‘Hacks’ Gets the Last Laugh, Beats ‘The Bear’ to Win Best Comedy Series at the 2024 Emmys

Never count Deborah Vance out. In a surprising reversal, the original comedy Max Tricks beat heavyweight contender and incumbent champion Bear to win the best comedy award at the Emmy Awards 2024.

“I had no thoughts in mind,” he said. Tricks co-creation Paul W. Downs accepting the award. Downs appeared visibly shocked and went on to thank the cast and crew before shouting out the importance of having senior representation on screen. “About 20% of our population is over 60… and they only make up 3% of our characters on television,” he said. “I was a great young supporting actor, [but] I really want to be a good leader.”

With Bear is taking off six Primetime Emmy Awards for the first seasonincluding outstanding comedy series; lead actor for Jeremy Allen White; supporting actor for Ebony moss-Bachrach; and supporting actress for Ayo EdebiriThe show’s second season seemed almost unassailable heading into Sunday’s Emmy Awards. However, soft review for Bearseason three—was announced less than two months before the Television Academy began casting its final votes for Bearsecond part of — combined with compliments for Tricks‘ season three—which was found Smart JeansVeteran comedian Deborah Vance, recommitting to her dream of hosting a late-night TV show—proved to be too much for her. Bear to process.

This is the first time Tricks And Bear The two stars faced off at the Emmy Awards, and the showdown initially appeared to be a landslide victory, with White and Moss-Bachrach winning back-to-back for lead actor and supporting actor in a comedy. Bear It seems even more unstoppable when Liza Colonel Zayas took home her first Emmy for outstanding supporting actress in a comedy, beating out stiff competition from acting legends like Meryl Streep, Carol Burnett, And Tricks‘ own Hannah Bookbinder.

But when Smart won her third Emmy for lead actress, beating BearEdebiri’s — who went from supporting to lead between seasons one and two — is clearly still in the running. A win for an excellent comedy Tricks star and co-creator Downs and his wife, co-creator Lucia Aniello, plus best director win for Bear creator Christopher Storer—honored for his work on the pivotal Christmas episode “Fishes”—made it clear that who would win tonight’s biggest comedy race was a coin toss.

Ultimately, the food Carmy and Sydney served up was no match for the comedic style of Vance and Ava. While accepting the award for best comedy, Aniello emphasized the importance of comedy and teased that season four of Tricks is coming. “It can bridge divides. When you laugh with someone, you have something in common with them…. It speaks truth to power. It really does. So support your local comedians,” Aniello said. “We have to go, because we start filming the next season in five days.”