The Emmys are absolutely stacked this year.
VALERIE MACON/AFP via Getty Images
The 2021 Primetime Emmy awards ceremony are almost here! Taking place this Sunday, the categories this year are stacked, with the best limited series race looking particularly intense. Mare of Easttown, The Queen’s Gambit, I May Destroy You, The Underground Railroad and WandaVision are in contention. All of those, aside from The Underground Railroad, picked up Creative Emmys, which honor outstanding artistic and technical achievement.
The Emmy nominations were announced in July, with the Daytime Emmy Awards announcing their winners at the end of June.
Below you’ll find everything you need to know to tune into the 2021 Primetime Emmys award ceremony, including cable-free viewing options.
When do the 2021 Primetime Emmys start?
The 2021 Emmys take place on Sunday, Sept 19. at 5 p.m. PT/8 p.m. ET. With live events returning, you can expect “a limited audience of nominees and their guests” at the Microsoft Theater in Downtown Los Angeles, according to a press release.
How to watch live for free
Watching live for free is pretty easy to do, as long as you have an over-the-air antenna hooked up to your TV and get your local CBS station. The show will also be available to stream live and on demand on Paramount Plus.
How to watch the Emmys live without cable
Cable TV cord cutters have a number of options for watching the ceremony via a live TV streaming service (with the notable exception of Sling TV), detailed below.
YouTube TV costs $65 a month and includes CBS. Plug in your ZIP code on its welcome page to see which local networks are available in your area.
FuboTV costs $65 a month for its Family plan and includes CBS. Click here to see which local channels you get.
Paramount Plus, the replacement for CBS All Access, costs $10 per month and will let you watch the ceremony being broadcast on your local CBS station, if you live in one of the 206 markets where the service offers live TV.
Hulu Plus Live TV costs $65 a month and includes CBS. Click the “View channels in your area” link on its welcome page to see which local channels are offered in your ZIP code.
AT&T TV’s basic, $70-a-month Entertainment package includes CBS. You can use its channel lookup tool to see which local channels are available where you live. You can read more on AT&T’s merger of its AT&T TV and TV Now services here.
Are there any free trials?
All the live TV streaming services above, with the exception of AT&T TV, offer free trials, allow you to cancel anytime and require a solid internet connection. Note: AT&T TV doesn’t advertise a free trial but the company says that if you cancel within 14 days you won’t be charged.
For deep-dive details, here’s our massive streaming services guide.
The full list of nominations
Nominees for the Primetime Emmy awards were announced on Tuesday, July 13 at 8:30 a.m. PT/11:30 a.m. ET. See the list here. Or you can see the even bigger list of nominations, including Creative Arts Emmys, here.
Who’s hosting?
In July, it was announced that Cedric the Entertainer will be… entertaining us as the host of this year’s show.