LOS ANGELES — Tramell Tillman of Apple TV+'s hit series "Severance" won the Emmy for supporting actor in a drama, becoming the first Black actor to win the category. He received a standing ovation as he accepted the award.

Tillman was awarded for his portrayal of the enigmatic and possibly sinister employee supervisor Seth Milchick, who leads the macrodata refinement team at Lumon Industries after previous boss Harmony Cobel (Patricia Arquette) is unceremoniously removed. The actor was spotlighted in several episodes during the show's second season, particularly the finale, when Mr. Milchick boogied while backing a marching band during an employee celebration for completing the Cold Harbor file.

The victory came in one of the ceremony's most competitive contests as Tillman faced off against two of his "Severance" co-stars, Zach Cherry and John Turturro; a trio from Season 3 of HBO's "The White Lotus" — Walton Goggins, Jason Isaacs and Sam Rockwell; and James Marsden from Hulu's "Paradise." It was Tillman's first Emmy nomination and first win.

He dedicated his win to his mother, describing her as his first acting coach — "tough, but all great mothers are."

"Mama, you were there for me when no one else was, and no one else would show up," he said. "This is for you."

"I am full. I am humbled. I am honored," Tillman continued. Raising his trophy, he capped off his speech with, "and as my mother would say, 'Woo! Look at God.'"

In a discussion during an episode of the Los Angeles Times' The Envelope podcast, Tillman said he had originally thought of Mr. Milchick as a villain. But he came to realize that the character was more complex.

"To categorize him as a villain, I think it's a bit shortsighted," he said. "It's easy to go that route. And so what I really enjoy is the conversation where people are discussing if he is a villain because I think that there is more to mine. There's more to understand."

After his historic win, Tillman underscored the work of other Black actors.

"I'm on cloud nine," he said in the winner's room. "I'm still processing, but I am fortunate to be in the company of such great actors that have gone before me, like Andre Braugher, Ossie Davis, Michael K. Williams, that have done beautiful work ... Giancarlo Esposito, Jeffrey Wright. These men have been taking on the work for years."

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