Owen Cooper continues to make Emmys history.
The “Adolescence” star won the Emmy for supporting actor in a limited series at the 77th Emmy Awards on Sunday, becoming the youngest winner ever in the category. Cooper, 15, also holds the record for being the youngest actor nominated for this award.
“When I started these drama classes a couple years back, I didn’t expect to be even in the United States, never mind here,” Cooper said while accepting the award. “I think tonight proves that if you listen and you focus and you step out of your comfort zone, you can achieve anything in life. … Who cares if you get embarrassed?”
Cooper was recognized for his portrayal of Jamie Miller, a 13-year old accused of murdering a female classmate in the Netflix crime drama. In addition to its performances, the buzzy series was hailed for its approach of filming each of its four episodes as a single camera shot. Cooper was 14 when “Adolescence” was filmed and the show is his first professional credit.
After thanking his family and “the ones who love me and the ones who I love,” Cooper dedicated the award to the show’s cast and crew.
“It may have my name on this award, but it really belongs to the people behind the camera and Stephen [Graham] and … all the cast,” said Cooper.
Cooper is now also one of the youngest Emmy winners ever among all of the acting categories. Just four other teenagers have previously won Primetime Emmy Awards and they all were recognized decades ago. The youngest is Roxana Zal, who was 14 when she won in 1984 for her role in “Something About Amelia.” Kristy McNichol won twice in the 1970s for her role in “Family” at age 15 and 17. Scott Jacoby of “That Certain Summer” and Anthony Murphy of “Tom Brown’s School Days,” who both won in 1973 at 16 and 17, respectively, round out the short list.
The other nominees for supporting actor in a limited series or movie included Cooper’s co-star Ashley Walters, Javier Bardem of Netflix’s “Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story,” Bill Camp and Peter Sarsgaard of Apple TV+’s “Presumed Innocent” and Rob Delaney of FX on Hulu’s “Dying for Sex.”