Stephen Graham wins acting and writing Emmys for Adolescence, delivers one of the night’s best speeches

One of the more memorable speeches from the Emmys 2025 came from Stephen Graham. Adolescence was a big winner at the 77th Primetime Emmy Awards, with Stephen Graham taking home the awards for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Limited or Anthology Series and Outstanding Writing for a Limited or Anthology Series along with Jack Thorne.

The British actor took the moment to reflect on his humble journey in the entertainment industry. Stephen Graham said in his acceptance speech,

“This kind of thing doesn't normally happen to a kid like me. I'm just a mixed-race kid from a block of flats in a place called Kirkby, so for me to be here today in front of my peers and to be acknowledged by you is the utmost humbling thing I could ever imagine in my life, and it shows you that any dream is possible.”

Adolescence follows the story of a 13-year-old boy who is charged with the murder of his classmate. The four intense episodes of the series explores themes of mental health and the alarming effects of social media on youngsters today. Each episode of the series has been shot in one continuous take without cuts.

The hit Netflix series won eight Emmy awards including Outstanding Limited Series or Anthology Series, Outstanding Directing for Philip Barantini, Best Supporting Actor for Owen Cooper and Best Supporting Actress for Erin Doherty. Cooper became the youngest actor at 15 to win the award in the category.

Stephen Graham’s heart-warming speech at Emmys 2025

Stephen Graham is the lead actor and co-writer of Adolescence. Graham was brought up in Kirkby, Merseyside in England, and has Swedish Jamaican roots. He had previously stated in interviews that growing up, he found it difficult to fit in due to his mixed race. It was his trips to a video shop with his father that made him fall in love with filmmaking.

In his speech at the Emmys, he acknowledged his long journey and expressed gratitude to be on the coveted Hollywood stage. In his speech he said,

“There’s too many people to thank, but I am gonna thank my friends and family, without you none of this is possible…Thank you for helping me, something I can’t do on my own. Jack, Phil, everyone, I want to bring it to my dad, for taking me to the video shop when I was a kid and for starting my education in film, Quarry Green video shop…”

When Adolescence won the Outstanding Limited Series or Anthology Series, Graham also took the time to highlight the importance of respect and equality in the film-making business. He said,

“This was a huge collaboration. What we do, it's not a game of footy. Do you know what I mean? There is no winners, and there is no losers. It is all subjective. But what we managed to create was a beautiful family. And whether you was number one on the call sheet or number 101, we were treated equally. And everyone was respected and treated with the utmost of respect.”

Stephen Graham further added,

“We're all the same. And I think that’s how you get the best work and that’s how you get best out of your people…Whether or not you were an executive producer ... or you were the fella that was cleaning the toilets… we were all equal. So just look after each other and give your mate a cuddle or a kiss, and tell them that you love them.”

Adolescence is available to stream on Netflix.

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