Emmys 2021: The Crown Wins Outstanding Drama Series

The 2021 Emmy Awards returned to familiar form on Sunday night with a live, in-person event broadcast around the globe from outside the Microsoft Theater in Los Angeles with the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences recognizing some of the best in television from the past year. Among those are some of the best among drama series with The Crown winning for Best Drama Series.

The Best Drama Series category was packed with steep competition, with a strong showing from streaming platforms. Nominated were The Crown (Netflix), Star Wars: The Mandalorian (Disney+), The Handmaid’s Tale (Hulu), Bridgerton (Netflix), Pose (FX), Lovecraft Country (HBO), The Boys (Amazon Prime), and This Is Us (NBC).

Going into the awards, The Crown was heavily favored to win. Earlier this year the series won Best TV Drama at the 2021 Golden Globes as well as Best Drama Series at the Critics Choice Television Awards. The Crown traces the life of Queen Elizabeth II from her wedding in 1947 to Philip Mountbatten, until the early 21st century. The first season depicts events up to 1955, with Winston Churchill resigning as prime minister and the Queen’s sister Princess Margaret deciding not to marry Peter Townsend. The second season covers the Suez Crisis in 1956 leading to the retirement of Prime Minister Anthony Eden, the retirement of Prime Minister Harold Macmillan in 1963 following the Profumo affair political scandal, and the birth of Prince Edward in 1964. The third season covers 1964 to 1977, beginning with Harold Wilson’s election as prime minister and ending with her Silver Jubilee, also covering Edward Heath’s time as prime minister. The third season also introduces Camilla Shand. The fourth season is set during Margaret Thatcher’s premiership and features Lady Diana Spencer while introducing Prince William and Prince Harry. Two additional seasons of the series are expected with Season 5 anticipated to debut on Netflix sometime in 2022

The Crown was nominated for a total of 24 Emmys and ahead of Sunday’s Primetime Emmys had already won four at the previously awarded Creative Arts Emmys including Outstanding Guest Actress in a Drama Series for Clair Foy, Outstanding Casting in a Drama Series, Outstanding Cinematography for a Single-Camera Series (One Hour), and Outstanding Single-Camera Picture Editing for a Drama Series.

What do you think of the winner for Best Drama Series at the 73rd annual Primetime Emmy Awards? Do you think The Crown should have won or were you hoping another show would win? Let us know your thoughts in the comments!