Why the Emmys May Be Keeping Seth Rogen at Arm’s Length

Seth Rogen just had one of those monster Emmy nights where you need a second arm for all the trophies. And yet, according to him, the Television Academy might only want him on stage if he is picking them up, not handing them out. Here is the backstory, and yeah, it is a little bit of industry weirdness.

The 2021 moment that likely did it

Rogen was on Jimmy Kimmel Live! and said he has not been invited back to present at the Emmys since 2021. That was the 73rd Primetime Emmys, right in the thick of Covid, when he presented Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series and basically roasted the room for how the event was set up.

"There’s way too many of us in this little room. What are we doing? They said this was outdoors. It is not. They lied to us... Why is there a roof?"

On Kimmel, Rogen doubled down that it was not just a joke: the invite billed it as an outdoor event, but when he walked in, it was a sealed tent. He said he had planned to do the scripted bit they wrote for him but could not ignore what he saw. He even joked about not wanting to put anyone in danger, dropping a line about Eugene Levy being in the room and not wanting to "kill Eugene Levy." Rogen knows that calling that out on live TV annoyed the people running the show.

So is he actually banned?

Kimmel said he did his homework and claimed Rogen is banned from ever presenting again. That sounded like a punchline, but it set the internet humming. Entertainment Weekly then checked with the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences. Their response: they congratulated Rogen on his multiple wins this past September and said they look forward to seeing him in the audience at future ceremonies. Read that how you want, but "audience" is doing a lot of heavy lifting there. Not exactly a ban, not exactly a warm invitation to hand out trophies either.

Meanwhile, Rogen is cleaning up

Whatever the status of his presenter privileges, his Emmy shelf is doing great. Last month, Rogen won four Emmys for The Studio: Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series, plus wins for directing, writing, and Comedy Series. That ties the record for most wins in a single year, putting him alongside:

• Dan Levy for Schitt's Creek
• Amy Sherman-Palladino for The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel
• Moira Demos for Making a Murderer

So yes, he might be on a soft do-not-present list after that 2021 tent call-out. But if the Academy keeps handing him gold, they will still have to keep a seat open for him. In the audience, at least.