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Everything you need to know about the 2022 Primetime Emmy Awards

A golden statue sits on a pedestal with a light shining behind it
Tthe 74th Primetime Emmy Awards air live from L.A.’s Microsoft Theater on Monday starting at 5 p.m. Pacific.
(Danny Moloshok / Invision for the Television Academy / Associated Press)
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The 74th Primetime Emmy Awards ceremony, which honors the best productions in television and streaming, will take place at Los Angeles’ Microsoft Theater on Monday.

The event will air live from coast to coast on NBC and stream on Peacock starting at 5 p.m. Pacific.

Here’s what you need to know going into tonight’s awards show.

Who’s hosting?

A man sitting and pointing at the sky with skyscrapers in the background
“Saturday Night Live” star Kenan Thompson.
(Kirk McKoy / Los Angeles Times)
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“Saturday Night Live” star and six-time Emmy nominee Kenan Thompson was announced as the host only one month before the ceremony.

Thompson takes over the often thankless gig from last year’s host, Cedric the Entertainer, who led the in-person 2021 telecast with a salute to television and a tribute to late musician Biz Markie. “Jimmy Kimmel Live” star and three-peat Emmys host Jimmy Kimmel hosted the ceremony in 2020 when the telecast was forced to go semi-virtual because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

“I feel great,” Thompson recently told The Times. “There’s a great team that’s involved. I definitely don’t feel like I’m floating out there by myself. I’m really excited about it. There’s some great pieces coming together.”

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The first-time Emmys host — who has emceed the 2021 People’s Choice Awards and the “Jonas Brothers Family Roast” TV special — said that his hosting style for the ceremony is “straightforward,” meaning he’ll lean on “a good monologue and keeping the energy up.”

As he prepares to celebrate a major milestone, ‘Saturday Night Live’s’ longest-running cast member is adding a new role to his repertoire: Emmy host.

Who and what’s nominated?

Last year’s champions, HBO’s drama “Succession” and Apple TV+’s comedy “Ted Lasso,” topped the July nominations announcement with 25 and 20 nominations apiece, respectively. Fourteen of Waystar-Royco’s power players were among the acting nominees, including “Succession’s” lead actors Brian Cox and Jeremy Strong and supporting stars J. Smith Cameron, Sarah Snook, Nicholas Braun, Kieran Culkin and Matthew Macfadyen.

In comedy, “Ted Lasso’s” nice-guy hero Jason Sudeikis scored another nod, along with supporting actors Sarah Niles, Juno Temple, Hannah Waddingham, Brett Goldstein, Toheeb Jimoh and Nick Mohammed.

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Past winners ‘Succession’ and ‘Ted Lasso’ and newcomers ‘Squid Game’ and ‘Abbott Elementary’ were among the leading 2022 Emmy nominees.

HBO Max’s limited series “The White Lotus” scored 20 nominations, thanks to its mighty ensemble cast, including Connie Britton, Jennifer Coolidge, Alexandra Daddario, Natasha Rothwell and Sydney Sweeney. It was trailed by Hulu’s “Dopesick” with 14, with many of the nods going to its actors — Michael Keaton, Kaitlyn Dever, Mare Winningham, Will Poulter, Peter Sarsgaard and Michael Stuhlbarg.

Newcomers such as Hulu’s “Only Murders in the Building,” Apple TV+’s “Severance, Netflix’s “Squid Game” (the first non-English-language program to earn a major Emmy nomination), ABC’s “Abbott Elementary” and Showtime’s “Yellowjackets” are also among the top nominees this year.

Didn’t some awards already go out?

Yes, many! More than 90 categories comprise the annual Primetime Emmy Awards, so several prizes are handed out in advance at the Creative Arts Emmys, a two-night ceremony that took place last weekend. HBO and HBO Max’s “Euphoria” and “The White Lotus” emerged as the ceremony’s biggest winners, as well as Netflix’s “Stranger Things,” CBS’ “Adele: One Night Only” and Disney+’s “The Beatles: Get Back.”

An edited presentation of the Creative Arts Emmy Awards aired Saturday on FXX and will be available for streaming on Hulu through Sept. 27.

Join the Los Angeles Times for news and analysis as we follow the 74th Emmys live from in front of our televisions, inside the theater and backstage.

Want some predictions?

The Times’ resident awards expert, Glenn Whipp, breaks down his picks across the key categories here. Look for a showdown between “Succession” and “Squid Game” on the drama side, with possible trophies for “Squid Game’s” Lee Jung-jae or “Better Call Saul” star Bob Odenkirk, who concluded the “Breaking Bad” spinoff’s finale this year. And Zendaya is expected to take another prize for her rock-bottom portrayal in HBO’s teen drama “Euphoria.”

On the comedy side, expect more wins for “Ted Lasso” and possible prizes for”Hacks” star Jean Smart and “Barry’s” Bill Hader.

Will ‘Abbott Elementary’ upset ‘Ted Lasso’? Can ‘Succession’ be stopped? Our predictions for the 2022 Emmys.

Who’s attending and presenting?

EGOT winner John Legend will be performing his new single during the ceremony’s In Memoriam segment. Emmys executive producer Reginald “Reggie” Hudlin and his fellow creatives announced Thursday that five-time Grammy-nominated producer Zedd will DJ the ceremony, and stand-up comic and “SNL” writer Sam Jay will serve as the show’s announcer.

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The producers also announced past and current nominees among the Hollywood stars set to take the stage to present this year’s awards. Here’s who’s been revealed (so far):

  • Anthony Anderson
  • Will Arnett
  • Angela Bassett
  • Vanessa Bayer
  • Gael García Bernal
  • RuPaul Charles
  • Kelly Clarkson
  • Ismael Cruz Córdova
  • Rosario Dawson
  • Ariana DeBose
  • Taye Diggs
  • Ayo Edebiri
  • Taron Egerton
  • Hannah Einbinder
  • Selena Gomez
  • Regina Hall
  • Mariska Hargitay
  • Paul Walter Hauser
  • Freddie Highmore
  • Jung Ho-yeon
  • Lee Jung-jae
  • Mindy Kaling
  • Markella Kavenagh
  • Jimmy Kimmel
  • Jake Lacy
  • Juliette Lewis
  • Lizzo
  • Diego Luna
  • Steve Martin
  • Christopher Meloni
  • Seth Meyers
  • Shemar Moore
  • Kumail Nanjiani
  • B.J. Novak
  • Chris O’Donnell
  • Sarah Paulson
  • Amy Poehler
  • Shonda Rhimes
  • Molly Shannon
  • Martin Short
  • Jean Smart
  • Sofía Vergara
  • Kerry Washington
  • Jeremy Allen White
  • Chandra Wilson
  • Bowen Yang
  • Natalie Zea
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