Kate Winslet was named the Outstanding Lead Actress in a Limited or Anthology Series or Movie at the 73rd Emmy Awards on Sunday for her role in the HBO show ‘Mare of Easttown‘. This was Winslet’s second Emmy win, after being awarded the Television Academy in the same category for the 2011 series ‘Mildred Place’. 

The category was full of worthy winners, with the likes of Michaela Coel for ‘I May Destroy You’, Cynthia Erivo for ‘Genius: Aretha’, Elizabeth Olsen for Marvel’s ‘WandaVision’ and early frontrunner Anya Taylor-Joy for ‘The Queen’s Gambit’. 

But despite the goodwill towards Olsen for her performance as the ‘Scarlet Witch’ Wanda Maximoff and the magnetic screen presence of Erivo and Coel’s standout storytelling skills, it was a two-horse race for much of the build up to Sunday night.

Taylor-Joy was tipped for the top prize, but it was ultimately Winslet’s performance, which was acclaimed by critics and fans much thorugh the summer, that was adjudjed the best. 

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“I just want to acknowledge my fellow nominees. In this decade that has to be about women having each other’s backs. I support you, I salute you. I’m proud of all of you,” Winslet said in her acceptance speech. 

The ‘Titanic’ actor further said that the ‘Mare of Easttown’ was a “cultural moment” that brought people together and gave the something to talk about other than a global pandemic. “I want to thank everyone for watching our show.”

Winslet’s co-stars Julianne Nicholson and Evan Peters also won the awards for their supporting roles in the show. 

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‘The Mare of Easttown’ is a crime-drama limited series created by Brad Ingelsby for HBO. It stars Winslet in the lead role of Marianne Sheehan, a detective investingating a murder in a town near Pennsylvania’s Philadelphia. 

Meanwhile, Nicholson plays the character of Lori Ross, a friend of Winslet’s character. Peters’ character is that of Detective Colin Zable, who assists Winslet’s character in her investigation of the murder.   

The 73rd Emmy Awards was hosted on Sunday at the Microsoft Theatre in Los Angeles. The ceremony was hosted by veteran stand-up comedian Cedric the Entertainer, who also stars on the CBS show ‘The Neighbourhood’.