Emmys: Regina King On The Status Of Representation On Television

A visibly elated Regina King stepped backstage shortly after accepting her third Emmy, her first in the lead acting category for best actress in a limited series or movie for her role in the Netflix crime drama Seven Seconds.

“My heart is giggling still,” said King.

Speaking to reporters backstage at the Microsoft Theater, King touched on the state of diversity in the industry, an issue still a topic of conversation especially during the course of the show.

“I do feel that a lot of times, we’re just so divided as a country — things are always looked at as black and white,” said King. “I think that it played into a big part of my assumption that the chances of me winning were so small. Also, looking at the numbers of different people in the category, the numbers do definitely weigh larger on the white population.”

She continued, “We all are guilty of looking at things in sections all the time. That was one of the moments that was really sitting with me on that stage that this is the Television Academy. The Academy of my peers and my peers don’t just have the same skin color as me and they’re not just only interested in things that represent what they look like.”

“They are interested in art and storytelling and interested in seeing thing from different perspectives. This is an example of us thinking more globally and not thinking in a box.”