Creatorverse: Why ‘SubwayTakes’ Scored the Coveted Creator Emmy Nom
Hey Creatorverse readers. What’s your take?
Mine is that I get why Kareem Rahma’s “SubwayTakes” scored an Emmy nom after YouTube has been pushing for creators to be considered for two years. The shortform series was nominated for Outstanding Short Form Comedy, Drama or Variety Series last week.
Rahma isn’t the first YouTuber to ever score an Emmy nomination. He’s not even the first one this year. Song parodist Randy Rainbow scored two nominations and has been nominated six times in the short-form categories. But of the six creators YouTube backed this year, Rahma was the only one to land on the Emmys’ list, and unlike Rainbow, who scored media attention early for his political content, he’s the nominee that really feels like he came from the world of creators.
So how did Rahma do it?
A decade of covering this awards show tells me it was the combination of “SubwayTakes” easy-to-follow format, the luck of the algorithm and a concentrated media push.
First, let’s take a look at the other creators YouTube pushed this year. On the interview front, you have Brittany Broski, Julian Shapiro-Barnum and Sean Evans. As fun as Broski’s “Royal Court” is, it still feels a bit too YouTube-y to get the attention of voters, and neither Shapiro-Barnum’s “Substitute Teacher” nor “Recess Therapy” really broke thorugh mainstream culture this year.
As for Evans, “Hot Ones” has long been the gold standard for YouTube interview shows, but there’s always a cost with being first. It could be that voters felt “Hot Ones” was too established for a nomination, which is part of Emmy voters’ confusing and contradictory tightrope walk of trying to honor the best of TV while doing minimal research into what that actually means. (Need proof that Emmy voters get stuck in nomination ruts? Look at how many noms the consistently innovative “It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia” has versus “Family Guy.”)
As for Abram’s science-focused “HUGE *If True” and Khare’s stunt-obsessed “Challenge Accepted,” I think both were casualties of voters still having a hard time accepting longform creator shows as TV. The same is true of Dropout. Weirdly, watchability may also be a factor here. I’ve never been an Emmy voter, but I am a voting member of the Television Critics Association, and in 2019, some members were still relying on DVDs to watch screeners. Many shows are practically spoonfed to voters through screening sites, mailers and specialized events, a weird quirk of the awards infrastructure that puts creators at a disadvantage.
Then there’s “SubwayTakes.” Not only was it eligible for a less popular category, but the shortform series truly broke containment this year with Rahma and his MetroCard appearing all over social media. The show also relies on an easily digestible format (Who doesn’t want to hear the hottest takes from celebrities and New Yorkers?) and Rahma’s team played the game well, headlining profiles for The New Yorker and the Wall Street Journal.
Whether or not Rahma will win his category seems less clear. In addition to Rainbow, he’s against a Tom Segura series from Netflix as well as his two big rivals — “Colbert Before Air” and last year’s winner “Desi Lydic Foxsplains” from “The Daily Show.” But in this case, just getting nominated is truly a victory, both for “SubwayTakes” and creators as a whole.
Now onto the rest.
Kayla Cobb
Senior Reporter
kayla.cobb@thewrap.com
P.S. It’s the one-year anniversary of Creatorverse! Thanks to you, all my lovely, fashionable and cool af readers.
What’s New
Netflix ups its creator game with Nick DiGiovanni, “Good Mythical Morning,” the Stokes twins and more
Since I skipped the newsletter last week, that means I have a metric ton of Netflix news. Nick DiGionvanni (43.1 million YouTube subscribers), “Good Mythical Morning” (19.7 million subscribers), “Mythical Kitchen” and “Last Meals” (4.5 million subscribers), “Alan’s Universe” (101 million subscribers) and the Stokes twins (141 million subscribers) will all be coming to the streamer as Netflix continues to aggressively bet on creators. That’s not all. Netflix also signed a deal that will bring videos from companies like BuzzFeed, Condé Nast and People to its platform in a move to try and deepen engagement among subscribers.
Reminder: These kind of licensing deals bring big libraries to Netflix at relatively low costs. And we’ll see just how Netflix’s creator investment has been performing tomorrow when the streamer releases its viewing numbers for the first half of the year.
Mergers and acquisitions in the creator economy are up 23% year over year
Creator economy mergers and acquisitions are up 23% year over year, according to a study from Quartermast Advisors. In the first half of the year, 70 deals have been made compared to the 87 deals in total that were made in 2025. Media properties represent the biggest sector so far, making up 27% of all creator economy M&A purchases so far.
Steven Bartlett and MrBeast are coming to “Shark Tank”
“Shark Tank” is embracing its creator era as “Diary of a CEO” host and founder Steven Bartlett (18.3 million YouTube subscribers) and Jimmy Donaldson, aka MrBeast (508 million subscribers) will be coming to the ABC show as guest investors. Donaldson will be joined by Beast Industries CEO Jeffrey Housenbold.
Meta pulls back Muse Image after mass backlash to the AI tool
It’s a very bad time to be Meta right now. Let’s start with Muse Image, the AI image generation model that was rolled out last week and let people make fake images from user-generated content. The feature was met by an intense wave of user backlash, largely because all users were opted into the feature by default, and major organizations like CAA and SAG-AFTRA criticized the move. Days after its release, Muse Image was removed with a representative from Meta saying the company “missed the mark.”
Four states are looking for $1.4 trillion in penalties over child addiction concerns
Adding to Meta’s very bad summer are its ongoing trials related to child safety concerns. Last week, the company revealed that a lawsuit from four states is looking for $1.4 trillion in penalties. No, I did not misspell “billion.” The trial is set to take place in August, and it’s not looking great for the company behind Instagram, Facebook, Threads and WhatsApp.
A recent Pew Research study found that a majority of Americans support a social media ban for users under the age of 16. Considering that Google, Snap and TikTok are also named in some of these global lawsuits, there’s a chance the internet may look very different soon.
India calls out Meta for child sexual abuse content that reportedly appears in ads
One more headache. Last week, the Indian government demanded that Instagram remove ads featuring imagery that promotes child sexual abuse. For its part, a spokesman for Meta told the New York Times that the company had a “zero tolerance policy” for child sexual abuse imagery and that it’s having “constructive conversations” with India’s technology ministry about the complaint. Meta has also removed 160,000 accounts in India in the past six months that were believed to be linked to illegal content. This is a fairly localized issue, but as the outcry for more child safety protections on the internet gets louder, it’s one worth keeping an eye on.
Movers and Shakers
Internet horror sensations “The Mandela Catalogue” and Siren Head are getting Hollywood adaptations
After the success of Kane Parsons’ “Backrooms” — a movie based on a YouTube series that was based on a creepypasta thread — more studios are investing in niche horror. Zach Cregger (“Weapons”) will be writing a movie for Warner Bros. based on Siren Head, artist Trevor Henderson’s creation. Steven Spielberg and Amazon MGM Studios will also be partnering to adapt the YouTube series “The Mandela Catalogue” with the series’ creator Alex Kister directing. Meanwhile, Curry Barker’s “Obsession” just became the highest grossing original horror movie of the century.
Webtoon partners with Espotlight on a TV and film development deal for Spanish-language content
The web comic giant Webtoon has partnered with Spanish production company Espotlight on a first-look deal that will develop Spanish-language film and TV adaptations based on Wattpad webnovels. This continues Webtoon Productions’ increased investment in film and TV development.
“Freakonomics” creator Stephen Dubner launches a new talk show
A big name from podcasting’s past is back. Stephen Dubner, known best for “Freakonomics,” launched a video talk show yesterday. Titled “Better in Person,” the show explores how people work and will release new episodes on Tuesdays.
Who to Watch
Stephanie Lange
Influencers have always been a bit of an internet blind spot for me (Remember: Creators make original content, while influencers use their personal brand to persuade viewers). As I’m trying to remedy that knowledge gap, no one has been more helpful than Stephanie Lange (2.1 million YouTube subscribers). A creator who’s unafraid to tell it like she sees it and with a knack for pulling the snappiest clips that prove her point, Lange is a stellar documentarian of influencers during this ever-changing time in entertainment.
Bonus Content
- The Influencer’s World Cup: Pitchside Access and the Battle for Views in an Often Lonely World (via New York Times)
- At 17, She Sued Meta and Google, and Won. Now She’s Ready to Tell Her Story (via Bloomberg)
- TIME100 Creators 2026 (via Time)
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This report provides a weekly deep dive into the creator economy. It highlights key trends, political and technological developments, data points and industry leaders all with the goal of making you smarter about this constantly evolving space.
Hey Creatorverse readers. What’s your take? Mine is
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