Leah Remini Wins First Emmy for Her Scientology series: This Belongs to 'the Brave Ones' Sharing Their Stories
On Saturday night, Leah Remini won her first Emmy for her A&E series Leah Remini: Scientology and the Aftermath.
Remini, 47, teared up as she accepted her award at the Creative Arts Emmy Awards at the Microsoft Theatre in Los Angeles.
Wearing a sophisticated floral-print dress with a pussy bow by the neck, Remini dedicated the award to the “brave contributors who [worked on the series] despite ongoing risk and repercussions.”
Remini’s A&E series documents the experiences of former Scientology members, including her own.
“I’m so happy to share this,” Remini continued. “It’s not an easy job but they were the ones putting their stories out there for everyone to hear.”
She also thanked her mother and jokingly added, “you are officially forgiven for getting us into a cult.”
Back in the press room, Remini told reporters about how moving the experience of winning was — and how the award doesn’t really belong to her.
“Well, it’s — as an actress, you always want to get an Emmy nomination or win an Emmy and as you get a little older you realize what’s really important and you are exposed to stories like this,” Remini said. “It becomes more about doing the right thing and so it doesn’t belong to me. It belongs to our heroes and so it’s so much more fulfilling.”
“I’ve always wanted to win this but it means so much more knowing that it actually does belong to our contributors who are the brave ones who are telling us and all of us their stories,” she added.
Remini previously told PEOPLE the process of adjusting to a life outside Scientology “doesn’t happen overnight” because “it’s a learning process; it’s changing the way you think.
Asked how she was planning on balancing her A&E series with her new role on CBS comedy Kevin Can Wait, Remini told reporters, “Well, we’ve been doing it. I’ve already started on Kevin Can Wait and it’s definitely a balancing act.”
Season 2 of Remini’s Scientology premiered on A&E August 15, and Kevin Can Wait will premiere September 25.
