Emmys 2025: Cristin Milioti wins first Emmy on first nomination for lead actress in limited series with The Penguin

Cristin Milioti earned her first-ever Emmy Award at the Emmys 2025 on September 14, 2025, taking home Outstanding Lead Actress in a Limited or Anthology Series or Movie for her role as Sofia Falcone in HBO’s The Penguin. The victory was historic for Milioti, who had never been nominated for an Emmy before this year.

Her performance in the Batman spinoff series was widely praised, and the show itself became one of HBO’s most talked-about projects of 2024, earning 24 nominations overall.

On the Emmys 2025 stage at the Peacock Theater in Los Angeles, Milioti admitted her speech was scribbled on the back of therapy notes she’d taken earlier that week, drawing laughs from the crowd. She went on to describe playing Sofia as both grisly and liberating, saying the character gave her a sense of freedom despite the darkness of the story. The actress also shouted,

“I love acting so much!”

as she wrapped her remarks, making the moment feel both heartfelt and unfiltered.

Milioti won the Emmys 2025 against an accomplished field that included Cate Blanchett (Disclaimer), Michelle Williams (Dying for Sex), Rashida Jones (Black Mirror), and Meghann Fahy (Sirens), cementing her place among television’s most celebrated performers.

Cristin Milioti’s Gotham story delivers a career-defining Emmys 2025 win

Cristin Milioti’s Emmy win can be traced back to how The Penguin framed her as the true driving force of its story. Colin Farrell’s Oz Cobb may have been the show’s entry point as Gotham’s ruthless crime boss on the rise, but it was Milioti’s Sofia Falcone who gave the series its pulse.

As Carmine Falcone’s daughter and Alberto’s sister, she returned to Gotham after more than a decade locked inside Arkham State Hospital, and that comeback detonated the city’s fragile balance of power. Her story was layered, at once personal revenge and a political power grab, as she fought to reclaim a position stolen by the very family that betrayed her.

Episode 4, Cent’Anni, became the showcase that cemented her Emmy path. Told largely in flashback, it revealed how Sofia was wrongfully confined and the long-term toll that isolation, anger, and trauma had taken. Directed by Helen Shaver, the hour demanded Milioti push herself physically and emotionally, shifting between quiet despair and explosive fury.

Critics praised her for grounding the crime saga in raw humanity, capturing the ache of betrayal and the struggle for survival rather than relying on stylized violence. That mix of vulnerability and menace is what ultimately defined her win.

The scale of recognition for The Penguin also gave her an advantage heading into the Emmys. The series picked up 24 nominations, including nods for Outstanding Limited Series, lead actor for Colin Farrell, and supporting actress for Deirdre O’Connell.

Milioti’s win wasn’t just a personal milestone but a sign of how central she was to the show’s success. Her portrayal was singled out as the piece that gave the series depth beyond its gangster setting, making it a character-driven drama that could stand alongside HBO’s strongest work.

Her Emmys 2025 win also marks a pivotal moment in her career. Before The Penguin, Milioti was best known for How I Met Your Mother, Palm Springs, and her Emmy-nominated Black Mirror appearance in “USS Callister.” But none of those roles positioned her at the center of a large-scale prestige drama. This series did, and the Emmy now validates her as a leading performer capable of carrying complex material.

Looking ahead, Milioti has expressed interest in continuing Sofia’s story if a second season or film crossover with The Batman Part II were to happen. Whether or not that comes true, the Emmy firmly establishes her as one of the standout talents of the year, and The Penguin as more than just a spinoff; it’s now an award-winning showcase for its lead.

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