The 2020 Daytime Emmys looked like they were going to be a larger-than-life celebration of all things daytime. The number of submissions skyrocketed, and a third night of celebration was added to an already busy weekend. A streaming service was even being rolled out to make the ceremony easier for fans to watch. Unfortunately, a real-life drama has put the kibosh on those plans. This year's Daytime Emmys will no longer be taking place later this spring.
"Given our concerns over the COVID-19 pandemic, we have decided that we will not be staging the 47th Annual Daytime Emmy Awards in Pasadena this coming June. As there are so many unknowns right now with the flow of information changing on a daily, almost hourly, basis, it would simply be irresponsible to move forward with our annual celebration of excellence in daytime television at this time."
This decision comes only weeks after announcements from the National Academy that it would postpone both its annual Technology & Engineering Emmy Awards and its Sports Emmy® Awards due to the rapid spread of COVID-19.
"These were extremely difficult decisions to make, but at the end of the day the health and safety of our event attendees and staff must remain our paramount concern," said Adam Sharp, President & CEO, NATAS. "We are closely monitoring public heath authorities' guidance, seeking feedback from our awards communities, and evaluating the flexibility of our venue and production partners as we plan for the future in this unprecedented context."
So, what happens now? NATAS said that the voting for all categories, which now takes place entirely online, will continue, and the Blue Ribbon Panel of voting begins next week. The nominations will be announced in mid-May. Whether or not there will be some sort of ceremony remains to be seen.
"While we realize this is disappointing, this does not mean we will not be celebrating the work selected for recognition in our Awards judging processes," said Brent Stanton, Executive Director, Daytime Emmy Awards. "Judging continues, and we look forward to announcing our incredibly talented nominees later this Spring. We are working on some interesting alternative ideas for how to best recognize the honorees later this year and will share more details in the weeks ahead."
The four remaining daytime dramas have all halted production over concerns about the spread of COVID-19. The Young and the Restless and The Bold and the Beautiful are currently on a two-week stoppage. General Hospital is scheduled to remain dark until early April. Days of our Lives will remain dark until further notice. All four soaps, however, have at least a month of already filmed episodes that will continue to air.
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