Amanda Seyfried has won the Emmy Award for best actress in a limited series for her commanding lead performance as Elizabeth Holmes in The Dropout. Seemingly flustered by the extra effort the orchestra put into playing off Jennifer Coolidge just moments earlier, Seyfried flew through her speech, giving thank-yous to series creator Elizabeth Meriwether and director Michael Showalter, among others.

Looking back on the making of the show, she summed it up: “It was really hard, but it was the best time of my life.”

The lead-actress-in-a-limited-series category has become one of the most competitive and prestigious at the Emmy Awards in recent years, drawing in A-list talent, Oscar winners, and theater royalty, often in the same year. Last year Kate Winslet triumphed over competition that included Cynthia Erivo, Michaela Coel, and Anya Taylor-Joy; other recent winners include Regina King, Michelle Williams, Nicole Kidman, and Sarah Paulson.

Playing disgraced Theranos founder Holmes, Seyfried was the clear standout from a string of ripped-from-the-headlines limited series that aired this spring. Seyfried dived deep into the ample research about Holmes and the way she spoke and dressed, but told Vanity Fair’s Joy Press earlier this year that there was more to it than that: “There’s footage of Elizabeth Holmes for 10 hours listening and answering questions as herself, but knowing she’s being watched. I’m acting as Elizabeth Holmes acting.” A recent Oscar nominee for her role in Mank, the 36-year-old Seyfried marked yet another career high with her turn in The Dropout, having started her career as a teenager in Mean Girls and thriving in the industry ever since.

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