Maybe Happy Ending Sweeps the Tonys
At the 78th Annual Tony Awards, Maybe Happy Ending stole the show, taking home six Tonys, including Best Musical. The quirky and deeply emotional story of two outdated robots navigating love and loneliness in Seoul beat out stiff competition like Death Becomes Her and Buena Vista Social Club. Darren Criss earned his first Tony for his performance as Oliver, one of the HelperBots, while Michael Arden snagged Best Director of a Musical, and the show’s songwriting team—Hue Park and Will Aronson—also walked away with trophies.
The win was especially meaningful in South Korea, where the musical originated in 2016. Social media lit up with national pride as fans celebrated the show’s Broadway success as another win for the Korean Wave. "This feels like a dream come true for the Korean Wave," one user wrote, while others praised the decision to keep Korean cultural elements intact in the U.S. production. With this win, South Korea now holds bragging rights across all major U.S. entertainment awards—Oscars, Emmys, Grammys, and now, Tonys.
The night had its share of surprises, too. Nicole Scherzinger defied expectations and took home Best Actress in a Musical for Sunset Boulevard, despite recent controversy. Meanwhile, Tony favorite Audra McDonald and the revival of Gypsy were shut out entirely. Branden Jacobs-Jenkins’ Purpose claimed Best Play, and Eureka Day took Best Revival of a Play, besting Yellow Face. And in a moment that made Tony history, Cole Escola became the first openly non-binary actor to win for a leading role in a play, while Kara Young notched her second consecutive win.
See the full list of winners below:
Best Musical
Buena Vista Social Club
Dead Outlaw
Death Becomes Her
WINNER Maybe Happy Ending
Operation Mincemeat: A New Musical
Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role in a Musical
Megan Hilty, Death Becomes Her
Audra McDonald, Gypsy
Jasmine Amy Rogers, BOOP! The Musical
WINNER Nicole Scherzinger, Sunset Blvd.
Jennifer Simard, Death Becomes Her
Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role in a Musical
WINNER Darren Criss, Maybe Happy Ending
Andrew Durand, Dead Outlaw
Tom Francis, Sunset Blvd.
Jonathan Groff, Just in Time
James Monroe Iglehart, A Wonderful World: The Louis Armstrong Musical
Jeremy Jordan, Floyd Collins
Best Revival of a Musical
Floyd Collins, Tina Landau (book, additional lyrics) and Adam Guettel (music and lyrics)
Gypsy
Pirates! The Penzance Musical
WINNER Sunset Blvd.
Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role in a Play
George Clooney, Good Night, and Good Luck
WINNER Cole Escola, Oh, Mary!
Jon Michael Hill, Purpose
Daniel Dae Kim, Yellow Face
Harry Lennix, Purpose
Louis McCartney, Stranger Things: The First Shadow
Best Direction of a Musical
Saheem Ali, Buena Vista Social Club
WINNER Michael Arden, Maybe Happy Ending
David Cromer, Dead Outlaw
Christopher Gattelli, Death Becomes Her
Jamie Lloyd, Sunset Blvd.
Best Direction of a Play
Knud Adams, English
Sam Mendes, The Hills of California
WINNER Sam Pinkleton, Oh, Mary!
Danya Taymor, John Proctor is the Villain
Kip Williams, The Picture of Dorian Gray
Best Revival of a Play
WINNER Eureka Day, Jonathan Spector
Romeo + Juliet
Thornton Wilder's Our Town
Yellow Face, David Henry Hwang
Best Play
English
The Hills of California
John Proctor is the Villain
Oh, Mary!
WINNER Purpose
Best Performance by an Actress in a Featured Role in a Musical
WINNER Natalie Venetia Belcon, Buena Vista Social Club
Julia Knitel, Dead Outlaw
Gracie Lawrence, Just in Time
Justina Machado, Real Women Have Curves: The Musical
Joy Woods, Gypsy
Best Performance by an Actress in a Featured Role in a Play
Tala Ashe, English
Jessica Hecht, Eureka Day
Marjan Neshat, English
Fina Strazza, John Proctor is the Villain
WINNER Kara Young, Purpose
Best Performance by an Actor in a Featured Role in a Musical
Brooks Ashmanskas, SMASH
Jeb Brown, Dead Outlaw
Danny Burstein, Gypsy
WINNER Jak Malone, Operation Mincemeat: A New Musical
Taylor Trensch, Floyd Collins
Best Performance by an Actor in a Featured Role in a Play
Glenn Davis, Purpose
Gabriel Ebert, John Proctor is the Villain
WINNER Francis Jue, Yellow Face
Bob Odenkirk, Glengarry Glen Ross
Conrad Ricamora, Oh, Mary!
Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role in a Play
Laura Donnelly, The Hills of California
Mia Farrow, The Roommate
LaTanya Richardson Jackson, Purpose
Sadie Sink, John Proctor is the Villain
WINNER Sarah Snook, The Picture of Dorian Gray
Best Original Score (Music and/or Lyrics) Written for the Theatre
Dead Outlaw, David Yazbek and Erik Della Penna
Death Becomes Her, Julia Mattison and Noel Carey
WINNER Maybe Happy Ending, Will Aronson (music and lyrics) and Hue Park (lyrics)
Operation Mincemeat: A New Musical, David Cumming, Felix Hagan, Natasha Hodgson, and Zoë Roberts
Real Women Have Curves: The Musical, Joy Huerta and Benjamin Velez
Best Costume Design of a Musical
Dede Ayite, Buena Vista Social Club
Gregg Barnes, BOOP! The Musical
Clint Ramos, Maybe Happy Ending
WINNER Paul Tazewell, Death Becomes Her
Catherine Zuber, Just in Time
Best Costume Design of a Play
Brenda Abbandandolo, Good Night, and Good Luck
WINNER Marg Horwell, The Picture of Dorian Gray
Rob Howell, The Hills of California
Holly Pierson, Oh, Mary!
Brigitte Reiffenstuel, Stranger Things: The First Shadow
Best Scenic Design of a Musical
Rachel Hauck, Swept Away
WINNER Dane Laffrey and George Reeve, Maybe Happy Ending
Arnulfo Maldonado, Buena Vista Social Club
Derek McLane, Death Becomes Her
Derek McLane, Just in Time
Best Scenic Design of a Play
Marsha Ginsberg, English
Rob Howell, The Hills of California
Marg Horwell and David Bergman, The Picture of Dorian Gray
WINNER Miriam Buether and 59, Stranger Things: The First Shadow
Scott Pask, Good Night, and Good Luck
Best Lighting Design of a Musical
WINNER Jack Knowles, Sunset Blvd.
Tyler Micoleau, Buena Vista Social Club
Scott Zielinski and Ruey Horng Sun, Floyd Collins
Ben Stanton, Maybe Happy Ending
Justin Townsend, Death Becomes Her
Best Lighting Design of a Play
Natasha Chivers, The Hills of California
WINNER Jon Clark, Stranger Things: The First Shadow
Heather Gilbert and David Bengali, Good Night, and Good Luck
Natasha Katz and Hannah Wasileski, John Proctor is the Villain
Nick Schlieper, The Picture of Dorian Gray
Best Choreography
Joshua Bergasse, SMASH
Camille A. Brown, Gypsy
Christopher Gattelli, Death Becomes Her
Jerry Mitchell, BOOP! The Musical
WINNER Patricia Delgado and Justin Peck, Buena Vista Social Club
Best Orchestrations
Andrew Resnick and Michael Thurber, Just in Time
Will Aronson, Maybe Happy Ending
Bruce Coughlin, Floyd Collins
WINNER Marco Paguia, Buena Vista Social Club
David Cullen and Andrew Lloyd Webber, Sunset Blvd.
Best Sound Design of a Musical
WINNER Jonathan Deans, Buena Vista Social Club
Adam Fisher, Sunset Blvd.
Peter Hylenski, Just in Time
Peter Hylenski, Maybe Happy Ending
Dan Moses Schreier, Floyd Collins
Best Book of a Musical
Buena Vista Social Club, Marco Ramirez
Dead Outlaw, Itamar Moses
Death Becomes Her, Marco Pennette
WINNER Maybe Happy Ending, Will Aronson and Hue Park
Operation Mincemeat: A New Musical, David Cumming, Felix Hagan, Natasha Hodgson, and Zoë Roberts
Best Sound Design of a Play
WINNER Paul Arditti, Stranger Things: The First Shadow
Palmer Hefferan, John Proctor is the Villain
Daniel Kluger, Good Night, and Good Luck
Nick Powell, The Hills of California
Clemence Williams, The Picture of Dorian Gray
