Yahoo Lifestyle ‘Baby Reindeer’ Wins Four Emmys as Richard Gadd Proclaims: ‘You Don’t Need Big Stars’ or IP ‘To Have a Hit’
Netflix’s stalker drama “Baby Reindeer” won four Emmys at Sunday night’s ceremony.
Along with triumphing in the limited or anthology series category, it earned trophies for Richard Gadd as a writer and lead actor as well Jessica Gunning as a supporting actress.
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Taking the stage for the third time as “Baby Reindeer” won the top prize, creator and star Richard Gadd noted that the industry has been in an economic “slump” — but that there’s a way out.
“I do believe no slump was ever broken without a willingness to take risks,” he said. “I think if ‘Baby Reindeer’ has proved anything, it’s that there’s no set formula to this. That you don’t need big stars, proven IP, long-running series, catch-all storytelling to have a hit.”
“The only constant across any success in television is good storytelling,” he continued. “Good storytelling that speaks to our times. So take risks. Push boundaries. Explore the uncomfortable. Dare to fail in order to achieve.”
“Baby Reindeer” got three other nods at the Primetime Emmys: Nava Mau was nominated for supporting actress alongside Gunning, while Tom Goodman-Hill was nominated for supporting actor and Weronika Tofilska was nominated for directing. All, including Gadd and Gunning, were first-time nominees.
Additionally, at last week’s Creative Arts Emmys, the series won awards for casting and editing with additional nominations in contemporary costumes and music supervision.
Based on the stage play and real-life events experienced by Gadd, “Baby Reindeer” follows an aspiring comedian who finds himself in the crosshairs of a serial stalker. As her pursuits get increasingly relentless, he is forced to come face-to-face with a deep, dark, repressed trauma.
About a week after its release, “Baby Reindeer” secured the No. 1 spot on Netflix’s TV charts in the U.K., Gadd’s native country. In the U.S., the show would nab the No. 2 spot. “Baby Reindeer” would eventually peak as the 10th most-watched Netflix show of all time but has since dropped out of the top 10.
However, show has faced some controversy over how much Gadd embellished from his real-life stalker experience. After “Baby Reindeer” released, a Scottish woman named Fiona Harvey claimed to be the inspiration for the stalker character Martha and filed a lawsuit against Netflix, asking for $170 million in monetary damages.
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