Articles

July 18, 2013
 

THE SKED: The Emmy Nominations – Winners and Losers

 

Nominations were announced this morning for the 65th Annual Emmy Awards, and as always there are a slew of them–a complete list is here.  Also as usual, the nominees are a mix of a lot of familiar names and titles with a few exciting new ones.  This year, though, the most revolutionary newcomer isn’t so much a person or show as it is a delivery system.  Here’s a quick look at some of the major categories:

DRAMA SERIES

BREAKING BAD (AMC)

DOWNTON ABBEY (PBS)

GAME OF THRONES (HBO)

HOMELAND (Showtime)

HOUSE OF CARDS (Netflix)

MAD MEN (AMC)

Big Winner:  Unquestionably, Netflix and its entry into the ranks of big-time TV “networks.”  Of course, House of Cards was virtually a model of Emmy bait, and it would have been a giant contender however and wherever it aired, but the fact that Academy voters didn’t pass it up in favor of something on a conventional network is a huge validation for Netflix and all the other burgeoning services coming up right behind it.

Big Loser:  FX’s The Americans, a superb and much-praised show that struggled in the ratings and could really have used the help.  Also, The Newsroom, a less superb piece of work, but one that longs for this kind of recognition.

COMEDY SERIES

THE BIG  BANG THEORY (CBS)

GIRLS (HBO)

LOUIE (FX)

MODERN FAMILY (ABC)

30 ROCK (NBC)

VEEP (HBO)

Big Winner:  Louie, the micro-budgeted masterpiece.  It got quite a few nominations last year, but not the big one, and now Louis C.K. is officially one of the industry’s elite.  Also, old-time network television, which continues to have its only toehold on Emmy glory in the world of sit-coms.

Big Loser:  Arrested Development couldn’t quite push Netflix into the arena for both comedy and drama.  Also, no valedictory nomination for The Office–which didn’t really deserve one for a final season that was uneven until the fine finale, but could have gotten one anyway.

MOVIE/MINISERIES

AMERICAN HORROR STORY:  ASYLUM (FX)

BEHIND THE CANDELABRA (HBO)

THE BIBLE (History)

PHIL SPECTOR (HBO)

POLITICAL ANIMALS (USA)

TOP OF THE LAKE (Sundance)

Big Winner:  A tie between Top of the Lake, which gave Sundance a major nomination for its first entry into original scripted programming, and Political Animals, a classic example of a mediocre (and flop) series recognized by old-line Academy voters because of all the big names attached to it.

Big Loser:  Parade’s End, a beautiful HBO miniseries that even the network itself barely seemed to care about.

DRAMA ACTOR

Bryan Cranston, BREAKING BAD

Hugh Bonneville, DOWNTON ABBEY

Damian Lewis, HOMELAND

Kevin Spacey, HOUSE OF CARDS

Jon Hamm, MAD MEN

Jeff Daniels, THE NEWSROOM

Big Winner:  Spacey and Daniels, who broke into the list on their first tries (displacing Steve Buscemi and Michael C. Hall)

Big Loser:  Matthew Rhys from The Americans.  Too many wigs?

DRAMA ACTRESS

Vera Farmiga, BATES MOTEL

Michelle Dockery, DOWNTON ABBEY

Claire Danes, HOMELAND

Robin Wright, HOUSE OF CARDS

Elisabeth Moss, MAD MEN

Connie Britton, NASHVILLE

Kerry Washington, SCANDAL

Big Winner:  Washington, who’s got the zeitgeist in her favor, but in a role that wouldn’t necessarily be seen as awards material.

Big Loser:  It was indeed a forlorn hope that Tatiana Maslany would get a nomination for her spectacular multi-performance work on the little seen Orphan Black, but it was nice to dream.  (BBCAmerica needed to put more work into that campaign.)  Also, Keri Russell brilliantly redefined her entire career with The Americans and got nothing to show for it.  And Monica Potter spent an entire season as the most believable cancer patient in TV history on Parenthood–what more do Emmy voters want?  (Oh right, she’s on Parenthood, a show the Academy doesn’t know exists.)

COMEDY ACTOR

Jason Bateman, ARRESTED DEVELOPMENT

Jim Parsons, THE BIG BANG THEORY

Matt LeBlanc, EPISODES

Don Cheadle, HOUSE OF LIES

Louis C.K., LOUIE

Alec Baldwin, 30 ROCK

Big Winner:  Jason Bateman, holding the flag for Netflix, and Matt LeBlanc, who never breaks character as “himself”

Big Loser:  A nomination for Jake Johnson as TV’s most unlikely romantic lead on New Girl probably was never in the cards, but that doesn’t mean he’s not deserving.

COMEDY ACTRESS

Laura Dern, ENLIGHTENED

Lena Dunham, GIRLS

Edie Falco, NURSE JACKIE

Amy Poehler, PARKS & RECREATION

Tina Fey, 30 ROCK

Julia Louis-Dreyfus, VEEP

Big Winner:  Dern, nominated for a show that may have had the tiniest ferociously devoted fan base in history.

Big Loser:  Zoey Deschanel, nominated last year but for some reason squeezed out this time.

MOVIE/MINISERIES ACTOR

Michael Douglas, BEHIND THE CANDELABRA

Matt Damon, BEHIND THE CANDELABRA

Toby Jones, THE GIRL

Benedict Cumberbatch, PARADE’S END

Al Pacino, PHIL SPECTOR

Big Winner:  Cumberbatch, deservedly recognized for work hardly anyone saw.

Big Loser:  Anyone not on HBO.  (Also, probably everyone nominated against Michael Douglas.)

MOVIE/MINISERIES ACTRESS

Jessica Lange, AMERICAN HORROR STORY: ASYLUM

Laura Linney, THE BIG C: HEREAFTER

Helen Mirren, PHIL SPECTOR

Sigourney Weaver, POLITICAL ANIMALS

Elisabeth Moss, TOP OF THE LAKE

Big Winner:  Moss, excellent in a 6-hour drama that was very heavy going.  Also, Weaver, for snagging a nomination in such a piece of mediocrity.

Big Loser:  Rebecca Hall, remarkable in Parade’s End

The Emmys will be awarded September 22 on CBS.



About the Author

Mitch Salem
MITCH SALEM has worked on the business side of the entertainment industry for 20 years, as a senior business affairs executive and attorney for such companies as NBC, ABC, USA, Syfy, Bravo, and BermanBraun Productions, and before that, at the NY law firm of Weil, Gotshal & Manges. During all that, he has more or less constantly been going to the movies and watching TV, and writing about both since the 1980s. His film reviews also currently appear on screened.com and the-burg.com. In addition, he is co-writer of an episode of the television series "Felicity."