Storm Reid Brought to Tears with Guest Actor Emmy Win for The Last of Us: ‘I’m Such a Mess’

The Storm has arrived!

Storm Reid took home her first Emmy at the 75th Annual Creative Arts Emmy Awards on Saturday, winning Outstanding Guest Actress in a Drama Series for her role on the HBO series The last of us.

The actress, 20, faced stiff competition in the category, battling it out with other nominees including SuccessionHiam Abbass, Cherry Jones and Harriet Walter, as well as a colleague The last of us actresses Melanie Lynskey and Anna Torv.

On The last of us, Reid portrayed Riley, Ellie Bella Ramsey’s close friend and crush. Although the pair are ultimately not meant to be, their experience together is formative for Ellie. Reid was in tears as she accepted her award and thanked her friends, family and team. “I’m such a mess!” she said. “This is proof that you can do anything. I’m just a young girl from Atlanta, Georgia,”

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“I didn’t really know what I was getting myself into when I signed up to be Riley,” she told reporters afterward. “I think my role in The The last of us it strengthened my love and passion to tell meaningful stories and represent … young women, young queer black women.”

This is the first Emmy win for Reid, who was also recognized for her breakthrough performance as Meg in 2018. A wrinkle in time.

Here’s a look at all six nominees.

Peter Kramer/HBO

It takes an incredibly powerful woman to stand up to SuccessionLogan Roy (Brian Cox), and the HBO drama found three in Abbass, Jones and Walter.

Abbass and Walter portrayed Logan’s steely third and second wives. Abbass’s Marcia held a soft but unmistakable hold over Logan’s final chapter of life, while Walter’s bleak view of motherhood cut only slightly less deeply than her willingness to use her children as pawns in endless post-nuptial negotiations with her ex.

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Peter Kramer/HBO

Although she wasn’t married to Logan, Jones’ rival media mogul Nan Pierce ended up in bed with his children when they foolishly made her an offer she couldn’t refuse in yet another attempt to destabilize their father’s empire.

See the ‘Succession’ stars with their real-life loves

Sarah Shatz/HBO

Abbass’ 2023 bid was her first, while Walter pulled double duty two years in a row thanks to guest actress nominations in the comedy category for Ted Lasso. Walter also received a 2020 nod in the guest drama actress category — although that statuette went to her Succession co-star Jones, herself a three-time Emmy winner and five-time nominee as a result of her impressive roles in The Handmaid’s Tale and 24.

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Liane Hentscher/HBO

Torv received her first Emmy nomination for her work on three episodes of the show’s first season The last of us (including “Long, Long Time” along with 2023 nominated guests Murray Bartlett and Nick Offerman). She played Joel’s (Pedro Pascal) ex-smuggling partner. SOILpost-apocalyptic landscape, ultimately developing a protective affection for Joel’s newfound travel partner Ellie (Bella Ramsey).

Melanie Lynskey Jokes ‘The Last of Us’ Cameo Jason Ritter’s Husband Was ‘So Romantic’

Liane Hentscher/HBO

Lynskey channeled every ounce of cold-blooded detachment for her two-episode performance as Kansas’ Queen Kathleen. Her search for outlaw brothers Henry and Sam (guest star nominees Lamar Johnson and Keivonn Montreal Woodard) brings her into conflict with Joel and Ellie with deadly consequences. Death, destruction and darkness are familiar terrain for Lynskey, whose chilling show on Showtime Yellow vests earned her a second consecutive nomination for Best Lead Actress in a Drama Series.

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Reid won her first Emmy Award as Riley Abel, Ellie’s military schoolmate. Their close friendship—and almost more—lasted only one episode, episode 7 of “Lost Behind,” but it lasted a long time. HBO fans Euphoria will recognize Reid as Zendaya’s little sister Rue — and she’s been in good company at the Emmys for the past few years, with Zendaya winning last year’s drama actress Emmy among a field that included Lynskey.

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Watch PEOPLE’s complete coverage of the 75th Annual Primetime Emmy Awards as it airs live on Fox from the Peacock Theater in Los Angeles.

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