Joaquin Castro Congratulates First Latino to Preside Over Emmys

As the entertainment world prepares for Sunday’s Primetime Emmy Awards—coinciding with the first day of Hispanic Heritage Month—Texas Congressman Joaquin Castro extends his congratulations to Cris Abrego, who will make history as the first Latino Chair of the Television Academy to preside over the prestigious event.

“Tonight, Cris Abrego will make history as the first Latino to lead the Television Academy during television’s biggest night,” Castro tells Variety in an exclusive statement. “For decades, Cris has been a trailblazer and successful entrepreneur, shaping modern entertainment and championing underrepresented voices in Hollywood. As Latinos continue to push for greater representation in American media, tonight’s Emmy Awards represent a significant step forward. Congratulations to Cris and to all those who will follow in his footsteps.”

Abrego is the chairman of the Americas at the global production company Banijay and, most recently, partnered with Eva Longoria to launch Hyphenate Media Group, where he serves as CEO. At the TV Academy, Abrego’s two-year term as chairman began on Jan. 1.

Read: All Primetime Emmy predictions in every category on Variety’s Awards Circuit.

This year’s Emmy nominations reflect growing diversity within the industry. The number of people of color (POC) nominated across all categories has risen to 30 out of the 96 acting nominees, including four notable Latino performers. Selena Gomez is nominated for lead comedy actress for “Only Murders in the Building,” Sofia Vergara for lead actress limited for “Griselda,” Liza Colón-Zayas for supporting comedy actress for “The Bear” and Nava Mau for supporting actress limited for “Baby Reindeer.” Notably, Brazilian star Néstor Carbonell has already taken home an Emmy during the Creative Arts ceremony for guest drama actor for “Shōgun.”

Gomez, already an Emmy-nominated producer, has made history as the most Emmy-nominated Latina producer with her third nomination for Hulu’s hit mystery-comedy series. This year, she also secured her first acting nomination, becoming only the fourth Latina to be recognized in the lead comedy actress category. Vergara marks the second Latina ever to be nominated in her race, while Colón-Zayas and Mau are the third Latinas in theirs.

Beyond the acting categories, Issa López, showrunner of “True Detective: Night Country,” garnered three nominations for directing, writing, and producing the fourth season of the HBO/Max anthology series. López is the first Latino to be nominated for directing and only the second for writing, following René Echevarria’s 2005 nomination for “The 4400.” Additionally, Francesca Sloane has been recognized with two nominations for an outstanding drama series and writing (drama) her work on Prime Video’s action series “Mr. and Mrs. Smith.”

Congressman Castro has long advocated for increasing Latino representation in the media. In 2020, he commissioned reports from the nonpartisan Government Accountability Office, which underscored the persistent underrepresentation of Latinos in American media and entertainment. As a vocal champion for Latino inclusion, he has called for more representation in film, television, publishing, and video games. Castro also played a pivotal role in creating the National Museum of the American Latino and the Mexican American Civil Rights Museum, based in San Antonio, Texas. He advocates for including Latino films in the National Film Registry at the Library of Congress each year.

This week, Castro will join other prominent Latino government leaders at the Congressional Hispanic Caucus Institute’s annual Leadership Conference, themed “Latino Excellence in Action: Innovation, Influence, and Representation.” The event will feature a series of panels and discussions celebrating Latinos’ creativity, resilience, and vibrant history. Variety will be moderating some of the talks.

The three-day conference will culminate on Thursday, September 19, with the 47th Annual Awards Gala, honoring the achievements of exceptional Latino trailblazers.