Just an hour into Sunday night’s 2024 Emmy Awards, FX’s dramedy darling The Bear was already cleaning house. In a surprise upset, Liza Colón-Zayas — who plays the restaurant’s sous-chef, Tina — took home her first Emmy in the Best Supporting Actress in a Comedy category. Beating out favorites Meryl Streep in Only Murders in the Building and Hacks’ Hannah Einbinder, the Bronx-native Puerto Rican became the first Latina to win in the category. Colón-Zayas was also nominated alongside former winner Sheryl Lee Ralph, Janelle James of Abbott Elementary, and the comedic legend Carol Burnett of Palm Royale.
“Thank you to my husband, David Zayas — he told me to write a speech, and I didn’t, because I didn’t think it would be possible. How could I have thought it would be possible to be in the presence of Meryl Streep and Carol Burnett and Janelle and Sheryl Lee Ralph,” the actress said while accepting her Emmy. “I love you all, I revere you to the bottom of my heart. My mami, Mami, I thank you. My family, my grandkids, thank you.”
“Thank you for giving me a new life with this show and to all the Latinas who are looking at me, keep believing, and vote,” she concluded. “Vote for your rights.”
While Colón-Zayas’s historic win was a touching highlight during the ceremony thus far, it also made clear that Television Academy voters have no idea what season of The Bear they’re actually voting for. While Tina’s character is beloved within the series, Colón-Zayas’s breakout moment comes in her solo episode in season three, which was released in June and not yet eligible for nomination due to strike delays. Tiny detail, or whatever! Still, voters seem to be continually enamored by the series’ lead actors year-over-year, this time awarding Ebon Moss-Bachrach for Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series and Jeremy Allen White for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series. And for what it’s worth, I am also continually enamored by Jeremy Allen White, his little beach cigarettes, and his wholesome friendship with co-star and famous Irish woman Ayo Edebiri.