10 Highlights of the 74th Emmy Nominations
This morning at 8:30am PDT/11:30am EDT, J.B. Smoove (Curb Your Enthusiasm) and Melissa Fumero (Brooklyn Nine-Nine) announced the nominations in the top categories for the 74th Primetime Emmy Awards in a presentation that was streamed live. On Sunday, I posted my predictions in 16 top categories and reviewed what the Emmys are and how they work. (Click here to read that article.)
Given the onslaught of acclaimed new series and the return of numerous high-profile series that were not eligible last year, this year’s nominations announcement was bound to be full of surprises. And it certainly was.
Below I highlight some of the most notable trends and themes of this year’s Emmy nominations. Given the gigantic number of categories, I have certainly missed a few interesting tidbits and I opted not to list out all of the major nominations. (I recommend finding the nominations here on the Emmys website, where there are tons of different options to sort through them.)
In just under two months, I will be back take a deep dive into who will and should win and review the telecast, which will air on September 12th on NBC and stream live on Peacock.
10 Highlights of the 74th Emmy Nominations
#1) The expected series dominated in the Drama, Comedy, and Limited Series categories. As I predicted, the drama categories were dominated by the terrific 3rd season of HBO’s business dynasty drama Succession (25 nominations). It will face off in Outstanding Drama Series against the 2nd season of HBO’s edgy young adult drama Euphoria (16 nominations), the 1st season of AppleTV+’s sci-fi series Severance (14 nominations), the 1st season of Netflix’s Korean import Squid Game (14 nominations), the 4th and final season of Netflix’s crime drama Ozark (13 nominations), the 4th season of Netflix’s sci-fi drama Stranger Things (13 nominations), and the 1st season of Showtime’s drama series Yellowjackets (7 nominations). My sole misestimation in the Drama categories was expecting the Paramount Network’s beloved Heartland Western Yellowstone to finally get some love in its 4th season. (It received zero nominations.)
Over in the Comedy categories, the 2nd season of AppleTV+’s soccer comedy Ted Lasso dominated as expected with a whopping 20 nominations, matching its Season One total. It will face off in Outstanding Comedy Series against the 2nd season of HBOMax’s showbiz comedy Hacks (17 nominations), the 1st season of Hulu’s murder mystery Only Murders in the Building (17 nominations), the 3rd season of HBO’s comedy/drama/thriller hybrid Barry (14 nominations), the 4th season of Prime Video’s period comedy The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel (12 nominations), the 1st season of ABC’s school-based comedy Abbott Elementary (7 nominations), the 4th season of Fx’s comedy/horror hybrid What We Do in the Shadows (7 nominations), and the 11th season of HBO’s absurdist and semi-improvised staple Curb Your Enthusiasm (4 nominations).
Over in the Limited Series category, HBO’s class satire The White Lotus dominated with a whopping 20 nominations. It will face off against Hulu’s opioid drama Dopesick (14 nominations), Hulu’s Pamela Anderson/Tommy Lee biography Pam & Tommy (10 nominations), Hulu’s Theranos downfall drama The Dropout (6 nominations), and Netflix’s true crime drama Inventing Anna (3 nominations).
#2) HBO and Netflix dominate while the broadcast networks hold on by a thread. As is so often the case, HBO dominated with a whopping 140 nominations. This tally blends the total for their premium cable network (108) and their recently launched streamer HBOMax (32), but no matter how you slice it it is a remarkably impressive tally. Netflix was up next with 105 nominations. Hulu scored an impressive 58 nominations (bolstered by the arrival of Only Murders in the Building and a slew of acclaimed limited series) and AppleTV+ wasn’t far behind with 52 nominations (bolstered by Ted Lasso and Severance). Next up was Disney+ with 34 nominations (down precipitously from 71 last year) and Prime Video with 30 nominations. The broadcast network with the biggest haul was CBS with 29, followed by NBC with 28 and ABC with 23. Of the 21 nominations for Outstanding Comedy, Drama, and Limited or Anthology Series, only 1 went to a show on one of the 4 broadcast networks (ABC’s Abbott Elementary in Outstanding Comedy Series). New streamers Peacock and Paramount+ also continued to struggle at the Emmys, scoring a combined tally of only 14 nominations (none of which were in major categories).
#3) The Emmys continue to show a jaw-dropping amount of love to individual members of large ensembles. Last year, an astounding total total of 44 acting nominations went to just 5 programs — Saturday Night Live (11), The Handmaid’s Tale (10), The Crown (9), Ted Lasso (7), and Hamilton (7). This year we saw a similar pattern with 3 dominant programs accounting for 32 acting nominations — virtually everyone who appeared on screen in the eligible seasons of Succession (14), Ted Lasso (10), and The White Lotus (8) scored a nomination. All 3 of these series are exceptionally well-acted and deserved multiple nominations, but some individuals got in whose characters simply weren’t substantive enough to warrant awards attention— at least over competitors from other shows who they took the place of. As the number of eligible programs rapidly expands and the number of slots in each category corresponding increases, we are starting to see a distressing trend of “box-ticking” in which voters appear to just vote for everyone associated with a show they particularly love. In addition to the unprecedented dominance of a handful of ensembles in the past few years, there were the unprecedented sweeps of all 7 major comedy and drama categories by Schitt’s Creek and The Crown recently. This is a trend that cannot stop soon enough. Let’s spread the love, voters!
#4) It was a record-breaking (or near-record breaking) morning for several programs and individuals. With it’s jaw-dropping 14 acting nominations, Succession beat out The West Wing’s record for most acting nominations for a drama series in a single year. Although it had a relatively weak showing at the Emmys, NBC’s venerable sketch series Saturday Night Live extended its lead as the most nominated primetime series in Emmy history. Its 9 nominations this year bring its tally to 315. (Its closest runner-up is Game of Thrones with 161). Curb Your Enthusiasm inches into elite territory becoming only the 3rd series in history to score 10 or more nominations for Outstanding Comedy Series. It earned its 10th nomination out of 11 eligible seasons and is now second only to M*A*S*H and Cheers, both of which received nominations in the category for all 11 seasons they were on the air. Quinta Brunson became the first black woman to be nominated for writing, acting, and producing for her impressive work on Abbott Elementary. Squid Game became the first series not in the English language ever nominated for an Outstanding Series award in history. And then there’s the case of Sandra Oh. With her nomination for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series for Killing Eve, she garners her 13th nomination. She has never won an Emmy, making her one of the biggest losers in the history of the award (at least among on-screen talent). Due to the weak reception of the show’s final season, it seems unlikely that this will be her year.
#5) Several high-profile shows and platforms tumbled in the nomination count. As mentioned, several high profile shows from last year were ineligible this year — most notably the nomination-leading The Crown, The Handmaid’s Tale, and The Mandalorian. But that wasn’t necessarily good news for the show’s they competed against last year. Four brand new series (Abbott Elementary, Only Murders in the Building, Severance, and Yellowjackets) and six series that were eligible in previous years but ineligible last year (Better Call Saul, Succession, Stranger Things, Barry, The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, and Curb Your Enthusiasm) accounted for a combined 75 nominations this year. The result was that numerous series nominated in the top categories last year were nowhere to be found this year. Here are the stats for how last year’s 16 nominees for Outstanding Comedy and Drama Series fared this year:
- 7 were ineligible this year (The Kominsky Method, The Crown, The Boys, The Handmaid’s Tale, Lovecraft Country, The Mandalorian, Pose)
- 3 were eligible this year and received at least 1 nomination in a major category (Ted Lasso, Hacks, The Flight Attendant)
- 6 were eligible this year and received no nominations in any major categories (Black-ish, Cobra Kai, Emily in Paris, PEN15, Bridgerton, This Is Us)
The fact that 2/3 of the shows eligible to repeat in the major categories this year were nowhere to be found shows unprecedented turnover — and a shocking fall from grace for many of last year’s nominees.
It was also a relatively weak morning for Saturday Night Live, which declined from 21 to 9 nominations. This was welcome news to me given that it freed up numerous spots in the Supporting and Guest acting categories, which it stacks each year. (In my opinion, not only are the performances on SNL generally overpraised but they belong in a category for sketch or variety performers due to the very different style of acting between SNL and narrative comedy series.) And without The Mandalorian or WandaVision, Disney+’s nomination haul decreased by more than 50% and they did not score a single nomination in the major categories (outside a Made-for-Television Movie nomination for Chip ’n’ Dale: Rescue Rangers … more on that later).
#6) The Emmys continue to do an impressive job of embracing diversity…among its nominees at least. By my count, 23 of the 106 (22%) acting nominees in the Lead, Supporting, and Guest Acting categories were non-White. Things could certainly be better, but they also could (and have) been much worse. Two promising things I noticed is that 1) 3 of this year’s most successful new series have majority non-white cast members or issues of diversity front and center (Squid Game, Abbott Elementary, The White Lotus) and 2) the notoriously weak presentation of Asian actors was much improved this year with 9 actors of Asian heritage being nominated. However, several innovative and important series that explore and celebrate the experiences of non-white communities were snubbed. Despite previous nominations in the top categories, Atlanta, This Is Us, and Black-ish all missed out in their respective series categories and Reservation Dogs, the critically adored new series about indigenous youth, was snubbed. It’s important to note that while the Emmys have done an increasingly impressive job of having diverse nominees their winners remain extraordinarily white. (Click here for my recap of last year’s Emmy winners.)
#7) As always, there was a number of high-profile snubs and bizarre inclusions. In addition to the snubs described above, there were several additional snubs. Over the course of their combined 14 seasons on the air, Black-ish and This Is Us received 8 nominations for Outstanding Comedy or Drama Series and 37 acting nominations. Their well-regarded final seasons scored zero major nominations and easily represent the year’s biggest snubs. The fact that they are two of the most acclaimed shows on network television and two of the best shows to showcase racial diversity in years makes their snubs even more notable. They certainly were impacted by the Emmys being notoriously stingy with nominating series in their final seasons and the steady decline of the broadcast networks on which they air.
There were no major nominations for anything in Taylor Sheridan’s blockbuster Yellowstone universe (either the 4th season of the Kevin Costner-led flagship series or its big-budget prequel 1883 starring Sam Elliott, Tim McGraw, and Faith Hill). Somewhat unsurprisingly, it seems like being a hit in the Heartland doesn’t translate to love from Emmy voters. A-list projects like Starz’s Gaslit (starring Julia Roberts and Sean Penn), HBO’s The Gilded Age (starring Christine Baranski, Carrie Coon, and Cynthia Nixon), and Showtime’s The First Lady (starring Viola Davis, Michelle Pfeiffer, and Gillian Anderson) also scored no major nations.
Surprisingly, Jennifer Aniston did not repeat for her role on AppleTV+’s The Morning Show. Even more surprisingly, her spot was taken by her costar Reese Witherspoon (who went un-nominated for the show’s first season). There was also the curious inclusion of Elle Fanning and Nicholas Hoult for The Great after getting surprisingly snubbed last year and Sarah Paulson for playing Linda Tripp on the otherwise-ignored dramatization of Bill Clinton’s impeachment (Impeachment: American Crime Story). But, as usual, most of the press went to the actors who were snubbed, with this year’s outrage being directed at Selena Gomez for Only Murders in the Building, Millie Bobby Brown and Sadie Sink for Stranger Things, Andie MacDowell for Maid, Jessica Chastain for Scenes from a Marriage, Tracee Ellis Ross for Black-ish, Mandy Moore for This Is Us, and Naveen Andrews for The Dropout.
#8) The Television Movie category continues to be embarrassing. Once a well-regarded and competitive category, the Television Movie has become an increasingly embarrassing one in recent years. Made-for-television movies increasingly fall into one of three buckets (not mutually exclusive): campy comedies, offshoots of former or current television series, and movies that were intended for the big screen but got dumped to the small-screen due to perceptions of limited commercial viability. Last year, the winning film was a critically drubbed, profoundly cheesy holiday musical (Dolly Parton’s Christmas on the Square). This year the 5 nominees include an admittedly inspired Disney+ live action-animation hybrid that was clearly intended for the big screen (Chip ’n’ Dale: Rescue Rangers), a highbrow Holocaust drama that was sent to HBO instead of cinemas in the U.S. (The Survivor), and three spinoffs of former television series (Ray Donovan: The Movie, Zoey’s Extraordinary Christmas, and Reno 911: The Hunt for Q’anon). Their nomination in this category was the sole nomination for 4 of the 5 nominees. This has becoming a bizarre hodgepodge of a category that is at best an afterthought and at worst an embarrassment.
#9) Several of the top races will be real nail-biters all the way up until the Emmys are held on September 12th. Conventional wisdom says that the top nomination getters will be the top winners with Succession, Ted Lasso, and The White Lotus dominating their respective categories. However, there isn’t a particularly strong correlation between leading the nominations and winning the top awards. Succession seems well-poised to dominate the drama categories, but I suspect that many voters will be eager to award the central trio of Ozark and voter enthusiasm for Severance, Squid Game, and Euphoria is undeniable. On the comedy side, Lasso will face fierce competition from Hacks (which won three key Emmys last year and experienced an uptick in its nomination tally this year), Only Murders in the Building (which is currently airing a buzzy, acclaimed second season that will be wrapping around voting time), and Abbott Elementary (which has been acclaimed as the savior of the network television sitcom and has a fervent fan base). Things seem a bit clearer in the Limited Series categories, where I expect The White Lotus to take Limited Series, Supporting Actress (Jennifer Coolidge), and Supporting Actor (Murray Bartlett) and the lead acting trophies to be handed to Michael Keaton (Dopesick) and Amanda Seyfried (The Dropout).
#10) My predictions were excellent this year, but weakest in the Limited Series categories. Last year, I predicted 73% of the nominees in the Top 16 categories, up significantly from the prior year. This year, I was up to 77%. I did exceptionally well in the key Drama categories (successfully predicting 81% of the nominees) and the Comedy categories (successfully predicting 83% of the nominees). Where I struggled the most was the Limited Series/Movie categories, where I only scored 67%. This is almost entirely due to the fact that I overestimated shows like The Dropout and Maid and underestimated shows like Inventing Anna, The White Lotus, and Pam and Tommy. (Click here to see you for yourself with my final predictions that were posted on Sunday.)
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