While television stars and creators are busy campaigning ahead of the approaching Emmy voting window, the TV Academy spent an evening handing out awards to some special programs on Wednesday.
This year’s Television Academy Honors ceremony recognized seven projects that have harnessed the power of TV to create positive change around the world, with Adolescence, Deaf President Now!, Dying for Sex, Heated Rivalry, Seen & Heard: The History of Black Television and South Park all being recognized.
South Park co-creator Trey Parker made a rare Hollywood appearance to accept the award, teasing “after doing the show for 30 years, I just wanted to say to the Television Academy, like, what took you so fucking long?”
He went on to explain how he’s often told that he and partner Matt Stone are fearless for these days devoting so much of their animated comedy to mocking Donald Trump, which has created a ratings bonanza and reinvigorated the show while also angering the White House.
Parker shouted out his writing staff for being brave alongside them, “especially this year when we started saying like, ‘OK, so this is the show we’re going to do,’ and they’re like, ‘Oh, OK — that’s gonna really piss some people off.’” He noted that throughout the show’s three-decade run, “there’s always groups telling you what you can and can’t say; now that group has a military and so it is scarier. They have to be fearless.”
Parker was also joined on stage by his daughter, Betty, who has been a voice on the series since she was two years old. He aimed the rest of his speech directly to her, saying, “I know I kind of forced you into this but don’t ever be afraid and don’t ever let people tell you what you can and can’t say, and what you can and can’t think. You’re always going to find people that agree with you, and you’ll get one of these, maybe,” he joked while holding his new trophy.
Padma Lakshmi served as host for the event, where Seen and Heard EP Issa Rae and Deaf President Now! co-director Nyle DiMarco made appearances. Heated Rivalry creator Jacob Tierney also stopped by to accept recognition of his gay hockey super-hit, teasing there was never an expectation for awards attention “when you option pornography.”
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