Emmys 2011: Kate Winslet of 'Mildred Pierce' wins Best Lead Actress in a Miniseries or Movie

Kate Winslet has won the 2011 Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actress In A Miniseries Or A Movie for her title role in HBO's "Mildred Pierce," marking the actress' first Emmy win and second nomination.

Winslet, who starred in the 1998 film "Titanic" and is also an Oscar winner, beat nominees Diane Lane of "Cinema Verite," Elizabeth McGovern of "Downton Abbey," Taraji P. Henson of "Taken From Me: The Tiffany Rubin Story" and Jean Marsh of "Upstairs Downstairs."

"Oh, look, I really did win it!" Winslet said during her acceptance speech, before dedicated the award to her mother.

"I will never stop needing my mum," she said. "So thanks, Mum."

"Mildred Pierce" was nominated for 21 Emmys and is based on a 1941 novel by James M. Cain.

Winslet play a divorced, single mother who decides to open a restaurant business. Her new business venture does not help her strained relationship with her daughter, Veda, played by Evan Rachel Wood Wood.

Wood said earlier this year that Winslet helped her film a full-frontal nude scene for the HBO miniseries.

Minutes before Winslet's Emmy win was announced, Guy Pearce won the award for Best Supporting Actor in a Miniseries or Movie for his role as Pierce's love interest, playboy Monty Beragon. He has said he saved Winslet's life while filming a driving scene.

Joan Crawford won an Oscar for her portrayal of Pierce in a 1945 movie, which was nominated for a total of six Academy Awards and which also starred Ann Blyth, Jack Carson and Eve Arden.

Winslet, a 35-year-old British actress, has been nominated for six Oscars, including one for her part as Rose, the love interest of Leonardo DiCaprio's character in "Titanic." The actress won an Academy Award for her role in the 2008 movie "The Reader."

Winslet received her first Emmy nomination in 2006 for her guest role in Ricky Gervais' comedy series "Extras." She played a raunchy, foul-mouthed version of herself.

She recently filmed the Roman Polanski film "Carnage," which features a scene that is not for the faint-hearted. The actress said her son and daughter, Mia and Joe, got to witness her shoot it.

The film, which is based on the play by Yasmina Reza, "The God of Carnage," is slated for release on September 30 and follows two sets of parents who organize a "cordial" meeting after their sons are involved in a fight at school which leaves one child with broken teeth.

Winslet's most recent movie, "Contagion," was on September 9. She plays an Epidemic Intelligence Service officer who works to find a pathogen and vaccine for a deadly airborne virus that is threatening to spread around the world.

Winset says she actually enjoys playing "less glamorous" roles.

The 2011 Emmy Awards ceremony was held at L.A. Live's Nokia Theatre in Los Angeles on Sunday, September 18 and was hosted by "Glee" actress Jane Lynch. Check out a full list of nominations.