
A woman who landed the unusual role of seat filler at the Emmys has lifted the curtain on what really happens at the event, as well as one not-so-fun part of the job.
The 78th Primetime Emmy Awards are taking place at Los Angeles' Peacock Theater on Monday, September 14, bringing together some of the biggest names in television for one of Hollywood's most glamorous nights.
Among the shows competing for the night's biggest prizes are comedies including The Bear and Only Murders in the Building, dramas such as Slow Horses and The Pitt, and limited series including DTF St. Louis.
On screen, everything looks effortless and during the broadcast and we all look at the seating arrangements and the stars in attendance, but when the cameras cut to commercial, celebrities can suddenly vanish from their seats and that's when the seat fillers come in.
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Their job is to quietly slip into empty chairs, helping keep the audience looking full whenever the broadcast cuts back. Sounds interesting, right? But it's not all stars and cameras, according to the woman who worked as a seat filler at the 2024 Emmy Awards.

She wrote on Reddit's 'AMA' forum: "I have been signed up to seatfillersandmore.com for about a year and a half now. I apply to each event (I’m a Los Angeles local) and they pick based on a lottery system. I got accepted for this about a week or so prior.
"I was sat next to Stephen Colbert and right behind Brie Larson and I spoke a little to both! I was also right next to the cast of The Bear and Shogun. I was about 6 or so rows down from the front."
Naturally, many people were intrigued by what a seat filler actually gets to see while we watch the Emmys from the comfort of our home, and the Reddit user shed light on the worst part of the job.
"The worst part was definitely all the waiting and standing around before the event," she said.

However, she assured that all in all it was a pretty good gig.
"I actually had so much fun," she revealed. "I just loved sitting in the spot I was in. The celebrity chatter happening around me was so fun."
Redditors flocked to the comments section of the post to ask the anonymous woman questions about her experience, and perhaps the most asked question was what exactly happens during the advert breaks.
The woman explained: "Everyone got up to mix and mingle and order drinks. Practically each commercial break, Brie L would go and find her friends to chat with.
"A few times the staff would try and fill her seat with another seat filler, thinking she was gone, but was just a row or two down chopping it up."

Many Reddit users also asked what happens to the winners once they have collected their award.
Well, the Emmy Awards attendee explained how the winers 'leave for a while' before returning to their seats.
"Two rows behind me was Liza Colón-Zayas (Tina from The Bear) and she had hers in her lap after being absent from her seat for some time," the Reddit user concluded.
Topics: Hollywood, Entertainment, Reddit