Emmy, Meet Andy — Andy Samberg Gets a New Leading Lady

Andy Samberg
IMage Credit: Mark Seliger/FOX
Andy Samberg
Photo by Mark Seliger/FOX

When TV’s Primetime Emmy Awards air on FOX on Sept. 20, Brooklyn Nine-Nine star Andy Samberg has the enviable, and daunting, task of hosting the ceremony, which will broadcast live from Los Angeles’ Microsoft Theater. “It’s a tricky balance with awards shows,” he admits. “You don’t want to overstay your welcome, but you don’t want to do so little that no one noticed you were there.”

It’ll be hard not to notice Samberg on Emmy night, the awards broadcast follows a FOX NFL Sunday doubleheader, which thrills the San Francisco 49ers fan. “I’m a football fan … I love having any association with football,” he says. “Not just for the ratings, but because it means that they’ll run ads for it during the games and all of my friends will see me.”

As part of the music/comedy trio The Lonely Island, Samberg is known for his hilariously edgy original songs, and when asked if the audience can expect a song or two, Samberg says, “I certainly hope so. I’ve had good success with music stuff in the past, but … it’s got to be the right idea.”

Longtime Emmy executive producer Don Mischer calls Samberg “the perfect guy” to emcee TV’s biggest night. “Andy is a great choice because he’s very likable, he’s very funny, he’s multifaceted — he makes films, he sings, he dances — he’s a quadruple threat! He really has his finger on the pulse of media.”

Andy Samberg
Executive Producer Don Mischer, host Andy Samberg, and Television Academy Chairman/CEO Bruce Rosenblum roll out the red carpet for Emmy night.
Photo by Frank Micelotta/FOX

In addition to his full-time job as the star of Brooklyn Nine-Nine and his Emmys hosting gig, Samberg is also finishing up a feature film with his Lonely Island collaborators, Akiva Schaffer and Jorma Taccone. Samberg reveals that in the two weeks leading up to the Emmys, when Brooklyn takes a scheduled break, the awards broadcast will not only start feeling real, but his workload will actually get lighter. “Right now, I’m working three jobs,” he shares. “But for those two weeks, I’ll only be working two — so it’ll feel like a vacation.”

Samberg says his motto for Emmy night is “It if feels right, you do it,” and explains, “I’ll be more or less on script. I think I’ll try and play the room as it comes. If interesting things happen, I’ll try to comment on that; I always like when hosts do that.”

Related: 7 Ways To Have Fun on Emmy Night

Samberg reveals that on Emmy night, there’s an award he can’t wait to watch — his costar Andre Braugher is nominated for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series. “I don’t want to jinx it,” says Samberg, “but I certainly hope he wins. That’s the one category I’m allowed to say, unequivocally, that I hope someone wins.”

67th Primetime Emmy Award > FOX > Sunday, Sept. 20; 8pm ET /5pm PT live