What is an EGOT, as Sir Elton John becomes the 19th recipient - who's next to join him?

It was celebrations for Sir Elton John at the 2024 Emmy Awards overnight, with the performer earning an Emmy Award for his TV special, “Elton John Live: Farewell from Dodger Stadium.” But the celebrations aren’t simply for the win that evening - perhaps some of those were that by winning an Emmy, Sir Elton John joins an illustrious group of performers that have achieved the EGOT.

What’s an EGOT? It’s effectively the “royal flush” of wins from four major awards that span television, music, film and theatre; an Emmy Award, a Grammy Award, an Oscar and a Tony Award. Sir Elton has won countless Grammy awards in his lifetime, an Oscar for Best Original Song for "Can You Feel the Love Tonight" from the film "The Lion King" in 1995 and a Tony Award at the 2000 ceremony, it was the Emmy Award that proved elusive for him to complete the quest. 

The EGOT term was coined by actor Philip Michael Thomas in the 1980s. Achieving EGOT status is considered a rare and prestigious accomplishment in the entertainment industry, with only a handful to have accomplished the feat. Sir Elton John is only the 19th person in history to earn the EGOT - but who does he join in his victory?

Who else currently holds an EGOT?

Including Sir Elton John, 19 people have managed to achieve the EGOT, with the most recent before Sir Elton’s Emmy Award win coming in the form of Viola Davis, who earned the honour in 2023 when she won a Grammy to complete the set. The first EGOT winner was Richard Rodgers, who completed the set over 16 years.

The quickest person to achieve the EGOT is composer Robert Lopez, who earned all four in the space of 10 years, while Sir John Gielgud remains the oldest winner of an EGOT, completing the task at the age of 89 after winning an Oscar in 1982.

• Richard Rodgers (1962)
• Helen Hayes (1977)
• Rita Moreno (1977)
• John Gielgud (1991)
• Audrey Hepburn (1994)
• Marvin Hamlisch (1995)
• Jonathan Tunick (1997)
• Mel Brooks (2001)
• Mike Nichols (2001)
• Whoopi Goldberg (2002)
• Scott Rudin (2012)
• Robert Lopez (2014)
• Andrew Lloyd Webber (2018)
• Tim Rice (2018)
• John Legend (2018)
• Alan Menken (2020)
• Jennifer Hudson (2022)
• Viola Davis (2023)
• Elton John (2024)

Is there anyone close to picking up an EGOT by one award?

Quite a few actually, including controversial hip-hop artist Eminem, actress Kate Winslet and “South Park” creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone.

Requires an Emmy

• Benj Pasek 
• Justin Paul 

Requires a Grammy

• Ellen Burstyn
• Jeremy Irons
• Jessica Lange
• Liza Minnelli
• Helen Mirren 
• Vanessa Redgrave
• Geoffrey Rush
• Maggie Smith

Requires an Oscar

• André De Shields
• Daveed Diggs
• Cynthia Erivo
• Rachel Bay Jones
• Tom Kitt
• Alex Lacamoire
• Lin-Manuel Miranda
• Cynthia Nixon
• Trey Parker
• Ben Platt
• Billy Porter
• Scott Sanders
• Marc Shaiman 
• Bill Sherman
• Ari'el Stachel
• Matt Stone
• Charles Strouse
• Lily Tomlin
• David Yazbek

Requires a Tony Award

• Adele
• Alan Bergman
• Jon Blair
• Cher
• Common
• Eminem
• Rob Epstein
• James Gay-Rees
• Michael Giacchino
• Alex Gibney
• Alex Gibson
• Ludwig Göransson
• Brian Grazer
• Hildur Guðnadóttir
• H.E.R.
• Ron Howard
• Paul McCartney
• James Moll
• Shawn Murphy
• Morgan Neville
• Randy Newman
• Trent Reznor
• Caitrin Rogers
• Atticus Ross
• Martin Scorsese
• Ringo Starr
• Barbra Streisand
• John Williams
• Kate Winslet