Disney’s ‘Toast to TV’ Celebrates Its Star-Studded Emmy Roster

The cast of Love Story (Left to right: Grace Gummer, Paul Anthony Kelly, Sarah Pidgeon and Constance Zimmer) Easton Schirra

Last Monday, Disney held its inaugural Toast to TV, celebrating a phenomenal year of television across Hulu, Disney+, FX and ABC. Featuring actors and hosts from longtime favorites like Dancing with the Stars to the newly acclaimed FX series Love Story, the event brought together stars and creators at the Soho House Holloway in West Hollywood to honor their incredible work over the last year.

The Hollywood Reporter welcomed cast members from The Testaments, Deli Boys, Abbott Elementary, Paradise, Dancing with the Stars, Welcome to Wrexham, Love Story and Swiped for a custom shoot to commemorate their projects throughout the celebratory day. One Battle After Another breakout star Chase Infiniti, Scottish actress Lucy Halliday and industry legend Ann Dowd kicked things off, highlighting the trio’s work in The Testaments, the next chapter in the iconic Handmaid’s Tale series. During the shoot, the trio complimented one another generously, with Infiniti citing, “our entire cast and crew is so loving and supportive.” To which Dowd replied jokingly, “And they take care of me as well, which I do appreciate being the old lady on set.”

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The cast of The Testaments (Left to right: Chase Infiniti, Ann Dowd and Lucy Halliday) Easton Schirra

Poorna Jagannathan and Asif Ali then graced the set in recognition of their work in Deli Boys, a fast-paced dark comedy that received critical acclaim for their debut season, and with a new season set to premiere May 28. Ali posed in a bright red chair, offering a nice foil to his red tie, while Jagannathan chimed in with creative suggestions during the shoot.

The cast of Deli Boys (Left to right: Poorna Jagannathan and Asif Ali) Easton Schirra

Quinta Brunson, Tyler James Williams, Chris Perfetti and William Stanford Davis from fan-favorite Abbott Elementary followed, their electric chemistry palpable throughout their time on set. In the video interview, the quartet described their fellow class members using class superlatives, such as “Class Clown” or “Most Popular,” joking about how Williams didn’t go to high school and Brunson would easily be “Most Likely to Succeed”.

The cast of Abbott Elementary (Left to right: William Stanford Davis, Tyler James Williams, Quinta Brunson and Chris Perfetti) Easton Schirra

Joining from the post-apocalyptic political thriller Paradise were Sterling K. Brown, Shailene Woodley and Thomas Doherty. In their short interview segment, the trio demonstrated a deep understanding of their costars, remarking on Brown’s levity while filming—”You can hear him laughing before you see him,” Doherty laughed—and Doherty’s tendency to overthink. Woodley shared that working with this cast would stay with her forever: “That was a highlight of my career.”

The cast of Paradise (Left to right: Shailene Woodley, Sterling K. Brown and Thomas Doherty) Easton Schirra

Host Alfonso Ribeiro, best known for his role as Carlton on The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, and dancer and judge Derek Hough arrived to celebrate their run on Dancing with the Stars after its record-breaking 34th season wrapped late last year. The duo spontaneously began dancing between takes and ended up moving their chairs to tap dance together to the time step during their interview segment.

Dancing with the Stars Judge and Host (Left to right: Derek Hough and Alfonso Ribeiro) Easton Schirra

Welcome to Wrexham, an award-winning docuseries that tells the story of the Welsh association football club after its purchase by new owners actors Ryan Reynolds and Rob Mac, was up next. The duo goofed around readily throughout the shoot—“We’re having too much fun,” Mac commented—but dove into deep reflections during the interview, sharing that their ownership is just a short blip in the timeline of the club and they are just “stewards in that history,” as Reynolds shared.

Stars of Welcome to Wrexham and owners of Wrexham AFC (From left to right: Ryan Reynolds and Rob Mac) Easton Schirra

Sarah Pidgeon, Paul Anthony Kelly, Grace Gummer and Constance Zimmer then joined the set from FX’s limited series Love Story. An anthology series exploring the intense, public romance of JFK Jr. and Carolyn Bessette in 1990s New York, the series has received widespread praise—even earning the title as FX’s Most-Watch Limited Series Ever on Hulu and Disney+. The cast’s profound connection and easy rapport are inarguable throughout the nine episodes, and that energy clearly shone through on set, with the actors cheering each other supportively throughout their shoot. “I would work with this cast a million times over again,” Zimmer said definitively. Lily James from Swiped, a Hulu Original film that chronicles the journey of Tinder co-founder and eventual Bumble founder Whitney Wolfe Herd amid tech industry misogyny, closed the eventful day as she stunned in her solo shoot, her impressive presence effortlessly filling up the space. When asked what power looks like to her, James responded, “I think it’s incredibly powerful to be vulnerable—to own your vulnerabilities and your mistakes. I think empathy is a superpower. And I think Whitney Wolfe Herd, that’s what she really had.”