The Emmy nominations come out tomorrow, and a lot of people really seem to be looking forward to the noms, probably because it’s been such a good year in television. From the end of Downton Abbey to the rise of Blackish to Game of Thrones throwing down to the brilliance that is Fargo, there’s a little something for everyone. Well, everyone except hardcore fans of The Bachelor, probably. I was looking through Vanity Fair’s preview/predications of the Emmy noms – which you can read here – and I wanted to do some advanced coverage too. This isn’t going to be exhaustive or anything! Just some general thoughts.
Drama Series: this year will likely be all about Game of Thrones, although the Emmys are probably going to want to recognize Downton Abbey’s final season too. If you think I’m joking, just realize that those old-fart Emmy voters LOVED Downton. Other nominees to look for: Better Call Saul, House of Cards, Orange is the New Black and Mr. Robot. Devotees of The Leftovers probably want a Best Drama nom but I seriously doubt it.
TV Movie: HBO’s Confirmation will soak up most of these noms, maybe the Sherlock Christmas special (except it was awful).
Comedy Series: Modern Family will get nominated for the millionth time and all of the usual suspects will be recognized too. Same with Veep, same with Amy Schumer. I imagine Black-ish will pick up a lot of noms, and VF says Silicon Valley has a lot of buzz too. People might also want to recognize Fresh Off the Boat in some way, hopefully. Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt might pick up some noms but I doubt it will win anything. Would it be too much to ask for some nominations for Master of None, Aziz Ansari’s show? And Crazy Ex-Girlfriend will probably get some love.
Lead Actor in a Drama: Probably Kevin Spacey, Bob Odenkirk, Rami Malek (from Mr. Robot), and maybe Liev Schreiber from Ray Donovan. VF thinks Clive Owen should get nominated for The Knick, which I have tried to watch and I gave up after like 10 minutes. Game of Thrones’ producers said that Kit Harington was being submitted for Emmy consideration, but I don’t know if he would be a lead actor or a supporting. I think he should be considered for lead actor.
Lead Actress in a Drama: Julianna Margulies will likely get nominated for The Good Wife because it was the last season, but I doubt she’ll win because at this point, we’ve all heard the stories about her behavior. Robin Wright, Viola Davis, Kerry Washington, Caitriona Balfe, Taraji P. Henson and maybe Claire Danes (although she’s due to be phased out) are all in the running as well.
Supporting Actor/Actress in a Drama: Probably some Downton Abbey people, for old time’s sake. Peter Dinklage will get nominated like always, even though this was not his best season at all. Lena Headey will definitely get nominated, right? And she might even deserve it for this year’s mic-drop. Perhaps even nominations for Maisie Williams and Sophie Turner too. Maybe Christian Slater (who won at the Globes). Probably several of the women from OITNB.
Best Limited Series. The People v. OJ Simpson will likely sweep all of these categories, with nominations for Sarah Paulson, Cuba Gooding and Courtney B. Vance, maybe even John Travolta. Fargo is also in this category (I think it should be Drama, not Limited), so I tend to think Fargo will be the biggest competition, and I expect nominations for Kirsten Dunst and maybe even Patrick Wilson. Also, there was a lot of talk about The Night Manager… in Britain. It didn’t make as much of a splash in America, on AMC. Still, I imagine TNM will be nominated here, and there will likely be nominations for Hugh Laurie and Tom Hiddleston, although I will laugh my ass off if Hiddleston gets snubbed.
Photos courtesy of HBO, AMC, WENN.
Why is there never any love for The Americans????
Agreed! This is one of the BEST shows on television! Especially this past year.
I go into withdrawal at the end of every season.
Or Orphan Black.
Tatiana Maslany got nominated last year – didn’t win. I agree though it an excellent show that doesn’t get nearly the attention it deserves. Maslany is brilliant as Sarah and her “sestras”!
I know! So good, and so ignored.
I absolutely love The Americans, too. I never understand why the Emmys are always full of soapy crapola but so often ignore really decent stuff.
Oh for sure – what a great show. I don’t understand how it is so ignored.
The Americans seems to be a bigger hit with people too young to remember the Cold War in detail. Maybe it has something to do with the sympathetic portrayal of Russia. It also features the lead stars in very sexually explicit activities, often. Most Americans don’t want to watch that.
But GoT is also more popular with young audiences, is filled to the brim with gratuitous sex scenes and it does just fine at the awards.
The rates of porn use suggest that, actually, the majority of Americans would be extremely into that.
The sex scenes aren’t that raunchy or revealing anyway, they’re a bit more realistic than those on your average show but still nothing groundbreaking for US TV.
LOVE The Americans. Both Keri Russel and Matthew Rhys are outstanding in it.
Completely agree and cannot understand how The Americans can be so routinely ignored by the Emmys. All performances, writing and directing are stand-outs but for me, Alison Wright as Martha gives the best supporting performance on television this year. I will be quite gutted if she is not on the nominee list tomorrow.
Is it wrong that I am hoping that TNT and Laurie get nominated but that Hiddleston gets snubbed? But I am all about Kit getting a nomination.
Right there with you. Harsh but, fair. Lol!
Well, Tom wasn’t the strong performance from a weak script, was he?
I’d be laughing with Kaiser if Tom gets snubbed. It would be funny after the OTT PR of TIDDLES the past month.
Hugh Laurie was the best on The Night Manager IMO. He plays a great SOB and deserves to be nominated. Mr. Swift…not so much.
That, and TNM has been Laurie’s baby for YEARS. He should at least get the nomination.
No. it wasn’t his best performance. I was a bit surprised at all the hype.
Hugh Laurie and Oliva Colman for the win.
YESSS!!!
It probably is wrong but it’s also funny. And more funny than wrong so it should happen!
Unsure generally that the show was awards worthy, even though I enjoyed it as a bit of high octane fluff. Laurie, Colman and Hollander were all actually good in an entertaining but average show.
Sixer, someone put hope for no nomination on their twitter feed and tagged Tom and called him a famewhore and the Emmys official twitter liked the post.
HAHAHAHAHAHA. And a tiny, non-capitalised awww.
It must be pointed out that the Official Emmys Twitter has liked quite a few ‘questionable’ tweets. Certain hashtags and links appear to trigger it, so suspect it is a bot much of the time.
It wouldn´t be a snub because he sucked.
Yes, to all
I doubt this would ever happen as the same people tend to get nominated from the same shows every year, but I think Vera Farmiga and Freddie Highmore from Bates Motel both deserve recognition. I think the show is underrated and watched by what will be called a cult audience in the future. They both were Emmy worthy this season, all four seasons for that matter. I believe Peter Dinklage has already won an Emmy, and deserves another. He can speak with his eyes, this guy is an incredible actor.
Oh Nancy, I wholeheartedly agree. My hubby won’t watch the show because he thinks it’s “dumb” that a show is based off of the movie, Psycho or the character Norman Bates. I think because some people won’t give the show a chance because of its premise is the reason why it doesn’t get recognized. But Vera and Freddie are amazing in their roles and really add depth to characters that we rarely ever get to see, it’s a shame more people don’t see it.
So good. Bates (especially Freddie and Vera) is utterly fantastic.
I wish they would come up with a new category, biggest bastard EVER…The fictional character Ramsay Bolton, from GOT would win it, now and forever.
That actor deserves a nom. He embodied evil in that role so much so if I met him in a dark alley in real life I would probably kick him in the nuts and run like hell.
I dunno…Ramsay was cartoonishly villainous by the end.
I think I would nominate Jeffrey Donovan for Biggest Bastard (unless you meant literal bastards!) for his role as Dodd Gerhardt in Fargo. His performance in his character’s final episode was just about the best thing ever.
Only if they call it the J.R.Ewing Award. JR was the biggest bastard of a character of all time.
“Devotees of The Leftovers probably want a Best Drama nom but I seriously doubt it.”
I identify with the first part of your sentence, and sadly agree with the second.
But thanks for the shout out for us Leftovers fans @Kaiser.
I’m a big fan of The Leftovers, too, and will be disappointed once it ends its run.
The Leftovers was so great this past season. I would really like to see Ann Dowd get a nomination for her role as Patty. That scene with her and Kevin in the well was amazing.
Carrie Coons has gotten some awards love, but not Ann Dowd, which is surprising. Christopher Eccleston and Regina King, also tremendous. Incredible show, wish it would get more recognition.
Here to honk for Leftovers too. That second season was outstanding and so clever and subtle. Everything Lost should have been but wasn’t.
Wouldn’t somebody actually have to watch Mr. Swift’s show for it to be nominated? I made it thru about 15 minutes before realizing that it sucked and was a total waste of time
I enjoyed it but I gather that the Night Manager screening rooms (intended for Emmy voters) were empty. Some were suggesting that the realisation that it wont get awards attention coupled with the box office flops of his other two recent films is what finally pushed him into his new European gigolo career. Who knows, maybe the Emmys will want to boost their viewership with the promise of a Hiddleswift sighting?
Where did you hear this? Spill!
Am stealing European gigolo!
love the phrase – so apt!
@Naya
Don’t know about that, but, we’re sent screeners and invitations to watch online. That’s where most viewing goes on.
That’s where a high-profile comes in.
As I’ve said before, Hiddleston has upped his profile, so, he may have gotten more views.
I doubt it will affect the vote, though.
Just wanted to clarify. ..you get hundreds of invitations (theatre screenings) during awards season. I rarely go, unless it’s something that I know has to be seen on a BIG screen. I’m not alone.
Few people have the time or inclination to go to every screening.
@Linamont
I got that from the piece Jezebel did on HiddleSwift http://jezebel.com/ask-a-publicist-is-taylor-swift-and-tom-hiddlestons-re-1783144899.
They interviewed three publicists one specialising in the music industry, another in film and third in building personal brands. This is what the film based publicist said:
“You can see on the Television Academy website that the event wasn’t sold out. I don’t think there was ever a ton of interest in it with US audiences and they probably had a low number of RSVPS b/c let’s be honest, even though it stars Tom this is not The Walking Dead or Better Call Saul, etc. This timing makes sense and lines up with what I mention down below w/ more dates surrounding Met Gala. Around Emmy time, we should also start to see a teaser trailer or still photos for Kong: Skull Island, in which Tom’s the lead. End of July will be Comic-Con in San Diego and we can probably expect him to make an appearance or photos to be released from the set of Thor: Ragnarok.”
I just wanted to add that the voting for nominees closed on June 27th. I’m curious as to the % of votes that had been cast before Hiddleston embarked on his European Gigolo tour (also borrowing that term).
@Naya
@Maire3
That’s kind of my point.
I believe TnT started before nom voting or close to it.
He’s not OJ, Robert Blake or Phil Spector with Swiddlegate. He’s probably on more people’s radar, now. Even if not, he’s hardly hurt his chances with Swiddlegate. The worst he’s done is given himself higher visibility.
Voters aren’t some elite group of Nobel Prize winners. ..they’re peers who pull the same crap and have their own messy lives to deal with.
Emmys are for TV shows. They can be watched at home.
AA considerations are, usually, better in a theatre. For example, I was sent a screener for “Gravity”, but, I went to see it in 3D. It wasn’t made for the small screen.
So, IMHO, theatre screenings mean squat for Emmys.
Sorry for the rambling.
Forgot to add, I think I have way too much time on my hands right now. LOL
@LinaLamont. Yeah, the Hiddleston romance timeline was my point as well. If it came too late to affect the nomination voting, it is my suspicion that the two of them will keep their PR romance alive through the end of the year to keep TNM on the radar for the Golden Globe nominations. The rumored engagement is supporting my theory.
Good point on screeners. The year ‘Shakespeare in Love’ beat out ‘Saving Private Ryan’ for the best picture Oscar was often attributed to the fact that the former played better on home screenings which may have affected the vote. We won’t go into all the Weinstein maneuverings that year.
Fargo better get a whole lot of acting nominations. Would love to see Bokeem Woodbine and Zahn McClarnon in Best Supporting actor.
Yes, please. I’d love to see love for just about everyone in the cast of Fargo season 2!
Rami!!
Yes! +1
Yes! +1…sorry, double post
yes! All about Mr Robot!
(sorry, won’t let me post as Snazzy again, my computer is very emotional, it seems)
Yes!! He is so good. He’s mesmerizing to watch.
And Gaga
I made it through only 1.5 episodes of Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt. I’ve grown tired of Tina Fey’s brand of “hyper exaggerated stereotypes” humor.
1.5 episodes is about when I feel in love with the show.
But I liked season 1 better than season 2.
I made through one single episode. It was a NOPE for me.
I loved, loved, loved, Breaking Bad…and soooo wanted to love Better Call Saul, but I found it rather slow and boring (except the MIke parts). I hear so much praise for this show…am I the only one who feels this way?????
I completely agree. He’s still dealing with his brother’s antics at the end of season 2. I felt like it made no progress. I thought I was the only one who felt this. I tuned in to see the Saul character from Breaking Bad but he’s still “Jimmy”. I know character development takes time but man……I expect some growth in 2 seasons & I’m not seeing it.
Ohhhh, I’m sorry to hear this because honestly Better Call Saul is the best to series I have ever had the pleasure to watch.
The acting, writing and cinematography are first class in my opinion and it’s just such a delight to watch something with so much intelligence and meticulous production behind it.
Has Lena Heady ever been nominated? If not she deserves to be.
She was last year and should have won imo.
Black-ish knocked it out of the park this year and deserved all the love. Yep, I said it.
LOVE Black-ish it will never come to these shores I don’t think but I have to find it online and watch with my 15 y/o son we laugh out loud. He is goofy Jr.
Tracee Ellis Anderson is fabulous. I really only watch for her.
And she seems so nice too (which shouldn’t matter I know but makes me root harder anyway). I saw her on project runway and she should be a permanent judge. Lol She was so sweet but also gave good critique. I’ve liked Anthony Anderson a long time too plus he was great a drama on Law and Order as well. He’s definitely underrated.
Totally agree.
Last night I caught a repeat of Anthony Anderson on Kimmel and there was a bit where his he and his mom played “To Tell the Truth”. It was hilarious.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cFm97YUvlH8&noredirect=1
I hope Tatiana Maslany gets a nom for her incredible work in Orphan Black. Seriously, she deserves more recognition for the consistent, amazing work she does on that show!
Right?! She should be nominated for both lead and supporting actress and win both considering how many roles she plays and how outstanding she is in every single one of them.
Amen!!
I don’t care about the Emmys but Julia Louis-Dreyfus should win for her amazing work this season on VEEP.
I know some may be tired of her winning for VEEP but damn, this season was her best yet. She only gets better. It is amazing.
JLD is the best in the game. The expectation for the other nominees is to just be honored to be nominated. She is just that good.
And Julia’s Emmy acceptance speeches are always funny & gracious.
The Americans !!
Yes please!!
I made it through the first 5 minutes of Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt, thought it was so stupid, and turned it off.
I think GOT will be huge this Emmy’s season. I mean, it won the top awards for a not-so-great season five. But season six was great, so I think it could take best drama again.
Eh, I didn’t think it was a great season overall, but the last two episodes were. It could coast to an Emmy win on the incredible season finale alone.
I thought the premiere was decent, eps 2-4 were very good and ep 5 (hold the door …sniff, sniff) was fantastic, then eps 6-8 were weak and patchy, then 9-10 were fantastic again. The inconsistency of the past two seasons has been frustrating but when GoT is good it’s really, really, really good. I just can’t see any other show nabbing BD, maybe until GoT goes off air in two years. It feels like an Emmy freight train now.
edit. If Miguel Sapochnik doesn’t get an Emmy I’ll be very cross. He basically directed an excellent big budget movie, except on TV.
It definitely shoukd win for the direction of Battle of the Bastards. Incredible. There’s something crazy if anything else wins in directing.
Okay. I’ve crossed over. I, now, officially, feel sorry for TH.
I don’t think he’s a great actor, but, he’s, by all accounts, a consummate professional and very hard worker (as far as actors go. …in case I haven’t made my disdain for actors /talent clear in the past. LOL)
I think there should be a special category for effort and not-being-an-asshole-to-coworkers-and-crew-consistently-and-taking-any-part-offered.
Lol I thought he was a wooden as my kitchen table in TNM, but agreed he seems like a hard working, pleasant, thoroughly decent bloke.
Another new category perhaps, nicest try hard.
Totally agree. Give the guy props for being a good, hardworking dude in a fairly unkind business, lol.
But I do have to say I enjoyed him more in TNM than some of the other roles I’ve seen him in, actually (I loved him best, by far, in Only Lovers Left Alive but other than that my opinion varies). I prefer his understated acting to his more theatrical side, and thought he did a nice job showing the audience there was a lot boiling under the surface.
But I also loved how the director rather unabashedly objectified him throughout the show. Much appreciated.
LOL! I’m all for giving him a tiny edible chocolate Emmy Award. Kinda like when all kids playing soccer get a participation award so no one’s feelings are hurt and they’re all “winners”? Um, no.
Being hard-working and professional should be the default not the exception to the rule in the workplace IMO. Tom made his own bed with the Swifty thing and he needs to face the consequences like an adult, no? Besides, his performance was not Emmy worthy.
@Jan
“Being hard-working and professional should be the default not the exception to the rule in the workplace IMO.”
SHOULD being the operative word. Not really the case, too often.
Chocolate Emmy. Yeah, I’ll vote for that.
I am meaner than mean about LEGS but I agree he should get praise for being a good colleague and a willing promoter. I’d cast him for low maintenance cast member and value for promotion money alone.
Sorry but if we are doing a little chocolate Emmy for being a good, hardworking dude in a harsh business it is OWNED by Lin Minuel Miranda for the foreseeable future (in all fields).
Poor Tom, always a bridesmaid. 😉
LMM hardly needs a consolation prize!
I want to see Krysten Ritter get nominated for Jessica Jones.
Tennant deserves a nom as well. He is crazy good in that show. But he is amazing in everything he is in.
Agree… he was and is.
Is Transparent still in the Comedy category? That bothers me.
Can I just say? Not that Dinklage deserves it any less than usual, but I think Iwan Rheon absolutely deserves a Best Supporting Actor nom for what he did in GOT this year.
What about narcos on Netflix? Great series. Great acting. I am sure the lead actor will be nominated.
Hiddles an Emmy? For what? His performance with Swift? He was bland as the Night Manager.
I am pretty sure that I’ve read on Watchers on The Wall that Kit has been submitted for supporting actor like everyone else. I guess that could have something to do with the number of episodes they appear in? I mean, they didn’t submit Diana Rigg in the guest actress category because of the number of episodes she appeared in.
I know Dinklage is the one who’s most likely to get nominated, but it is Alfie Allen who deserves some recognition. His work has been incredible for years.
Dinklage on the other hand didn’t have good material to work with this season and he had one or two episodes where he had the chance to show his talent, but that’s it.
This. Theon’s transformation from man to broken man and back to (half a) man has been one of my favorite parts of the show in the last two seasons. Alfie Allen is a standout in a cast of talented actors.
I’ve recent,y gotten hooked on UnReal and wouldn’t mind seeing it get some attention–especially Shiri Appleby and Constance Zimmer. Both are fabulous.
Michael Emmerson for the last/finale season of Person of Interest. One of the best written and acted shows that was completely abandoned by it’s network. I miss it already.
100% agree.
Come on Emmy people. Kingdom.
Yeah, it’s a direct TV show and doesn’t get the play that some of the other shows do, but it is freaking amazing and the cast is incredible. Kingdom, Kingdom, Kingdom.
what about Unreal? And orphan black!!
The Knick IS EXCELLENT! You’ve got to give it more than 10 minutes! I binged & am hoping they return for another season.
The Knick is amazing, one of the best shows on TV.
I’m almost hoping it’s not coming back though. That ending would make it slightly difficult, and I’d rather have two perfect seasons than 2 perfect seasons and a messy 3rd.
I really need to see Emmy nominations for Tatiana Maslany and Kirsten Dunst, like, NOW.