Megaproducer Greg Berlanti has been tapped to receive this year’s Governors Award at the Emmys, the Television Academy announced Thursday. Greg Berlanti, the first individual to receive the honor since 2021 (when Debbie Allen was honored) will be recognized for “his significant impact on television and culture by depicting the underrepresented in film and in such iconic series as ‘Dawson’s Creek,’ ‘Riverdale,’ ‘All American,’ ‘The Flight Attendant’ and ‘You.'”
Berlanti will receive his Emmy for the Governors Award during the 76th Emmys on Sunday, Sept. 15, at the Peacock Theatre at L.A. Live in downtown Los Angeles.
“Greg is an extraordinary creator, who consistently delivers characters and stories that are in dialogue with the real world,” said TV Academy chair Cris Abrego in a statement. “From the beginning of his career, his commitment to representing three-dimensional LGBTQ+ characters in particular has paved the way for greater cultural understanding and acceptance of a community that is often under attack in both social and political discourse. For seizing the power of television to move our culture forward, the Academy is honored to select Greg Berlanti for this year’s Governors Award.”
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The Governors Award is given by the Television Academy’s Board of Governors to an individual, company or organization “that has made a profound, transformational and long-lasting contribution to the arts and/or science of television.”
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Last year, the Governors Award was given to GLAAD. Other recent honorees include the Geena Davis Institute on Gender in Media, Debbie Allen, Tyler Perry and The Perry Foundation, “Star Trek,” ITVS and “American Idol.”
In naming Berlanti, the TV Academy noted his role as creator, writer and executive producer on more than 45 television shows, including “Political Animals,” “Arrow,” “Blindspot,” “The Flash,” “Supergirl,” “Everwood,” “You,” “Titans,” “Riverdale,” “Doom Patrol,” “All American,” “Found” and “The Flight Attendant.”
Among the firsts he brought to TV, Berlanti was instrumental in introducing a gay character and featuring the first same-sex kiss between two men on U.S. network television with “Dawson’s Creek.” His “Brothers & Sisters” included the first same-sex legal marriage on network TV, while “Dirty Sexy Money” featured the first recurring transgender character on primetime TV and “Supergirl” included the first transgender superhero.
Also, his “Batwoman” featured the first openly gay superhero as a series lead, while his film “Red, White and Royal Blue,” currently Emmy nominated, is a royal rom com with LGBTQ+ leads. Next up, Berlanti is behind NBC’s “Brilliant Minds,” which features the first single gay lead in a U.S. medical drama.
“I am beyond grateful to be receiving this overwhelming and humbling honor from the Board of Governors and the Television Academy,” Berlanti said in a statement. “Every minute in this business has been the greatest gift that I’m eternally thankful for. It will be nice to have an opportunity to thank all the family, friends, showrunners, execs, cast, crews and audiences that have made an honor like this possible.”
Berlanti is also behind the Berlanti Family Foundation to support numerous charities and those in need, while the Producers Guild of America gave him the Norman Lear Achievement Award in 2022.
Voting is underway right now for this year’s Emmys, until Monday. From there, votes will be tabulated and the winners revealed in less than a month. Produced by Jesse Collins Ent. and hosted by Eugene Levy and Dan Levy, the 76th Emmy Awards airs like on ABC on Sunday, Sept. 15, at 8 p.m. ET/ 5 p.m. PT. It then streams the next day on Hulu.
