Egyptian-American actor Rami Malek made history last night as the first "non-white" actor to win the Emmys' Best Actor award in 18 years.
Malek grabbed "Outstanding Lead Actor" award in a drama series for his role in Mr. Robot, beating Kevin Spacey for House of Cards.
"For me to stand here as not the typical leading man and to have come home with this, I think speaks a lot about where we're headed, and I think we could keep going forward in that direction," Malek said in a press conference backstage, referring to highly charged race relations that have dominated US headlines of late.
Malek's win is especially significant because it comes in the wake of a heavily criticized all-white Academy Awards. Actor Will Smith said the Oscars this year was "almost criminal" for having an exclusively white list of nominees.
The last non-white Lead Actor winner at the Emmys is Andre Braugher for Homicide: Life on the Street in 1998.
"Please tell me you are seeing this too," Malek told the crowd in his acceptance speech, referencing a memorable line from the show onto the stage.
"I’m honored to stand here and represent my family and every single person who has helped me to get this far. I’m honored to work with a pure visionary in [showrunner] Sam Esmail. I wouldn’t be here without you," he continued.
The show, currently in its second season, scored six nominations at this year's Emmys. The show also won a Golden Globe for Best Drama Series earlier this year.
Malek wouldn't be the first of Arab descent to take an award at the Emmys.
Danny Thomas, whose parents are immigrants from Lebanon, took that title when he won "Best Actor in a Regular Series" for his role in Make Room for Daddy in 1953.
This also wouldn't be a first for Arabs taking the spotlight at the award shows. Bassem Youssef made history when he became the first Arab to ever host the Emmys in 2015.
In 2008, Jordanian soap opera Al Ijtiyah (The Invasion) snagged an Emmy, making it the kingdoms first.