Billy Crudup Calls Wife Naomi Watts a 'Piece of Eye Candy' in 2024 Emmys Acceptance Speech

Crudup beat out Jon Hamm, Mark Duplass, Jack Lowden, Jonathan Pryce, Tadanobu Asano and Takehiro Hira to win outstanding supporting actor in a drama series

Billy Crudup has been crowned a winner at the 76th annual Emmy Awards. The Morning Show star nabbed the coveted award for outstanding supporting actor in a drama series on Sunday, Sept. 15.

Crudup and his costars Jon Hamm and Mark Duplass led the nominations for outstanding supporting actor in a drama series, with Shōgun's Tadanobu Asano and Takehiro Hira coming up next, followed by Jonathan Pryce from The Crown and Slow Horses' Jack Lowden.

Crudup, 56, gave his wife Naomi Watts, who received a 2024 Emmy nomination of her own for Feud: Capote vs. The Swans, a shoutout in his acceptance speech.

"This is an incredible honor," Crudup said. "Thank you all. I'm happy to be here with my piece of eye candy there, my wife, who also happens to be an immigrant and also gave a searing performance this year for which she's nominated. And she starts businesses, too. So nice to be by her side."

He also commended The Morning Show's creative team.

"I just want to say that this is for the writers and the educators who allowed me to do the writing that was beyond my level," Crudup said. "Every time I would see the scripts, I would have to go back and work on the techniques that teachers like Ron Van Lieu gave me."

The actor closed out by giving his children a mention. "This process has been incredible for me and I hope everybody else who is involved knows how much it means to me, so thank you all," Crudup concluded. "And also 'hi' to the kids. I know you're watching wherever you are."

Related: The Bear and Shōgun Lead 2024 Emmy Nominations: See the Full List

Crudup and Watts, 55, got married in a courthouse ceremony in June 2023 in New York City and said "I do" again in Mexico City again this June. Watts' brother, photographer Ben Watts, confirmed the news in an Instagram post, which also showed that the actress's sons Kai, 15, and Sasha, 16 — whom she shares with ex Liev Schreiber — and niece Ruby were all in attendance for the most recent celebration.

Crudup was once again nominated for his role as network president Cory Ellison on The Morning Show. He's been nominated in the category for each of the show's three seasons, and took home the trophy in 2020.

In his virtual acceptance speech after winning, he said he knew from the "second" he landed the part that it was "something to be fortunate about."

"It has taken an army of support and I am incredibly grateful," he said, before shouting out his costars including Jennifer Aniston and Reese Witherspoon. "You gave me a wonderful opportunity and... I'm glad to have delivered something for you."

Crudup is joined in the category by his costars Hamm and Duplass, and Aniston and Witherspoon were also nominated for their leading roles. The Apple TV+ series earned a whopping 16 nominations overall, including outstanding drama series and outstanding supporting actress in a drama series nods for Greta Lee, Holland Taylor, Nicole Beharie and Karen Pittman.

Lowden, 34, is the one of several first-time nominees in the category, and earned the nod for his role as River Cartwright, one of the many MI5 agents working under Gary Oldman's Jackson Lamb at the Slough House on Apple TV+'s Slow Horses.

The series, which returned for season 4 on Sept. 4, earned nine nominations this year — including a nod for Oldman for outstanding lead actor in a drama and outstanding drama series. It's the first time the show's been recognized since its 2022 premiere.

Related: Saoirse Ronan Marries Jack Lowden in Secret Ceremony in Scotland

Hamm was nominated in two categories this year, both for his work on The Morning Show as corporate titan Paul Marks and for Fargo, in which he played local sheriff Roy Tillman and earned a nomination for outstanding lead actor in a limited or anthology series or movie.

As Paul Marks, Hamm was a love interest for Aniston's anchor Alex Levy — and the pair didn't even need an intimacy coordinator for their scenes together, as Aniston told Variety, "Jon was such a gentleman, always — I mean, every move, every cut, 'You OK?'"

The 53-year-old has 16 prior Emmy nominations but has only taken home the win once: he won outstanding lead actor in a drama series for his final turn as Don Draper in Mad Men in 2015.

Pryce earned a nomination for his portrayal of Prince Philip in the closing chapter of The Crown. The Welsh actor, 77, has just two prior nominations, but is up for more than one award this year, as his guest-starring role as David Cartwright in Slow Horses earned him a nod for outstanding guest actor in a drama series.

The royal series earned a whopping 18 nominations this year, and Elizabeth Debicki, who starred as Princess Diana in the final two seasons, told PEOPLE the recognition "feels like the cherry on the cake, really, of such a nice thing."

"The show's been running for a long time, and my cast and I have been kind of on this ride for nearly three years in a way, in terms of prep and then shooting and press, and so it's just a lovely end to a long and beautiful — but sometimes really challenging — chapter as actors."

Related: The Crown’s Elizabeth Debicki Says She Kept Emulating Princess Diana After Filming: 'I Had to Unwind the Wheel' (Exclusive)

Duplass is the third and final star from The Morning Show who was nominated for outstanding supporting actor in a drama series — his third overall nomination and his second for his role as Charles "Chip" Black on the Apple TV+ series.

Reacting to the nomination in an Instagram post, Duplass, 47, called it a "lovely honor."

"But my favorite part of the news this morning was chatting with my fellow nominees," he continued, before sharing a call to action regarding mental health. "And, almost to a person, the question has changed from the previous years' 'congrats aren't you so excited' to 'congrats... how are you?' It's hard right now. For almost all of us. Please take care of yourselves and each other."

Duplass has previously won one Emmy, collecting the award for outstanding documentary or nonfiction series in 2018 for executive producing Wild Wild Country on Netflix.

Related: The Morning Show Season 4: All About the Drama Starring Jennifer Aniston and Reese Witherspoon

This is Asano's first nomination, and the Japanese actor earned it for his role as Kashigi Yabushige, the Lord of Izu, on Shōgun. The FX series dominated this year's nominations, leading the drama series categories with an impressive 25 nominations. The Bear — which lies in the comedy category — was a close second with 23 nominations.

Following his nomination, Asano, 50, shared a joint post with the series on Instagram celebrating the news. The caption called his character "a dangerous ally" and issued Asano a well-deserved congratulations on the recognition. "Arigato ??," he commented on the post.

Related: Anna Sawai Admits to 'Tearing Up' When She Talks About Her 'Shōgun' Character Long After Filming (Exclusive)

Like his costar, Hira, 50, is another first-time nominee. He played Ishido Kazunari, a peasant-turned-warlord in Shōgun, who concluded season 1 in the Osaka Castle alongside the Taikō, Nakamura Hidetoshi (Yukijir? Hotaru).

Along with Asaro and Hira, Shōgun stars Anna Sawai, who played translator Toda Mariko, and Hiroyuki Sanada, who played Lord Yoshii Toanaga, were nominated for outstanding lead actress and actor in a drama series. The show — which has already been greenlit for two more seasons — was also nominated for outstanding drama series.

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