Alan Cumming
Alan Cumming (Photo: Shutterstock)

Big congratulations to Scottish actor Alan Cumming. The queer star bagged his first Emmy at Saturday night’s Creative Arts Emmy Awards. He won the category Outstanding Host for a Reality or Competition Program for The Traitors, ending RuPaul’s eight-year winning streak.

Sadly, Cumming couldn’t attend the event as he’s in Scotland filming (eight hours ahead of Los Angeles). He was actually in bed but woke up in the middle of the night to texts informing him he’d won. 

Cumming posted several photos of himself in bed on Instagram and thanked people for helping him win.

“A series of selfies taken at 3.38am just after waking up to find I had won an Emmy!” he said. 

“In my dream I was thinking I had set my alarm too early and I should really wake up and change it to an hour later, and of course the reason I was dreaming this is that my phone had been buzzing constantly for about twenty minutes with people trying to tell me I had won the Emmy for hosting The Traitors!” he continued. 

“I wasn’t able to be at the Creative Arts Emmy ceremony in Los Angeles because of filming commitments in Scotland, so I wasn’t able to thank the people who made this possible.

“But I hope writing my thanks down here – and not spouting them in a frenzy of fear at having the dreaded music cut me off on live TV – will make them feel more sincere and heartfelt to those I am truly indebted to.”

He went on to thank the production company behind the show, Peacock, NBC Universal, his stylist, agents, and publicists, among others. He also thanked all the cast members and the crew at Ardross Castle, where the show is filmed, for helping things run smoothly. 

Thanking his husband

Cumming ended by giving a shout out to his husband. 

“Finally thank you forever to Grant Shaffer who supports and loves me in everything I do and will always receive the most votes in my castle.”

Cumming and Shaffer, an illustrator and storyboard artist, had a civil union in the UK in 2007. They later converted this to a marriage when legally able to do so. 

The Traitors was first aired in the Netherlands in 2021. The format has been sold around the world and proved a ratings winner in many countries. The first season aired in the US last year, with Cumming as the host. Following its growing success, seasons 3, 4 and 5 have already been commissioned. 

As previously mentioned, Cumming’s Emmy has been won for the past eight years by RuPaul for RuPaul’s Drag Race. RuPaul not winning this year prompted plenty of quips and debate on social media. 

Next weekend, The Traitors is up for Outstanding Reality Competition Program at the 76th Primetime Emmy Awards. 

Other Creative Arts Emmy winners

Among the other winners at the Creative Arts Emmys were songwriting partners Benj Pasek and Justin Paul (of Dear Evan Hansen fame). 

They won for a song they co-wrote (“Which of the Pickwick Triplets Did It?”), for an episode of Only Murders in the Building. It means they have attained the coveted EGOT status, having now won an Emmy, Grammy, Oscar and Tony Award across their careers. 

You can watch Steve Martin sing the song below.

RuPaul wasn’t the only queer icon to lose out this year. After six years of winning, Queer Eye lost the Structured Reality Show award to Shark Tank. 

Other winners on the night included Jamie Lee Curtis, who bagged her first Emmy for a guest appearance on The Bear (Guest Actress in a Comedy Series). Afterward, she told reporters she felt like the “Luckiest girl in the world” for enjoying such great roles at this stage of her career (she also got her first Oscar two years ago). 

The Bear and Shōgun emerged as big winners on the night, both winning several creative arts awards. 

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