Richard Schiff Jokes Today's Political Plots Would've Been Seen as 'Utterly Ridiculous' on “West Wing” at Emmys 2024

In honor of the iconic NBC show's 25th anniversary, Martin Sheen, Allison Janney, Janel Moloney, Dulé Hill and Schiff reunited at the 76th annual Emmy Awards

The Bartlet administration got back together for one night only.

Several members of The West Wing cast reunited onstage at the 76th annual Primetime Emmy Awards on Sunday, Sept. 15. The nostalgic moment was timed to the 25th anniversary of the show's 1999 premiere.

The reunion saw Martin Sheen, Allison Janney, Janel Moloney, Dulé Hill and Richard Schiff taking the stage together to present the award for outstanding drama series.

Hill, 49, started off by saying he and his castmates "all had the honor serving your administration" on the series.

"Today, where storylines can be plucked right off the news, storylines that writers would have deemed a bit far-fetched, if not utterly ridiculous, 25 years ago," Schiff, 69, added.

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Moloney, 54, used the opportunity to encourage the audience to engage politically.

"Our political landscape has shifted dramatically in recent years, but two things have not changed: the importance of everyone making sure to be registered and to vote," she said.

"And the quality of the drama series on television," Sheen, 84, chimed in.

Bradley Whitford shared why he wasn't able to take part in the reunion, tweeting, "It breaks my heart not to be able to be with my West Wing family at the Emmys tonight or at the White House later this week to celebrate our 25th birthday, but I’m in Budapest on another White House set pretending to work for another administration. (I know. I need to work on my range.)"

"I’m thinking of our incredible crew. Of the hundreds of people you never saw who made this happen.
I’m thinking of Aaron. Of the miracle of a brilliant writer sitting in a room and having an idea that made all of this possible," he added. "And I’m thinking of John Spencer. Of how much wemiss him. Of what a kick he would have gotten out of tonight."

He concluded, "The farther away from the show I get,the more grateful I am to have been a part of it. I’m proud of its ongoing legacy that celebrates hope and public service in a world that can no longer afford cynicism and despair.So what’s next? To celebrate our anniversary, I hope you will check your voter registration and make a plan to vote!!!"

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The Emmys aren't the first time The West Wing cast have gotten the gang back together. In 2020, Sheen, Janney, Moloney, Hill, Smits, Schiff, Whitford and Rob Lowe reunited for A West Wing Special to Benefit When We All Vote to encourage viewers to vote in the 2020 election. The special episode streamed on Max (then known as HBO Max).

At the time, Lowe, 60, told PEOPLE, "When the cameras rolled, and it was just Martin Sheen and I sitting down as Sam and President Bartlet, it felt like it was yesterday, and everybody was as good as I remembered them. It was like a great, classic rock band that hadn't lost a step."

Over the years, The West Wing cast has continued to support each other, and in March, Janney even revealed to PEOPLE that they still have a group chat.

"Yeah, there’s a big text chain with all of us on it," Janney said. "And there’s always a conversation going on, and it’s always hysterical between Brad Whitford and Josh [Malina]. They always spar and jab at each other, which is endlessly amusing to all of us."

The Palm Royale star continued, "And we see Martin a lot and go out to have lunch with him. We really are a family and have stayed one."

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However, Janney has her doubts that The West Wing will ever be rebooted with its original cast, despite her costar Malina, 58, putting the idea out there as often as he can.

"I always want it to be [true], and [costar] Josh Malina always puts that out there," she shared, before adding that she doesn't believe series creator Aaron Sorkin would revisit the Bartlet administration so many years after the fictional president left office. "I don’t think Aaron’s going to ever do that," she said. "If anything, it should be a reboot with a whole new administration. Such a fairy tale it ended up being. My God, that was a big life-changer for me, being on that show."

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See PEOPLE's full coverage of the 76th annual Primetime Emmy Awards as they're broadcasting live on ABC from the Peacock Theater in Los Angeles.

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