“Actors on Actors” Season 20 was the most-watched Emmys lineup in Variety history, garnering 97 million video views across social media and outpacing 2023’s record-breaking TV season.
Occurring twice a year during Emmys and Oscars voting, Variety’s “Actors on Actors” spotlights the biggest and buzziest names of each awards season. The 2024 TV lineup included Robert Downey Jr. and Jodie Foster’s “Home for the Holidays” reunion; a heartfelt and honest discussion between Quinta Brunson and Jennifer Aniston; and the first-ever public conversation of “The Crown’s” Dianas, Elizabeth Debicki and Emma Corrin.
Instagram video views jumped 151% over last year’s Emmys “Actors on Actors,” while TikTok views accounted for 61% of the traffic. Big moments included Aniston’s reflection on 30 years of “Friends” and Taylor Zakhar Perez sharing about his sister’s legacy.
“For another season, ‘Actors on Actors’ has continued its winning streak as the most successful interview series of its kind. At Variety, original video content continues to be one of our biggest priorities, and we are so proud of everyone in our newsroom who worked on this special issue,” said Variety co-editor-in-chief Ramin Setoodeh.
Social strategy and publishing was spearheaded by Variety’s social media team, led by editor Rachel Seo and coordinator Julia MacCary, with additional support from digital news director Zack Sharf and associate web editor Ethan Shanfeld.
“Rachel and Julia’s speed and strategy led us to our highest numbers ever,” said William Earl, editor of Variety.com. “Their ability to think on their feet and try new things, while perfectly finding the pulse of our audience with angling, helped us to get all of our fantastic discussions seen.”
Season 20 was executive produced by Setoodeh, Donna Pennestri, Michelle Merker and Andrew Russell, with Michelle Sobrino-Stearns serving as executive-in-charge of production and Nicholas Stango leading Variety’s video team. Conversations were moderated by editor-at-large Kate Aurthur, reporter Selome Hailu, chief correspondent Daniel D’Addario and senior entertainment writer Angelique Jackson.
Maris Berzins, Georg Kallert, Diana Nguyen and Rob Schroeder served as producers, with Katie Adler as associate producer. Variety senior executive producer Sydney Kramer, junior producer Tania Merlos and editor Karen Mizoguchi also contributed.
Source Agencies
