John Wilson’s Final Lesson: How to Win an Emmy

Fans of “How To With John Wilson” already know the wide-ranging implications and joyfully unexpected connections the filmmaker can find when exploring a seemingly mundane topic. The last season of the series covered sports, conspiracy theories, and package delivery in New York City. But now Wilson has turned his attention to FYC promotional campaigns in the most John Wilson way imaginable.

It’s only a shame that the cheeky short “How to Win an Emmy” lasts a couple of minutes, combining the expected beats of the show’s storytelling style — b-sides from Wilson’s library of found footage meet on-the-street interactions with New Yorkers, interspersed with mercilessly funny edit timing and Wilson’s wry voiceover.

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But the filmmaker doesn’t just return to the old well; he adds an element of the unexpected: The featured interview that the audience leans in for, waiting to see if and how it swerves into an unexpected place, is with longtime Emmy winner Michael Imperioli, who produces his 2004 Best Supporting Actor trophy for “The Sopranos.” “How To With John Wilson” Season 3 is nominated for both Outstanding Hosted Nonfiction Program and Writing for a Nonfiction Program in 2024, so we can only hope that a win might inspire Wilson to at least check out whatever shaman wanted a piece of an Emmy wingtip — and for what purposes. Until then, rewatching old episodes of “How To With John Wilson” will have to suffice.

Above, watch Wilson lay out the awards campaigning process and ponder the implications of owning a golden statuette that, if damaged during a move, could still be held together with Scotch tape.

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