“Thank you, Sal Saperstein.” Some Emmy winners have already said this while accepting their prestigious awards, and we may hear it more when the 77th Primetime Emmy Awards air on the 2025 TV schedule this Sunday night. For those of you who’ve never heard of this titan in the entertainment industry, that’s because it’s a reference to The Studio, which is nominated in seven categories at this weekend’s awards ceremony. Not to worry, I’m here to explain the inside joke if you’ve never watched the Apple TV+ subscription-exclusive comedy series.
Who Is Sal Saperstein?
Sal Saperstein, played by Ike Barinholtz, is the vice president of Continental Studios on The Studio, which Seth Rogen’s Matt Remick became the new head of in the Martin Scorsese-infused first episode. As is often the case with Barinholtz’s roles, Sal is hilarious to watch, and I especially like watching his feud with Chase Sui Wonders’ Quinn Hackett unfold in “The War”. However, there’s no question that “The Golden Globes” is where he shined brightest.
In The Studio’s eighth episode, Matt is worried that Zöe Kravitz won’t thank him if she ends up winning for her Continental Studios-produced movie Open, and he grows more insecure about this as the night goes on. Meanwhile, it’s revealed that Severance’s Adam Scott slept on Sal Saperstein’s couch 20 years ago in this universe. So when Scott wins a Golden Globe, he thanks Sal during his acceptance speech.
This becomes a recurring joke throughout the rest of the episode. Golden Globes host Ramy Youssef references it while bantering during the Golden Globes ceremony, and Quinta Brunson, Jean Smart and Aaron Sorkin all amusingly thank Sal during their acceptance speeches despite having never met him. Sal goes viral on social media, which frustrates Matt as he obsesses about whether he’ll be thanked by just one specific person.
How Sal Saperstein Has Already Gotten Emmy Recognition
“Thank you, Sal Saperstein” became one of The Studio’s most referenced jokes among fans, and I hope that the greenlighted Season 2 finds a way to call back to it. For now, I’m just getting a kick out of how The Studio’s Sound Editing, Production Design, Casting, Picture Editing and Music Supervision teams dropped their lines during their acceptance speeches at the Primetime Creative Arts Emmy Awards earlier this month. Check out this montage from the Television Academy:
The Studio is competing in seven categories at the Primetime Emmys: Outstanding Comedy Series, Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series (Seth Rogen), Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series (Ike Barinholtz), Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series (both Kathryn Hahn and Catherine O’Hara), Outstanding Directing for a Comedy Series and Outstanding Writing for a Comedy Series. So there will be multiple opportunities throughout the night for “Thank you, Sal Saperstein” to be said, and I’ll welcome each and every one of them. And if Barinholtz ends up, in essence, thanking himself while on the stage, I’ll cackle.
Catch the 77th Primetime Emmy Awards Sunday at 8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. PT on CBS. Details for The Studio Season 2 are scarce, but there is a holdover Season 1 script that has an amazing title, and Seth Rogen has expressed interest in having Vin Diesel guest star at some point.
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