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The 76th Emmy Awards, which aired Sunday night on ABC, had quite a few memorable moments — but perhaps none as memorable as the acceptance speech centered around a dead dog.

While accepting the Emmy for Outstanding Scripted Variety Series for Last Week Tonight, John Oliver thanked the usual people and then shifted gears, paying tribute to his family’s “fantastic” dog, who’d recently passed away. She was at our wedding and she got us through the pandemic. She was with us for two pregnancies,” he said. At that point, the “playoff” music started, indicating that Oliver should wrap it up, but he wasn’t having it.

“Perfect choice of music,” he noted. He then continued, “I feel like Sarah McLachlan right now. She was an amazing dog.” The music continued, to which Oliver shouted, “F*** you! This isn’t just for her. This is for all the dogs! All dogs, you are all very good girls. You are very good boys. You all deserve a treat. Play me off now!”

Some other memorable moments:

—Murphy Brown star Candice Bergen, a presenter, took a shot at J.D. Vance by recalling that during the show’s heyday, then-Vice President Dan Quayle attacked her character for having a baby and raising it as a single mother. “Oh, how far we’ve come,” she said sarcastically. “Today, a Republican candidate for vice president would never attack a woman for having kids. So as they say, my work here is done.” She then added, “Meow.”

–One of the many TV reunion segments during the evening brought together Ron Howard and Henry Winkler to celebrate the 50th anniversary of Happy Days. Speaking from a replica of the show’s hangout, Arnold’s, Howard complained that they didn’t have any theme music introducing them. After some encouragement, Winkler adopted his “Fonz” persona from the show, went over to the jukebox and wrapped it with his fist, causing the Happy Days theme to start up.

–Will Smith accepted the Emmy for Outstanding Writing for a Drama Series for Slow Horses. No, not THAT Will Smith, as the British showrunner acknowledged. Taking the podium, he said, “First of all, relax. Despite my name, I come in peace.”

—The Bear’s Liza Colón-Zayas became the first Latina to win the Emmy for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series, and she recognized that moment by saying, “To all the Latinas who are looking at me? Keep believing. And vote. Vote for your rights.”

—John Leguizamo did a lengthy monologue about diversity in Hollywood, noting that he didn’t see a lot of Latinx representation on TV and movies growing up. “Everybody played us but us,” he noted. Then, he praised the diversity of this year’s nominees, saying it made him “almost happy and certainly less angry.”

–Along those same lines, presenter Diego Luna announced the nominees for Outstanding Directing for a Limited or Anthology Series in Spanish, directly addressing the “more than 50 million Spanish speakers in this country.”

— A number of actors from The West Wing, including Martin Sheen, Allison Janney, Dulé Hill and Richard Schiff, reunited to present the Emmy for Best Drama Series and joked about modern politics. Schiff noted that today, interesting storylines could be “plucked right off the news — storylines that writers would have deemed a bit far-fetched, if not utterly ridiculous, 25 years ago.”

–Baby Reindeer‘s Richard Gadd had a message for the entertainment industry. At the podium to accept the Emmy for Best Limited or Anthology Series, he said, “If Baby Reindeer has proved anything, it’s that there’s no set formula to this — that you don’t need big stars, proven IP, long-running series, catch-all storytelling to have a hit. The only constant across any success in television is good storytelling that speaks to our times. So take risks, push boundaries, explore the uncomfortable. Dare to fail in order to achieve.”

—Pacey went gray — and we like it!

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Yellowstone creator Taylor Sheridan‘s other hit show, Tulsa King, could reportedly be headed to a third and fourth season — and beyond. 

According to Variety, star and executive producer Sylvester Stallone is nearing a deal for at least two more seasons of the Paramount+ series, which has him starring as a displaced East Coast mob boss out of water in Oklahoma. 

That said, there’s no official word from the streamer, and the series has yet to be renewed. 

Tulsa King also stars Andrea Savage, Garrett Hedlund, Vincent Piazza, Martin Starr, Dana Delany and Annabella Sciorra. Yellowstone vet Neal McDonough and Marvel movie baddie Frank Grillo joined for the current second season.

Copyright © 2024, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

Disney announced Monday that its smash sequel Inside Out 2 attracted 30.5 million views globally in its first five days on Disney+. 

That makes the Disney/Pixar movie, which has become the highest-grossing animated film of all time, the biggest premiere on Disney+ since 2021’s Encanto debuted on the platform. 

With streaming audiences in Latin America, Europe, the Middle East and Africa, Inside Out 2 had Disney+’s biggest debut ever.

Released in theaters June 14, Inside Out 2 is also the highest-grossing movie of the year. 

Disney is the parent company of ABC News.

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