An emergency lighting luminaire for mounting in a recess in a wall or ceiling of a building, wherein this recess is configured to be covered with a covering plate, the luminaire comprising: a power supply unit that is configured to be mounted in the recess, the power supply unit comprising at least one power source and driver electronics for a plurality of illuminants; an illuminant unit that is configured to be held outside the recess, the illuminant unit comprising a substrate on which a plurality of illuminants are mounted; and a connector that attaches the illuminant unit to the power supply unit, contains electrical connections between the illuminants and the power supply unit, and is configured to traverse the covering plate.