Emmys Producers Apologize for Playing Off John Oliver’s Speech – and the Dead Dog Too

Just hours after John Oliver dropped an F-bomb at the Emmys for trying to play him off as he paid tribute to his dead dog, the Emmys producers are apologizing to the late-night host.

“I apologize to John and his family for playing the music — and the dog,” Jesse Collins told TheWrap in a Monday interview. “We turned it off at his request and turned it back on when he said he wanted to be played off.”

Collins, who executive produced the 76th annual ceremony alongside Dionne Harmon and Jeannae Rouzan-Clay, added that the producers didn’t know Oliver’s dog had passed when they started playing the music and don’t receive the acceptance speeches ahead of time, reiterating, “We did not know that the dog had passed.”

“John always gives us the fun moment,” Rouzan-Clay told TheWrap, adding that Oliver shared a similar moment with Anthony Anderson’s mom during the 75th Annual Primetime Emmys in January. “When he was going on about his dog, which was very sweet … we’re like, ‘OK, you got to wrap it up,’ and the music starts playing. And he’s like, ‘My dog is dead,’ and we were like, ‘Oh my god,’ just mortified.”

Below, the producing trio breaks down the show’s biggest moments, including which “SNL” cast member was behind that Lorne Michaels roast and why they think they dropped the ball on the integrated Johnnie Walker ad.

TheWrap: How did you all think it went?

Rouzan-Clay: I thought it was great. We had a great time. I felt like everyone enjoyed the show.

Harmon: One of our gauges also is how the people who were involved in the show felt, whether that’s our presenters, our performer, our hosts and everybody left feeling really good about what they did.

What was it like coordinating that roast of Lorne Michaels during the “SNL” tribute. Whose idea was it?

Collins: I believe it was Seth Meyers’ idea.

Rouzan-Clay: Yeah, he wrote that. The cast had a huge hand in that.

Harmon: They led the charge with that one.

During Hiroyuki Sanada’s speech, the playoff music as he continued accepting his award in Japanese. Why did you choose to pause the music?

Collins: We thought that they were coming to an end, which is normally when you try to play playoff music to kind of nudge it along. But then when he started to speak in Japanese, we realized one that he was continuing, and that was a very important moment that everyone needed to see, so that’s why we pulled down the music.

Harmon: The translation was important, so we wanted to make sure that what he was saying was heard.

Catherine O’Hara shocked when she tore up the envelope for best comedy series before pulling another one and shocking us all with the “Hacks” winner announcement. How did y’all craft that final moment?

Collins: We let Catherine O’Hara be Catherine O’Hara.

Harmon: We are not producers that force people to say things — we’re very collaborative. As soon as someone is booked, we put them in [with] the writers and it’s a collaborative process. So almost every moment you saw, the presenters had a hand in creating that.

How did you take that surprise upset for “Hacks” over “The Bear?”

Collins: It was a big surprise. But that’s what happens in these shows. You never know what the voters are going to gravitate towards. It was definitely a moment.

Jelly Roll’s powerful performance during the In Memoriam was a heartwarming moment. How did you decide on him for this year’s performance?

Collins: I heard that record before it was released and early in the summer and we just knew it was going to be a big hit and a great song for In Memoriam. We’re fortunate that everyone at ABC and the Television Academy agreed and Jelly was able to carve it out of his tour schedule, and it wound up being a great moment. We’re really proud of it.

Then Jimmy Kimmel went onstage for a specific tribute for Bob Newhart that ended up playing a bit like a roast. How did that part of the In Memoriam play out on the show vs. rehearsals?

Collins: Jimmy is one of the best and he brings a certain live energy to it. It only worked because it came from Jimmy Kimmel [and] he’s able to bring levity to things that others can’t. And so we’re really happy with what he did.

That integrated Johnnie Walker ad seemed a bit awkward, and Ebon Moss-Bachrach even acknowledged it after the moment. What’d you make of that?

Collins: There probably could have been more lettuce on the burger. That probably would’ve helped because if you look at the burger and the shot of the lettuce, it really wasn’t right. We dropped the ball on the lettuce on the burger.

What was your favorite moment of the night, planned or unplanned?

Rouzan-Clay: I enjoyed our hosts — anytime they hit the stage, I thought they added a fun element of comedy to the show. Their natural relationship made them very relatable to everyone at home and everyone in the audience watching. Seeing them on stage together for the first time since they swept the Emmys in 2020 with all the awards for “Schitt’s Creek,” it was great to see them reunited. I thought it was really fun to have the whole core family up there for the last award [when] we added Annie Murphy.

Harmon: The reason people watch these is for the winners. Like we talked about earlier, there were some surprises and … I was proud of the Academy for some of these choices. It just felt like a great, inclusive night. Liza’s win was incredible, what John Leguizamo and Cris Abrego talked about — I loved being a part of a moment that really spotlit incredible things that Latino artists are doing. Nava Mau, Greg Berlanti — it really just shows that Hollywood has a long way to go, but progress is being made across the board. It’s amazing as producers to be a part of spotlighting underrepresented groups, as producers from an underrepresented group.

Collins: They took mine. From beginning to end, it was a lot of fun. I was happy with so many comedic moments, Steve Martin and Selena [Gomez], Billy Crystal, everything that the host did, the cops moment with Niecy and and Don Johnson, the character thing — Kathy Bates was very villainous. Everybody really participated — Viola Davis was from day one into the lawyers moment, and helped us craft that and make sure that it had the gravitas that it deserved. It was was great to just see people really engaged, and it translated to the screen.

Now that all is said and done, were there any other reunions or segments you were aiming for that didn’t end up coming together?

Collins: I’m sure there were. My mind is fuzzy right now. I’m just so happy we were able to land “SNL,” “The West Wing” and “Happy Days.”

Are you all hoping to produce the next Emmys as well?

Collins: We would love it. We would love to have another at-bat. We’re grateful for every opportunity we get. We would be really excited to take another shot at it.

This interview has been edited for length and clarity.

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