Barack Obama Wins 5th Emmy Award for Narrating Our Oceans

Former President Barack Obama has won his fifth Emmy Award. Obama previously won the Outstanding Narrator Emmy Award in 2022 and 2023 for his work on Our Great National Parks and Working: What We Do All Day. In 2022 and 2023, Obama won Children’s and Family Emmy Awards for producing Ada Twist, Scientist and We the People.

President Obama has also previously won Best Spoken Word Album Grammy Awards for “Dreams from My Father” in 2006 and “The Audacity of Hope” in 2008. Additionally, Obama has been nominated for a News and Documentary Emmy Award, another Grammy Award, and two more Children’s and Family Emmy Awards.

On the second night of the 2025 Creative Emmy Awards, President Obama won his third Outstanding Narrator Emmy Award. He received his fifth Emmy Award for his work narrating the Netflix documentary series Our Oceans. The former President specifically earned the highly respected award for his work narrating that series’ second episode, which is titled “Indian Ocean.”

What President Barack Obama’s Fifth Emmy Award Means

Tom Hanks and Barack Obama talking to each other

President Obama continues his impressive track record at the Emmy Awards, the universally respected accolades honoring the best in television. Taking home his fifth Emmy is a huge achievement for the former U.S. President, and his win is an even bigger deal considering the competition he beat.

President Obama won his fifth Emmy Award over one of the biggest movie stars in history, as Tom Hanks was also nominated. Obama previously awarded Academy Award-winner with the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2016. President Obama’s other Outstanding Narrator Emmy Award competitors included David Attenborough, Idris Elba, and Phoebe Waller-Bridge.

The Other Most Notable Creative Arts Emmy Awards Winners From Night 2

The Traitors' Alan Cumming in a purple suit — The Traitors’ Alan Cumming

During night 2 of the Creative Emmy Awards, a long list of other noteworthy awards were given out. SNL50: The Anniversary Special got great reviews and won several Emmy Awards. The SNL special won Outstanding Directing For A Variety Special, Outstanding Writing For A Variety Special, and Outstanding Makeup For A Variety, Nonfiction Or Reality Program, among others.

The Traitors’ season 4 cast, series, and its host were also big winners. Alan Cumming won Outstanding Host For A Reality Or Reality Competition Program for the second year in a row after previously ending RuPaul’s stranglehold on that award. The Traitors won Outstanding Directing For A Reality Program and Outstanding Picture Editing For A Structured Reality Or Competition Program.

The biographical docuseries Pee-wee As Himself was also tapped to receive three noteworthy Emmy Awards, winning for Outstanding Documentary Or Nonfiction Special, Outstanding Picture Editing For A Nonfiction Program, and Outstanding Directing For A Documentary/Nonfiction Program.

Outstanding Casting for a Comedy Series went to The Studio and Outstanding Casting for a Limited or Anthology Series or Movie went to Adolescence. The Pitt was awarded for Outstanding Casting for a Drama Series Emmy Award and Love on the Spectrum earned the Outstanding Casting for a Reality Program trophy.