Emmys 2025 Host Nate Bargatze Got ‘a Lot of Advice’ from These 3 People About the Gig: ‘Don’t Want to Blow It’ (Exclusive)

First-time host Nate Bargatze asked the hosts of Emmys past for advice in preparation for the 77th annual Emmy Awards. 

Speaking with PEOPLE at the 2025 Emmys press preview event on Thursday, Sept. 11, Bargatze said, “I feel good. I don’t want to blow it.”

“I’ve asked a lot of advice. So I talked to [Jimmy] Kimmel and Conan [O’Brien] and Nikki Glazer and just seeing what they say.”

“There’s a lot of people I know I can go to trust and be like, ‘Hey, is this going the way it’s supposed to go?’ … So you really just got to rely on everybody that’s around you. And I think we put a great team together,” the comedian said. 

The best piece of advice he received came from none other than Kimmel, 57, who has hosted “TV’s Biggest Night” three times.

“Jimmy Kimmel told me to sit down when you’re not on stage, when you’re not out on camera,” Bargatze said. “He goes, ‘Make sure you sit down.’ So I think that’s pretty good. He said it in a way where it felt like it’s more important advice than I might’ve thought it would, but I’m going to learn that night.”

Opening up about what it means to host the Emmys, Bargatze previously said in a statement, “It’s a huge honor to be asked to host such an iconic awards show, and I’m beyond excited to work with CBS to create a night that can be enjoyed by families around the world.”

When asked what viewers can expect to see from the comedian, Television Academic Chairman Chris Abrego said at the time, “If you’re a fan of Nate’s, you’re going to know for certain, it’s going to be funny.”

“His whole take on television and pop culture is what makes him so extraordinary,” Abrego added. “And I think that you’re going to really be, you will not be disappointed.”

Bargatze has already intrigued viewers when he announced his strategy to keep the awards show within its 3-hour timeframe. He plans to donate $100,000 to the Boys & Girls’ Club of America, but if an award winner goes over their 45-second speech limit, he will deduct $1,000 for every second they go over.

On the flip side, he will add $1,000 for every second left over from their speeches. 

“We’re going to talk about Boys & Girls Club a lot on the Emmys, so it’s a positive thing, and I am glad that they let us use them and be a part of this moment,” Bargatze told PEOPLE at the Emmys press preview event. 

He continued, “We have some of the kids that are going to come out and so they embraced it and know that we’re all doing it with a good heart and not doing it in a mean way. Just trying to make it fun.”

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The 2025 Emmy Awards, the 77th ceremony in the show’s history, airs on Sunday, Sept. 14 at 8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. PT on CBS. Viewers will also be able to tune in on Paramount+.