Malin Akerman and Brittany Snow traded flirtatious banter onstage during the 77th Emmy Awards as they presented the lead acting nominees in a limited or anthology series or movie category, drawing cheers from the audience and spotlighting their Netflix drama The Hunting Wives.
The pair, who stepped in for Sofia Vergara as presenters Sunday at the Peacock Theater in Los Angeles, channeled the sultry dynamic of their characters from the Maple Brook-set thriller in a brief comedic bit that referenced the show’s steamy scenes and joked about “coming out.” After introducing the nominees, they announced Stephen Graham as the winner for Best Actor in a Limited or Anthology Series or Movie for his work in Netflix’s Adolescence.
The onstage moment came days after Netflix confirmed that The Hunting Wives, created for television by Rebecca Cutter and based on May Cobb’s bestselling novel, will return for a second season. The eight-episode first season premiered in late July and spent five consecutive weeks among Netflix’s Top 10 most-viewed shows, a performance that helped secure the renewal.
Netflix said Cutter will write an original second-season script that begins with the two central characters, Sophie (Snow) and Margo (Akerman), “on the outs,” only to be drawn back together by old secrets and new threats. The streamer announced that several cast members will reprise their roles, including Dermot Mulroney as Jed, Jaime Ray Newman, Evan Jonigkeit and George Ferrier. The second season will pick up after the first season’s cliffhanger, but Netflix has not announced a release date.
The brief presentation also intersected with a night of major wins for other series. HBO’s new medical drama The Pitt emerged as the biggest winner in the drama field, taking home Best Drama Series and propelling its lead, Noah Wyle, to his first Primetime Emmy for Best Actor in a Drama Series. The show won multiple awards across the ceremony. AppleTV+’s The Studio dominated the comedy categories, earning 13 Emmys including Best Comedy Series and Best Actor in a Comedy Series for Seth Rogen. Netflix’s Adolescence claimed eight awards in the limited-series categories, with Stephen Graham winning Best Actor and 15-year-old Owen Cooper becoming the youngest male actor to win an Emmy in an acting category. HBO’s Hacks also collected three awards, including another Best Actress in a Comedy Series win for Jean Smart and a supporting acting prize for Hannah Einbinder.
Industry observers noted that The Hunting Wives’ renewal came amid a broader period of success for prestige streaming dramas that translate high ratings into fast renewals. The series, which blends a murder-mystery structure with sexual intrigue in a fictional Texas town, benefited from strong early viewership and social-media discussion about its plot twists and the chemistry between Snow and Akerman’s characters.
Neither Netflix nor the show’s producers have released additional story details beyond Cutter’s logline or a timetable for production. The second season’s announcement follows the industry pattern of streamers greenlighting follow-ups shortly after breakout streaming performance, especially when a series anchors a platform’s summer slate. Akerman and Snow are scheduled to reprise their roles, and their Emmys appearance gave the renewal a high-profile moment on a night that celebrated television across broadcast and streaming platforms.
The 77th Emmy Awards recognized programs across drama, comedy and limited-series categories, and the ceremony reflected both traditional network comebacks and the continuing strength of streaming originals. For The Hunting Wives, the flirtatious exchange between its two leads briefly brought the show’s blend of glamour and menace to the stage and underscored Netflix’s decision to extend the series despite few public story details about its next chapter.