Emmys 2012 Award 'Homeland' And 'Modern Family'

And the winners are… Homeland and Modern Family, by a long shot. The 64th Primetime Emmy Awards, hosted by Jimmy Kimmel, awarded the top drama prizes to the Showtime political drama about a bipolar CIA agent (Claire Danes) and a treasonous Marine (Damian Lewis) who may or may not be working as a mole for Al-Qaeda, including Best Drama, Best Actor, Best Actress and Best Writing. In the comedy categories, Modern Family swept up Best Comedy, Best Comedy Direction for co-creator Steve Levitan, Best Supporting Actor for Eric Stonestreet and Best Supporting Actress for Julie Bowen, her second consecutive win.

Although Mad Men and American Horror Story boasted the most nominations at 17 each, neither fared especially well. Jessica Lange, who picked up the Best Supporting Actress award, was the only major winner from the FX series American Horror Story, which might have done better in the Drama category than in the Miniseries one. Mad Men, meanwhile, was not only dethroned as Best Drama by Homeland, its perpetually winless lead Jon Hamm was also once again overlooked.

Perhaps, Hamm should try playing a female vice president in an HBO production — that seemed to do the trick for Julianne Moore, who snagged Best Actress in a Miniseries or TV Movie for portraying Sarah Palin in the HBO’s Game Change, and Julie Louis-Dreyfus, a Seinfeld graduate who accepted her third Emmy last night, this time for HBO parody Veep. Albeit visibly nervous as she took to the microphone, Louis-Dreyfus’ stunt with co-nominee Amy Poehler of Parks and Recreation provided some ingenious and light-hearted humor, especially as she began to read what seemed to be Poehler’s acceptance speech (they then exchanged them).

Also there for comic relief were Jimmy Fallon and Stephen Colbert, who play-tackled Jon Stewart when he won Best Variety Series for The Daily Show (again). An out-of-breath Stewart accepted his 10th consecutive Emmy with a good dose of humility — and a tip of the hat to the inanity of Hollywood’s award ceremonies. “Years from now, when the Earth is just a burning husk and aliens visit, they will find a box of these,” Stewart said, pointing to his Emmy. “And they will know just how predictable these f***ing shows are.” But the best gaffe was without a doubt Seth MacFarlane‘s legitimate screw-up. “This is what happens when you don’t come to rehearsal,” McFarlane said in the voice of Family Guy‘s baby Stewie as he arrived to the correct microphone a few paces away. “That’s gonna be on YouTube.”

Other notable wins included Jon Cryer as Best Actor in a Comedy for Two and a Half Men, Kevin Costner as Best Actor in a Miniseries or TV Movie for Hatfields and McCoys, and Louis C.K. for Louie as Best Comedy Writing and Best Variety Writing.

Here’s the full list of winners:

Drama Series: “Homeland,” Showtime.
Actress, Drama Series: Claire Danes, “Homeland,” Showtime.
Actor, Drama Series: Damian Lewis, “Homeland,” Showtime.
Supporting Actor, Drama Series: Aaron Paul, “Breaking Bad,” AMC.
Supporting Actress, Drama Series: Maggie Smith, “Downton Abbey,” PBS.
Writing, Drama Series: Alex Gansa, Howard Gordon, Gideon Raff, “Homeland,” Showtime.
Directing, Drama Series: Tim Van Patten, “Boardwalk Empire,” HBO.
Comedy Series: “Modern Family,” ABC.
Actor, Comedy Series: Jon Cryer, “Two and a Half Men,” CBS.
Actress, Comedy Series: Julia Louis-Dreyfus, “Veep,” HBO.
Supporting Actress, Comedy Series: Julie Bowen, “Modern Family,” ABC.
Supporting Actor, Comedy Series: Eric Stonestreet, “Modern Family,” ABC.
Writing, Comedy Series: Louis C.K, “Louie,” FX Networks.
Directing, Comedy Series: Steven Levitan, “Modern Family,” ABC.
Miniseries or Movie: “Game Change,” HBO.
Actress, Miniseries or Movie: Julianne Moore, “Game Change,” HBO.
Actor, Miniseries or Movie: Kevin Costner, “Hatfields & McCoys,” History.
Supporting Actress, Miniseries or Movie: Jessica Lange, “American Horror Story,” FX Networks.
Supporting Actor, Miniseries or Movie: Tom Berenger, “Hatfields & McCoys,” History.
Directing, Miniseries, Movie or Dramatic Special: Jay Roach, “Game Change,” HBO.
Writing, Miniseries, Movie or Dramatic Special: Danny Strong, “Game Change,” HBO.
Reality-Competition Program: “The Amazing Race,” CBS.
Host, Reality-Competition Program: Tom Bergeron, “Dancing With the Stars,” ABC.
Variety, Music or Comedy Series: “The Daily Show With Jon Stewart,” Comedy Central.
Writing for a Variety Special: Louis C.K., “Louis C.K. Live at the Beacon Theatre,” FX Networks.
Directing, Variety, Music or Comedy Special: Glenn Weiss, 65th Annual Tony Awards, CBS.

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