Jimmy Kimmel had to move out of the way for Quinta Brunson to accept her Emmy

• Quinta Brunson’s first-ever Emmy victory brought the audience to its feet, but Jimmy Kimmel was also standing while she took the award because he was playing dead as part of an intentional joke that some viewers found offensive.
• A witness to the ceremony posted a video of Arnett dragging Kimmel’s body offstage after the segment.
• In the category of outstanding comedy, “Ted Lasso” triumphed over “Abbott Elementary” for the second time in as many years.

Quinta Brunson’s first-ever Emmy victory brought the audience to its feet, but Jimmy Kimmel was also standing while she took the award because he was playing dead as part of an intentional joke that some viewers found offensive.

Will Arnett, who dragged Kimmel onto the stage and made fun of the fact that Kimmel “went into the thin margaritas” at the theater’s bar after losing in a previous category, joined Kimmel when he presented the award for outstanding writing for a comedy series.

Kimmel remained seated at the base of the microphone stand after it was revealed that the “Abbott Elementary” creator and star had won for penning the show’s debut episode. He stayed there for about two minutes, through Brunson’s acceptance speech and the commercial break.

A witness to the ceremony posted a video of Arnett dragging Kimmel’s body offstage after the segment.

Unfazed, Brunson made advantage of her brief time to express her gratitude to the cast and crew of “Abbott Elementary,” her family, and her husband, not without a poke at Kimmel: “Jimmy, wake up. I won!”

Brunson’s remarks, which lasted around a minute, were captured by the camera without Kimmel in it.

When asked about the incident later backstage, Brunson said the joke “didn’t hurt me that much,” adding that Kimmel had been a strong supporter of both her and “Abbott Elementary” from the beginning.

“Tomorrow maybe I’ll be mad at him. I might strike him in the face because I’m going to be on his show on Wednesday,” she jokingly said.

On Monday, Brunson would perform on stage for the last time. In the category for outstanding comedy, “Ted Lasso” triumphed over “Abbott Elementary” for the second time in as many years.

Despite the fact that “Abbott Elementary” is ABC’s most popular comedy in years and Brunson’s win was highly applauded, many viewers criticized Kimmel for not giving the focus to a Black woman collecting her first Emmy. Kimmel, meanwhile, has received 18 Emmy nominations and two wins since 2012.

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