Walk into any high-end living room in Monterey and you’ll feel it. That specific, chilly tension of secrets kept behind glass walls. When Big Little Lies first hit HBO, it wasn't just another show about rich people with problems. It was a cultural earthquake. But honestly, the sheer volume of awards for Big Little Lies is what cemented its place in history. It transformed from a "limited series" into a powerhouse franchise that basically forced the Television Academy to rethink how they categorize shows.
You remember the 2017-2018 awards circuit. It was everywhere. You couldn't turn on a red carpet broadcast without seeing Nicole Kidman, Reese Witherspoon, and Laura Dern clutching gold statues. They didn't just win; they swept. It was a total shutout.
The Night of the Big Sweep
The 69th Primetime Emmy Awards felt like a victory lap for the residents of Otter Bay. People talk about "prestige TV," but this was the blueprint. The show walked away with eight Emmys. Eight. That includes the big one: Outstanding Limited Series. It beat out some seriously heavy hitters like Feud: Bette and Joan and The Night Of.
Jean-Marc Vallée, the late, brilliant director who gave the show its hazy, dreamlike rhythm, took home the Emmy for Outstanding Directing. His style was so specific. It wasn't just about the dialogue; it was about the cuts, the ocean waves, and the way the music felt like a character. If you’ve ever found yourself staring at the Pacific Ocean feeling vaguely anxious, you can thank Vallée's vision.
The acting categories were a bloodbath for the competition. Nicole Kidman won Outstanding Lead Actress for her portrayal of Celeste Wright. It was a performance that was hard to watch but impossible to look away from. When she accepted her award, she spoke about the "complicated, insidious disease" of domestic violence, bringing the weight of the show’s themes into the real world.
Breaking Down the Acting Wins
It’s rare to see a cast where every single person is operating at their absolute peak. Usually, there's a weak link. Not here. Alexander Skarsgård, who played the terrifying Perry Wright, won the Emmy for Outstanding Supporting Actor. He managed to be both monstrous and human, a feat that is incredibly difficult to pull off without falling into caricature.
Then there’s Laura Dern.
Renata Klein became an instant icon. "I will not NOT be rich!" is a line etched into the archives of television history. Dern won Outstanding Supporting Actress, and it felt like a long-overdue coronation for one of the best actors of our time.
- Nicole Kidman: Emmy, Golden Globe, SAG Award, Critics' Choice.
- Alexander Skarsgård: Emmy, Golden Globe, SAG Award, Critics' Choice.
- Laura Dern: Emmy, Golden Globe, Critics' Choice.
Reese Witherspoon didn't win the individual acting Emmy—she was nominated alongside Kidman—but as an executive producer, she was the one holding the trophy for Outstanding Limited Series. It’s important to remember that she and Kidman were the ones who optioned Liane Moriarty's book. They built this house.
Beyond the Emmys: The Golden Globes and SAGs
The momentum didn't stop in September. By the time the Golden Globes rolled around in January 2018, the awards for Big Little Lies were stacking up like Monterey driftwood. The Hollywood Foreign Press Association gave it four awards. Again, Kidman, Skarsgård, and Dern were all recognized.
The Screen Actors Guild (SAG) Awards are often seen as the "peers' choice" awards. Actors voting for actors. In that arena, Alexander Skarsgård and Nicole Kidman won again. It was a consensus. It didn't matter if you were a critic, a fan, or a fellow actor—everyone agreed that this show was the gold standard.
Critics' Choice Awards? They grabbed six of those. Television Critics Association? Outstanding Achievement in Movies, Miniseries, and Specials. It was a literal tidal wave of hardware.
Why the Hardware Matters for Season 2
Here is where things get a bit messy. The original plan was for Big Little Lies to be a limited series. One and done. But when you win that many awards, the "limited" part of the title starts to look a lot like a suggestion rather than a rule. HBO wanted more. The fans wanted more.
So, Season 2 happened.
They brought in Meryl Streep. I mean, how do you follow up a season that won every award in existence? You hire the greatest living actress to play a grieving, suspicious mother-in-law. Mary Louise Wright was a masterclass in passive-aggression and "accidental" screaming.
While Season 2 didn't have the same clean sweep as the first, it still kept the show in the conversation. Meryl Streep earned an Emmy nomination for Supporting Actress, because obviously she did. The show shifted categories from "Limited Series" to "Drama Series," which is a much tougher neighborhood to live in. It was competing against giants like Succession and The Crown.
The Technical Brilliance Nobody Talks About
We always focus on the faces on the posters. But the awards for Big Little Lies also recognized the people behind the scenes who made the show look and sound like a fever dream.
David Berman, the music supervisor, created a soundtrack that people are still listening to today. Michael Kiwanuka’s "Cold Little Heart" became synonymous with the show's opening credits. The show won a Creative Arts Emmy for Outstanding Music Supervision.
The hair and makeup teams also won. Think about the "Audrey Hepburn and Elvis" party. That wasn't just a costume party; it was a character study through wardrobe. Every single detail was scrutinized, and the industry noticed.
- Casting: David Rubin won an Emmy for finding the perfect ensemble.
- Music Supervision: Susan Jacobs won for that haunting, atmospheric sound.
- Contemporary Costumes: Alix Friedberg took home the win for those perfectly curated Monterey outfits.
The Controversy of the "Limited Series" Label
There was a lot of chatter in the industry about whether it was "fair" for Big Little Lies to compete as a limited series once a second season was announced. The Television Academy eventually had to tighten up their rules. Essentially, the show’s success forced a change in how TV is categorized.
If a show is intended to be a one-off but then gets renewed because it's a hit, does it lose its "limited" status? It’s a debate that still happens today with shows like The White Lotus or Shogun. Big Little Lies was the catalyst for this confusion. It was so good it broke the system.
The Legacy of the Wins
When we look back at the awards for Big Little Lies, we aren't just looking at a list of trophies. We’re looking at a shift in power. This was a show produced by women, starring women, centered on the lives of women. It proved that stories about female friendship, trauma, and motherhood could be massive commercial successes and critical darlings.
It paved the way for The Morning Show, Little Fires Everywhere, and The Undoing. It showed that movie stars weren't "demoting" themselves by doing TV; they were finding better material there.
What to Do With This Information
If you're a fan of the show or a student of television history, the best way to appreciate these accolades is to look past the shiny trophies and into the craft.
- Rewatch Season 1 with an eye for the editing. Watch how Jean-Marc Vallée uses flashes of memory to tell the story of Celeste’s abuse without needing a ton of expository dialogue. There’s a reason he won that Emmy.
- Listen to the Soundscapes. Put on the soundtrack while you’re driving or working. Notice how the music shifts the mood. The "Music Supervision" award wasn't just for picking cool songs; it was for the timing of those songs.
- Compare the Categories. Look at the shows Big Little Lies was up against in 2017. It was a vintage year for TV. Understanding what it beat tells you a lot about the cultural temperature of that moment.
- Follow the Producers. Look at what Hello Sunshine (Reese Witherspoon’s company) has done since. The awards gave them the "greenlight power" to tell more stories like this.
The story of Monterey isn't over—rumors of a Season 3 have been swirling for years, especially with Nicole Kidman and Reese Witherspoon dropping hints in recent interviews. If it does return, the expectations will be astronomical. But for now, the legacy of those original wins stands as a high-water mark for what television can achieve when the writing, acting, and directing all hit the same perfect, haunting note.
