The Normal Heart” won the Emmy on Monday for television movie. The HBO telepic had been widely considered the front-runner in the category.
An adaptation of Larry Kramer’s groundbreaking 1985 play, the TV movie takes place between 1981 and 1984 in New York City during the early days of the AIDS crisis.
Its road from stage to screen was years in the making, ultimately finding traction under Ryan Murphy (“Glee,” “American Horror Story”). The HBO film featured an all-star cast that included Mark Ruffalo, Julia Roberts, Alfred Molina, Matt Bomer and Jim Parsons — among others.
An adaptation of Larry Kramer’s groundbreaking 1985 play, the TV movie takes place between 1981 and 1984 in New York City during the early days of the AIDS crisis.
Its road from stage to screen was years in the making, ultimately finding traction under Ryan Murphy (“Glee,” “American Horror Story”). The HBO film featured an all-star cast that included Mark Ruffalo, Julia Roberts, Alfred Molina, Matt Bomer and Jim Parsons — among others.
“The Normal Heart” premiered over Memorial Day weekend this year to about 1 million viewers, down from the 2.39 million generated by Liberace biopic “Behind the Candelabra” the previous year over the holiday weekend.
On the morning of Emmy nominations, Murphy praised Kramer and said he hoped the awards attention would bring in more viewers to Kramer’s politically tinged work in “The Normal Heart.”
“I'm just so excited for Larry," Murphy told The Times. "It was a labor of love. I fought for it. I really worked hard to get people to see it, for so long. I would just hope that any recognition you get just gets more people to watch the story and to learn about that dark chapter in our history.”
Its win comes during a year in which movies and miniseries received their own categories at the Emmys (the TV Academy this year voted to undo a change made three years ago to combine the categories). It’s a move that underscores the rise of telepics and event series on television.
“The Normal Heart” beat out fellow HBO nominee “Muhammad Ali’s Greatest Fight,” “Killing Kennedy” (National Geographic), “Sherlock” (PBS), and “The Trip to Bountiful” (Lifetime).
Hosted by Seth Meyers, the 66th Primetime Emmy Awards are being held at the Nokia Theatre in Los Angeles, and the show is airing live on NBC.
The film adaptation of Larry Kramer's Tony Award-winning play The Normal Heart received 16 nominations, and managed to walk away with the top honor of Best TV Movie at the 2014 Emmy Awards, but fans began to worry that the cast may walk away tonight empty-handed (we'll tell you why in a second).
Referencing stars Julia Roberts and Mark Ruffalo, Ryan Murphy told the audience, "After 30 years, it took the super powers of Erin Brockovich and The Hulk to get this thing alive. We're gonna use the rest of our time to ask the young people watching to become Larry Kramers, to find a cause you believe in that you will fight for, that you will die for…This is for all of the hundreds of thousands of artists who passed from HIV AIDs in 1981. Your memory and your passion burns on in us and this is for them."
While The Normal Heart took home the top prize, it also lost in a number of categories, creating some of the Emmys biggest upsets.
Mark Ruffalo, who was nominated for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Miniseries or Movie for his performance as Ned Weeks, lost to Sherlock's Benedict Cumberbatch, who was not present to accept his award.
Julia Roberts, who played Dr. Emma Brookner, was nominated for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Miniseries or Movie, but also lost to Kathy Bates for her work in American Horror Story: Coven. Jim Parsons, Tony winner Joe Mantello, Alfred Molina and Matt Bomer all received nominations for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Miniseries or Movie, but that went to Sherlock's Martin Freeman.
"The Normal Heart," originally a Tony-award winning play by iconic gay activist Larry Kramer, reached a brand new audience when it appeared on HBO as a film directed by Ryan Murphy earlier this year.
Now, in honor of the film's release on DVD and Blu-Ray tomorrow, August 26, we've got an exclusive clip of Kramer discussing the real life events that inspired it.
In the clip, which can be seen above, Kramer, Julia Roberts and other stars from the film speak about the pushback that Kramer received when he began to speak out about HIV in the early 1980's.
Kramer notes, "The gay world did not want to know about this illness — that’s where I got the reputation for being a screamer. It was the only way you could get anyone to pay any attention. You know, 'You dumb assholes! It’s a plague!'”
Watch the clip above and get your own copy of "The Normal Heart" on DVD or Blu-Ray, which both include an exclusive behind-the-scenes look at the true story that inspired the film, featuring cast and crew interviews, as well as a Digital HD copy, in stores tomorrow.
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