of awards and red carpet events but fans are hopeful that they will be able to see the annual event eventually. For now, the television industry is waiting to see when a new date can be officially announced.
Hey Subscribe to our newsletter for more articles like this directly to your email.