Four of the five nominees in the Outstanding Younger Actor category had yet to pick up their first Emmy trophy, and two of the nominees were honored with nominations for the first time this year. However, for the third time in three years, Days of our Lives' Chandler Massey (Will Horton) took home to gold.
The win came just seconds after a clip of Will and Sonny's groundbreaking same-sex wedding was shown in the nominees' introduction package. There was just one slight detail that had been overlooked -- Massey had already left the show when those scenes were taped, and it was actor Guy Wilson who appeared in the scenes.
"Wow! Did you see my reel? That was awesome," Massey cracked upon taking the stage and claiming his Emmy, to laughs from the audience.
"I want to thank everyone at DAYS and NBC for this amazing, amazing ride. Four years. It was such an incredible experience. I am so grateful for the opportunity," Massey offered after the laughs had subsided.
Massey announced his plans to exit Days of our Lives in the press room of last year's Daytime Emmys. The young actor said that he wanted to focus on his education.
"When I moved out here to go to college... a soap opera was the last thing on my mind," Massey admitted. "But because of everyone on the show, the cast and the crew... I have absolutely no regrets at all. I love you guys so much."
Massey becomes the first actor to ever win three consecutive Outstanding Younger Actor trophies.
Of the five nominees in this year's Outstanding Younger Actress category, just one was a previous winner. Three of the four nominees received their first nomination this year. The category marked the final time that last year's winner, Kristen Alderson, could be nominated for her work as Starr Manning, a role she created on One Life to Live in 1998 and moved to General Hospital in 2011.
When the envelope was opened, The Young and the Restless' Hunter King was named the winner. This year, King earned her second consecutive nomination for her work as Summer Newman, a role she's been playing for less than two years.
"I feel like I'm dreaming," King exclaimed as she accepted her Emmy. "I was not expecting that at all."
Like many of her fellow winners, King also did not prepare a speech this year. She later told Soap Central, "I just thought, 'There is no point spending time writing a speech. You aren't going to win.' So when I did, I was really shocked."
On stage, King started off her acceptance speech by admitting something that many people can relate to.
"I'm a really bad public speaker. I'm just gonna start with that," King admitted somewhat bashfully. "I can't even speak in front of my family."
King went on to deliver a poised and well-thought-out acceptance speech.
"I just want to thank CBS and Sony for putting me on such an amazing show," King remarked as she looked around at her costars in the audience. "I love all of you, and I made lifelong friends from this show, and I can't be more grateful."
"A big thank you to my mom, who is a cancer survivor," King said as she clutched her Emmy close to her heart. "[She] taught me how to handle life with strength and grace."
Afterward, King thanked The Young and the Restless' executive producer Jill Farren Phelps, with whom King said she shared a close bond.
"Jill, thank you so much for giving me so many amazing opportunities. I love you. You're my second mom, and I love you dearly," King said.
While her acceptance speech featured two moms, King's Emmy reel featured two dads; her character learned that the man she'd believed to be her father for her entire life was not her biological father.
With King's win, The Young and the Restless has now won seven times in the Outstanding Supporting Actress category. The very first trophy handed out in the category in 1985 went to King's costar, Tracey E. Bregman (Lauren Fenmore).
