The Emmys on Social – Key Takeaways

On Sunday night by 11:00 pm, the 68th Annual Emmy Awards show had garnered 717,326 mentions across Facebook and Twitter.

As always, it was a glamorous evening of gowns and formalities that the country watched with excitement, rooting for their favorite actors and shows to bring home the hardware. Social conversation began when the nominees were announced in mid July, and continued until late into Sunday night.

We turned on Sprinklr social listening to learn how the viewers felt about the Emmys on social, to see who was engaging most, and understand which shows and actors drove the digital conversation.

Tatiana Maslany Wins the Heart of the Nation

In the day leading up to the show there were over 30,000 mentions of the generic #emmys hashtags, the most popular being #emmys, #emmys2016, and #redcarpet. Given that the first two were event hashtags, and that many people look forward to the red carpet more than the show itself, this isn’t surprising. But if we look at which hashtags endured in popularity, one surprising trend emerged.

As seen above, before the night began, #emmyformaslany (in honor of “Orphan Black” actress Tatiana Maslany) was the 5th most-used Emmys-related hashtag. On Monday morning it nearly held its spot at number six, with #orphanblack coming in at 4 and #cloneclub at 10 (below).

It’s the only hashtag (other than the obvious two: #emmys and #emmys2016) that held strong throughout the night amidst all of the other trending topics.

That’s a lot of love for one actress. Not only was Maslany awarded the Emmy for Outstanding Drama Actress by the Academy, she won the night when it came to love and support on social.

We couldn't be prouder of @TatianaMaslany, cast, crew, and #CloneClub. #EmmyForMaslany takes on a whole new meaning. pic.twitter.com/kDKE9QVAUl

— Orphan Black (@OrphanBlack) September 19, 2016

#Emmys: Best Drama Actress poll results right now:
41% Tatiana Maslany
25% Keri Russell
14% Viola Davishttps://t.co/gwIdST6Zu3

— TVLine.com (@TVLine) August 28, 2016

She even thanked her fans, the #cloneclub.

.@tatianamaslany thanks #CloneClub for her #Emmys win! #OrphanBlack #EmmyForMaslany pic.twitter.com/CKoMQzo9Gv

— Orphan Black (@OrphanBlack) September 19, 2016

Gender Share Shifted Throughout the Night

Leading up to the show, women were tweeting about the #emmys far more than men.

As the night went on, however, the gender distribution of social chatter shifted away from women (below), as men overtook the share of voice.

Jimmy Kimmel Won the Audience Over

Despite (or because of) his sharp-tongued jokes throughout the night, the sentiment around host Jimmy Kimmel’s performance on social was primarily positive. On the whole, mentions of Kimmel from women had higher rates of positive sentiment compared to mentions from men.

Outstanding Comedy Drives Serious Conversation

Of the actress specific awards, Outstanding Comedy Actress was the most popular topic on social, with Lead Actress in a Limited Series or Movie coming in second.

Within the Outstanding Comedy Actress category, “Veep” and “Black-ish” are the most popular hashtags associated with the award, likely reflecting the country’s love for the show’s respective stars, Julia Louis-Dreyfus and Tracee Ellis Ross.

A Drama-Filled Night on the Male Actor Side

Of all the actor-specific roles, Outstanding Drama Actor was the most talked about on social, followed by Outstanding Lead Actor in a Limited series or movie.

Within the Outstanding Drama Actor category, the most popular topics were “Mr. Robot” (whose star, Rami Malek, won the award), and and brooding Netflix show “Bloodline.”

The Most Popular Category Overall

The most popular topic overall was, naturally, the Emmys itself with around 417,000 mentions (not included in graph). The presenters (including Jimmy Kimmel) were next, reflecting that for viewers, the real fun of a big awards show is the action on stage, not necessarily the performers and shows that are celebrated.

Even though Emmy viewership was down, the show drove substantial social chatter. And just as the big winners on Sunday received the golden statues, they also received the most attention on social media. In our digital-based day and age, that victory may be just as important.