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\'Abbott Elementary\' cast
\'Abbott Elementary\' cast
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Culture > Entertainment

‘Abbott Elementary’ Didn’t Win Any Emmys & Fans Are Pissed

McKinley Franklin

Another year, another Emmys in the bag! Hollywood’s biggest night in television has come and gone once more, but not without a few surprise wins and snubs that got the internet talking. On the bright side, The Traitors, one of my favorite series in the past year, took home the win for Outstanding Reality Competition Program in a heated race against none other than longtime Emmy powerhouse RuPaul’s Drag Race. But for ABC’s beloved sitcom Abbott Elementary, it notably took home no Emmy statuettes, and fans have some thoughts.

Despite being nominated in nine different categories, Quinta Brunson’s Abbott Elementary was one of the most snubbed show’s at this year’s Emmy awards. Who was Abbott’s main competitor? The Bear, which broke plenty of records during the Sept. 15 awards ceremony. Starring Jeremy Allen White and Ayo Edebiri, The Bear snatched up 11 different comedy wins, notably setting a record for the most wins for a show in one season in the coveted category. Despite The Bear dominating the night in “comedy,” the series is facing criticism for its sweep at the 2024 Emmys.

There’s always much discourse surrounding labeling The Bear as a comedy due to its tendency to lean towards a drama. I mean, if you do a quick Google search, it literally labels the show as a “comedy-drama,” proving that everyone is not on the same page about where it should fall in regards to the Emmys. 

That didn’t stop the Television Academy from eating The Bear up, though, and the FX series took home some of the top titles in comedy, including White’s win as Lead Actor, Ebon Moss-Bachrach for Supporting Actor, and Supporting Actress won by Liza Colón-Zayas, all in the Comedy Series niche. 

Instead of commending The Bear’s success, fans online called out the Television Academy for their blurred category criteria that led the show to dominate the awards ceremony while leaving other incredible series, like Abbott Elementary, high and dry. One user on X/Twitter encapsulated this sentiment perfectly, urging the Academy “to fix the category criteria before next year’s #Emmys because ‘The Bear’ sweeping comedy over shows like ‘Abbott Elementary’ is actually infuriating.” 

Fans aren’t the only ones not keen on The Bear being labeled a comedy, though. Hosts of the 2024 Emmys, Dan and Eugene Levy, poked fun at the show’s accolades before any Emmy stattuettes were given out at the top of the night. Eugene pointed out that with 23 nominations, The Bear is the “most nominated comedy in history.” 

Poking fun at what most people were thinking, Eugene added, “I love the show and I know some of you might be expecting us to make a joke about whether ‘The Bear’ is really a comedy. But, in the true spirit of ‘The Bear,’ we will not be making any joke.” Shots fired, right?

It’s clear the Television Academy could care less about the backlash surrounding the series because the show went on to dominate the night. However, The Bear didn’t take home the prestigious win for Best Comedy Series, but that didn’t stop fans outrage with the show blocking Abbott Elementary from taking home any wins. 

One X user said that it “should be illegal” for The Bear to take home Emmy wins” while Abbott walked away from the night “empy-handed.” Another user on X highlighted that “‘Abbott Elementary’ going home empty-handed this Emmy cycle for one of its best season feels…so wrong.”

I believe the public outrage surrounding Abbott Elementary’s losses is certainly justified. However, do I really think the Television Academy is going to listen to the internet’s outrage in support of the show? Unfortunately, probably not.

McKinley Franklin is a writer and recent college graduate from East Carolina University. She was Her Campus' fall 2022 entertainment and culture intern and is a current national writer. McKinley specializes in entertainment coverage, though her favorite niche of the industry is reality television.