Roy Kent Is Everywhere ... and That's the Problem

In accepting his Emmy for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series firsttime nominee Jason Sudeikis channeled his character39s humble empathic and equityoriented persona by giving all the credit to his team Then he joined the rest of the cast backstage to answer questions from the press and the typecasting continued A reporter asked Jason what Ted Lasso would say about the moment and I leaned in with anticipation After all at the season two premiere Jason pulled a Ted Lasso by using the platform to express his solidarity with the three Black British footballers who had endured racist epithets and death threats after missing penalties in the Euro 2020 Final wearing a Tshirt emblazoned with their names quotJadon ampamp Marcus ampamp BukayoquotAnd since 34 2367 of the Emmy nominees across all the major acting categories were Black but 100 of the winners were white I figured it would be on brand for Jason to take out his coach39s whistle and tell the Television Academy to take a lap Perhaps he39d even do a selfdeprecating bit asking why he got to jump the line in front of Anthony Anderson star and creator of blackish who has been nominated ten times for the two awards Jason won on his first time out Outstanding Lead Actor in aamp160Comedy Series and Outstanding Comedy Series but whose record now stands at 07 and 03 respectivelyBut alas that would have been a downer So instead Jason sweetly speculated that Ted would be quotmore thrilled about the rewards of doing good work with people that you like than getting the awards for having done itquot And when an obsequious reporter from Entertainment Tonight asked if the cast would do the Roy Kent cheer they all happily obliged quotHe39s here He39s there He39s every famp8212where Roy Kent Roy KentquotAnd in a sense they39re right The Emmys are if nothing else a deeply subjective measure of taste No comedy drama or quotlimited or anthology series or moviequot for that matter is objectively quotoutstandingquot The trophies are given out to who and whatever the members of the Television Academy happen to like best It39s a glorified popularity contest for television talent supposedly adjudicated by their own peers in the industry But who exactly are these peers whose collective preferences will tip the scales in favor of some and away from others Well in a word Roy KentIn the show Roy Kent is a former star player at the end of his career And though his glory days are behind him as team captain he39s still in charge Sound familiar The Television Academy which puts on the Emmys was founded in 1948 and its voting membership has been built over an era largely dominated by white men So it stands to reason that much if not most of the Academy39s 25000amp160members are like Roy still white and still men Of course we can39t know for sure because the membership list is private but when the Hollywood Foreign Press Association which awards the Golden Globes got busted for not having a single Black member the Television Academy quickly retained a diversity consulting firm and promised reform so as to not suffer a similar fateTo be sure some BIPOC actors won Emmys this year but only in the guest and host categories the relative importance of which can be surmised by their complete and utter absence from both the televised show and quotThe Official Press Release for the Complete Listing of 73rd Emmyamp174 Awards Winnersquot As such these awards are secondtier their relative lack of exposure making them akin to consolation prizesAnd keeping with the theme Black talent was performatively cast in many of the Emmys39 hosting and presenter roles perhaps none more memorably tonedeaf and yet wonderfully subversive than the quotNo Emmy Support Groupquot sketch dutifully introduced by Samira Wiley and featuring the show host Cedric the Entertainer patiently comforting and encouraging five white actors whining about not winning quotI want my Emmy amp8230 I39ve been in the business 47 years amp8230 Where39s my famp8212cking EmmyquotWhile ostensibly a lighthearted riff on actors39 infamous egomania and sense of entitlement the sketch perhaps unwittingly made a deeper point Scott Bakula and Jason Alexander bemoaning their multiple nominations then getting into a pissing contest about seniority played like a behindthescenes glimpse of the innerworkings of the Television Academy where white men cling to their role as the arbiters of good taste and insist that quotoutstandingquot is what they say it is But just imagine what they would say if Anthony Anderson had walked in Or better yet Laverne Cox who used her platform at last year39s Emmy Awards show to take a risk go off script and speak truth to powerquotI am living proof of the American dream that anyone in this country can lose the Emmy four years in the same category and yet somehow end up on this stage presenting an award to someone who probably didn39t effing vote for me What happens to an American dream deferred Does it shrivel up like a raisin in the sunquotIsn39t this the kind of underdog teammate that Ted Lasso would want us to root for And if he was coaching the Television Academy wouldn39t he give them his famous pep talkquotWe39re broken We need to change most of the time change is a good thing And I think that39s what it39s all about Embracing change Being bravequotAt the end of season one Roy sees the writing on the wall steps aside and hangs up his cleats To stay relevant to an increasingly multicultural society the Television Academy needs to find ways for their legacy members to look past their own preferences for familiar genres and stories and pivot towards a future where the Emmys celebrate and award innovative entertainment from a diverse range of talent Can they do it Well despite a long track record of EmmysSoWhite quotI believe in hope I believe in 39Believe39quotPhoto at top courtesy of Christopher BoultonClick the social buttons to share this story with colleagues and friendsThe opinions expressed here are the author39s views and do not necessarily represent the views of MediaVillagecomMyersBizNet

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Roy Kent Is Everywhere ... and That's the Problem

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Christopher Boulton

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Roy Kent Is Everywhere ... and That's the Problem

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