Sally Field struggled to hold back tears as she paid tribute to her longtime friend Dolly Parton during the 2026 Emmy Awards.
Field, 79, spoke about the emotional moment backstage after winning Outstanding Lead Actress in a Limited or Anthology Series or Movie for her role in Netflix’s Remarkably Bright Creatures.
The actress admitted that giving a tribute to Parton was especially difficult because she is used to doing the opposite on screen.
“As an actor, you spend a whole lot of time, especially me, trying to make yourself cry,” Field told reporters. “And I was trying to make myself not cry, so it was hard.”
Field and Parton became close while working together on the 1989 classic Steel Magnolias. Looking back on their time together, Field said she never stopped loving or admiring the country music legend.
“She was a friend. I admired her. I loved working with her. I never stopped loving her,” Field said.
She also described the special bond that can form between actors who spend long hours together on a film.
“This acting world where you do films and you’re so bonded with this group of people … it’s like being in battle together,” she explained. “You save each other’s lives, and you’ve got each other’s backs, and you spend 24/7 with each other … and it never leaves your soul.”
Although Field and Parton remained connected over the years, their lives took them to different parts of the country, making it difficult for them to spend time together.
“Dolly and I live so far apart, we could never make it ends meet, we could never find a way,” Field said. “But I never stopped feeling that way about her.”
She added that whenever they did manage to reach out to each other, she believed Parton felt the same connection.
“So I loved her,” Field said.
Field shared those feelings onstage earlier in the night as she introduced the tribute to Parton, who died in August at age 80.
“If there are truly angels on Earth, we have just lost one,” Field said.
She remembered Parton as someone who was not only talented but also kind, funny and supportive.
“I adored her from Day 1. How could you not?!” Field said. “She was genuine and humble, supportive, and blisteringly funny, with a bawdy sense of humor that would send any rude guy looking for a place to hide.”
Field also reflected on how she did not fully understand the size of Parton’s impact when they first worked together.
“I couldn’t see then what a real giant Dolly was — not just as an artist, but as a human,” she said.
The emotional tribute continued with Reba McEntire, who performed a reimagined version of Parton’s 1983 song Appalachian Memories.
For Field, however, the night was about more than remembering a beloved country star. It was also a chance to honor a friend whose presence had remained with her long after they finished filming Steel Magnolias.