HBO has dominated this year’s Emmy Award nominations, with the elite trio of Succession, The White Lotus and The Last of Us combining for a whopping 74, but the dominant theme darkening the scene is the ongoing writers strike and the looming possibility that actors may join them in as little as a day.
Succession and its deeply dysfunctional dynasty of one-percenters led all Emmy nominees in its fourth and final season with 27, including best drama, which it has won two of the past three years.
It got three nominations for best actor in a drama, with Brian Cox, Jeremy Strong and Kieran Culkin all getting nods for playing men of the Roy clan, and Australian actress Sarah Snook getting a best actress nomination – she has previously been nominated twice for outstanding supporting actress for the series. Succession also got four nominations for best supporting actor in a drama.
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The cursed vacationers at a Sicilian resort from the second season of The White Lotus truly dominated the supporting categories, however, landing five nominations for best supporting actress in a drama – including nods for Jennifer Coolidge and Aubrey Plaza – and four more for best supporting actor.
Bella Ramsey and Pedro Pascal, the duo on a fungus-filled quest in The Last of Us, each got lead acting nominations. The show, based on a popular Playstation video game, was second behind Succession with 24 nominations – including one for Australian actor Murray Bartlett, who won outstanding supporting actor for The White Lotus last year, for his guest role in the series. This year, The White Lotus has 23 nominations.
Another nomination for Australian talent was Elizabeth Debicki’s for outstanding supporting actress in a drama series for her work in The Crown, with New Zealand star Melanie Lynskey also being nominated twice this year – once for outstanding lead actress in a drama series for Yellowjackets and again for outstanding guest actress in a drama for The Last of Us.
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Ted Lasso was top among comedies with 21 nominations, including best comedy series and best actor for Jason Sudeikis. The Apple TV+ series won both awards for each of its first two seasons, but its threepeat prospects depend on whether Emmy voters favor other contenders like The Bear or Marvelous Mrs. Maisel.
The nominations suggested that HBO – which got the most overall nominations by far with 127 – can still dominate even as streaming-only outlets have taken over so much of elite TV. The distinction is increasingly blurred, however, with a huge segment of viewers watching Succession and the cable channel’s other offerings on the streaming service now known as Max.
Cox, 77, got his best actor in a drama nod despite appearing in fewer than half of this season’s Succession episodes, though as the Roy family patriarch he loomed just as large over the episodes he didn’t appear in. A win would be his first for the role, though he won an Emmy for best supporting actor in a TV movie in 2001.
Strong won in 2020 for playing “eldest boy” Kendall Roy. Culkin got his first nomination for best actor after two previous nominations in the supporting category.
Uncertainty as potential actors’ strike looms amid writers’ strike
Actors joining movie and television writers on strike would further shut down the industry and be the first time since 1960 that two Hollywood unions were simultaneously striking. While show and film releases will continue, work on upcoming projects will cease – as would actors’ interviews and appearances to promote the projects.
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The possibility of an industry debilitated by strikes could dampen any joy for the new nominees, and could put the damper on the ceremony scheduled for September 18 on the Fox network.
Sheryl Lee Ralph, who provided the emotional high point of last year’s ceremony with her half-sung victory speech for her best supporting actor Emmy in Abbott Elementary, said she is a “puddle of emotions” after getting nominated again amid the strife.
“Change is hard. Change is difficult. And in the midst of once again of a great moment in my life, I am surrounded by a difficult moment,” Ralph told The Associated Press. “This is a fight for artistry, this is not a fight to make people rich.”
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The nominations were announced by Community star Yvette Nicole Brown and Television Academy CEO Frank Scherma, who referenced the labor disputes before at the top of Wednesday’s livestream (held overnight in Australia).
“We hope the ongoing guild negotiations can come to an equitable and swift resolution,” Scherma said.
But the announcements, while low-key, proceeded as though a show will go on in the fall.
It was not a strong year for Emmy diversity, with the lead categories dominated by shows with largely white ensembles. Pascal, the first Latino nominated as lead actor in a drama in more than two decades, was the only minority nominee in any of the drama series categories.
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Representation was stronger in the comedy categories, where Jenna Ortega of Netflix’s Wednesday was nominated for best actress. The Black actors of ABC’s Abbott Elementary were again a high point for Emmy diversity, and for the otherwise largely absent broadcast networks. Creator Quinta Brunson was nominated for best actress, while Ralph and Janelle James were nominated for best supporting actress, as was Ayo Edebiri for The Bear.
That FX series showed some of the Emmys’ quirks with its 13 nominations. It appeared in the comedy categories despite its half-hour episodes having more drama than some of the drama nominees. And the awards’ eligibility calendar means it got the nominations for its first season, even after many viewers have seen – and largely loved – its second, bringing buzz that probably helped it.
Speaking of quirks, the genre-defying Jury Duty rode its cult status to four nominations for streamer Amazon Freevee. A faux reality show for most of its cast and a reality show for one man, it was nominated for best comedy series and best supporting actor in a comedy for James Marsden.
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Netflix led streamers with 103 nominations, but its showing was meager in many of the top categories. The Crown received its nearly annual deference for best drama and, along with Ortega, Christina Applegate was nominated for best supporting actress in a comedy for the third and final season of Netflix’s Dead to Me. Applegate, who was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis in 2021, has said the role may be her last.
Netflix fared better in the limited series category, where Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story and Beef managed 13 nominations apiece.
More than a year after his death, Ray Liotta was nominated for best supporting actor in a limited series or TV movie for Black Bird on Apple TV+.
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The Star Wars galaxy made a surprisingly forceful showing for Disney+, with three television adaptations – Andor, The Mandalorian and Obi-Wan Kenobi – earning a combined 22 nominations.
The Mandalorian received the most recognition with nine nominations in craft categories like stunt performance and costumes, but the series based on Jedi Knight Obi-Wan Kenobi’s exile years will compete for best limited series and Andor is among the drama series nominees.
The most famous “Star Wars” alum was among those snubbed, however, as Harrison Ford failed to get his first Emmy nomination. Some had expected his name to be called for his acting on the Yellowstone prequel 1923 or the Apple TV+ comedy Shrinking.
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List of top category nominees for the 2023 Emmy Awards
Outstanding drama series
Andor
Better Call Saul
The Crown
House of the Dragon
The Last of Us
Succession
The White Lotus
Yellowjackets
Outstanding comedy series
Abbott Elementary
Barry
The Bear
Jury Duty
The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel
Only Murders in the Building
Ted Lasso
Wednesday
Outstanding limited series
Beef
Dahmer – Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story
Daisy Jones & the Six
Fleishman Is in Trouble
Obi-Wan Kenobi
Outstanding lead actor in a drama series
Jeff Bridges, The Old Man
Brian Cox, Succession
Kieran Culkin, Succession
Bob Odenkirk, Better Call Saul
Pedro Pascal, The Last of Us
Jeremy Strong, Succession
Outstanding lead actress in a drama series
Sharon Horgan, Bad Sisters
Melanie Lynskey, Yellowjackets
Elisabeth Moss, The Handmaid’s Tale
Bella Ramsey, The Last of Us
Keri Russell, The Diplomat
Sarah Snook, Succession
Outstanding supporting actor in a drama series
F. Murray Abraham, The White Lotus
Nicholas Braun, Succession
Michael Imperioli, The White Lotus
Theo James, The White Lotus
Matthew Macfadyen, Succession
Alan Ruck, Succession
Will Sharpe, The White Lotus
Alexander Skarsgård, Succession
Outstanding supporting actress in a drama series
Jennifer Coolidge, The White Lotus
Elizabeth Debicki, The Crown
Meghann Fahy, The White Lotus
Sabrina Impacciatore, The White Lotus
Aubrey Plaza, The White Lotus
Rhea Seehorn, Better Call Saul
J. Smith-Cameron, Succession
Simona Tabasco, The White Lotus
Outstanding lead actor in a comedy series
Bill Hader, Barry
Martin Short, Only Murders in the Building
Jason Segel, Shrinking
Jason Sudeikis, Ted Lasso
Jeremy Allen White, The Bear
Outstanding lead actress in a comedy series
Christina Applegate, Dead to Me
Rachel Brosnahan, The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel
Quinta Brunson, Abbott Elementary
Natasha Lyonne, Poker Face
Jenna Ortega, Wednesday
Outstanding supporting actress in a comedy series
Alex Borstein, The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel
Ayo Edebiri, The Bear
Janelle James, Abbott Elementary
Sheryl Lee Ralph, Abbott Elementary
Juno Temple, Ted Lasso
Hannah Waddingham, Ted Lasso
Jessica Williams, Shrinking
Outstanding supporting actor in a comedy series
Anthony Carrigan, Barry
Phil Dunster, Ted Lasso
Brett Goldstein, Ted Lasso
James Marsden, Jury Duty
Ebon Moss-Bachrach, The Bear
Tyler James Williams, Abbott Elementary
Henry Winkler, Barry
Outstanding lead actor in a limited series or TV movie
Taron Egerton, Black Bird
Kumail Nanjiani, Welcome to Chippendales
Evan Peters, Dahmer – Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story
Daniel Radcliffe, Weird: The Al Yankovic Story
Michael Shannon, George & Tammy
Steven Yeun, Beef
Outstanding lead actress in a limited series or TV movie
Lizzy Caplan, Fleishman Is in Trouble
Jessica Chastain, George & Tammy
Dominique Fishback, Swarm
Kathryn Hahn, Tiny Beautiful Things
Riley Keough, Daisy Jones & the Six
Ali Wong, Beef
Outstanding supporting actor in a limited series or TV movie
Murray Bartlett, Welcome To Chippendales
Paul Walter Hauser, Black Bird
Richard Jenkins, Dahmer – Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story
Joseph Lee, Beef
Ray Liotta, Black Bird
Young Mazino, Beef
Jesse Plemons, Love & Death
Outstanding supporting actress in a limited series or TV movie
Annaleigh Ashford, Welcome To Chippendales
Maria Bello, Beef
Claire Danes, Fleishman Is In Trouble
Juliette Lewis, Welcome To Chippendales
Camila Morrone, Daisy Jones & The Six
Niecy Nash-Betts, Dahmer – Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story
Merritt Wever, Tiny Beautiful Things
Outstanding reality/competition series
The Amazing Race
RuPaul’s Drag Race
Survivor
Top Chef
The Voice
Outstanding talk series
The Daily Show with Trevor Noah
Jimmy Kimmel Live!
Late Night With Seth Meyers
The Late Show with Stephen Colbert
The Problem with Jon Stewart
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