Emmy Noms + Hot Takes

Thank you to everyone who read the first iteration of Off Script last week! Appreciate y’all for subscribing/sending to others/sharing your thoughts with me. I’ll be in your inboxes every Thursday breaking down whatever I find interesting in entertainment/politics/pop culture. This week, I thought in honor of Emmy nominations dropping I’d share my hot takes about some of this year’s noms, surprises, snubs, and what I think is worth watching.

If you wanna chat about any of my takes further or argue with me about a show you love that I didn’t, don’t hesitate to reach out!

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Emmy Nominations

The most nominated drama series this year was Severance, with 27 nominations, and the most nominated comedy series was Hacks, with 14 nominations. Awards are so silly and arbitrary, but these were my two favorite shows in their respective categories this year, so good job to Television Academy voters for being slightly more correct than usual this year.

Breaking down the main drama and comedy categories below (I obviously have thoughts about several of the other categories that I didn’t include, but I’m going to keep this focused on the main ones to save your attention spans + here’s the full list of noms if you’re curious):

Drama Series

Outstanding Drama Series

• Andor, Disney+ 

• The Diplomat, Netflix

• The Last of Us, HBO Max 

• Paradise, Hulu

• The Pitt, HBO | Max 

• Severance, Apple TV+ 

• Slow Horses, Apple TV+ 

• The White Lotus, HBO Max 

I’m not super into predictions because I think they’re uninteresting when award shows have become as predictable as they are now, but I think this race will really only come down to The Pitt and Severance. Both shows captured the cultural conversation this year in a way the other nominees didn’t (I am rooting for Severance, praise Kier).

I was happy to see Paradise included here, it’s the only nomination in this category that surprised me a bit, but it was one of the new shows I enjoyed the most this year. The plot was intriguing (I won’t spoil it because the twists are really fun) and the performances (particularly Sterling K. Brown’s) were really great. I don’t know if the show is outstanding, but it is fun and I think the performances are outstanding.

I honestly still need to watch Andor, but the Star Wars Disney+ shows have been so disappointing I’ve been hesitant to start it despite all the positive coverage the show has been getting. I guess this is my push to binge it. 

It’s pretty rare that I can actually sit down to enjoy a show about politics (notable exceptions are The West Wing, Parks and Rec, and ESPECIALLY Veep). However, I like The Diplomat. I would say it’s less political than a typical political show, more about foreign relations and spies than domestic policy, but that’s part of why I enjoy it.

I’m not surprised to see previous nominees The Last of Us and The White Lotus included on this list, but I wasn’t a huge fan of the latest season of either of these shows, despite being a fan of their previous seasons. Both dropped in quality in terms of storytelling this season, and while certain moments and performances were strong, I don’t think either show lived up to their previous appeal.

Lead Actor in a Drama Series

• Sterling K. Brown, Paradise 

• Gary Oldman, Slow Horses 

• Pedro Pascal, The Last of Us 

• Adam Scott, Severance 

• Noah Wyle, The Pitt 

No one shoot me but…what is Pedro Pascal doing here? SPOILER ALERT, he has more of a supporting (or even guest) performance this season. While it is a wonderful performance, I think there were other lead actor performances this year that would have been more fitting in this spot.

As I mentioned above, Paradise mostly works because Sterling K. Brown is just so good. I’ve said for a while that he’s one of our greatest actors (although I don’t think that’s a hot take).

If you know me, you know I love Adam Scott. (This season of Severance when everyone was bullying people who think Adam Scott is hot was a really trying time for me because friends were sending me roasts left and right only to switch up after they gave his character a better haircut in a flashback episode. But I didn’t need a better haircut, I've always seen the vision.) I think he’s delivered incredible performances in so many iconic projects over the years, and Severance has really allowed his talents to shine in new and even more fun and interesting ways.

Supporting Actor in a Drama Series

• Zach Cherry, Severance

• Walton Goggins, The White Lotus

• Jason Isaacs, The White Lotus

• James Marsden, Paradise

• Sam Rockwell, The White Lotus

• Tramell Tillman, Severance

• John Turturro, Severance

Hey, so are Television Academy voters aware that other shows exist? Nothing is more boring than seeing the same shows nominated over and over and over again, particularly with The White Lotus. Also, I hate to say it, but I think the only male performance worth nominating this season from The White Lotus was actually Patrick Schwarzenegger, not necessarily the actors nominated.

I do think the Severance cast members deserve to be nominated, and I think it’s really obvious that Tramell Tillman should win this category. He blows me away every single episode. I think he’s such an amazing actor and had some wonderful moments this season that deserve recognition. Also, insane and long overdue that he would be the first Black actor to win this category, but it's not surprising given Hollywood’s history of overlooking or refusing to acknowledge incredible performances and stories by people of color.

Lead Actress in a Drama Series

• Kathy Bates, Matlock 

• Sharon Horgan, Bad Sisters 

• Britt Lower, Severance 

• Bella Ramsey, The Last of Us 

• Keri Russell, The Diplomat 

Speaking of which, it’s always disorienting to look at a category and see that not one actor of color has been nominated — and it happened several times this year. 

I do hope Kathy Bates films a Matlock dance TikTok with Jason Ritter to celebrate her nomination. Also, despite not enjoying this season of The Last of Us as much as I enjoyed the first season, Bella Ramsey’s performance was still worthy of recognition.

I was pretty surprised to see Bad Sisters nominated this year. I loved the first season and thought it was very well written (I would genuinely recommend you watch it if you haven’t already). However, season two couldn’t break the limited series tries to continue past the source material curse (@ Big Little Lies), and I dropped off about halfway through watching. Honestly, I really only lasted that long because I love the performances, especially Sharon Horgan’s, so I guess I understand the nomination to an extent. 

I’ve BEEN saying Keri Russell should win Emmys since The Americans and I stand by that, but I’m heavily rooting for Britt Lower this year. She’s doing amazing, compelling work on Severance that in my opinion is very much unmatched in this category. 

Supporting Actress in a Drama Series

• Patricia Arquette, Severance

• Carrie Coon, The White Lotus

• Katherine LaNasa, The Pitt

• Julianne Nicholson, Paradise

• Parker Posey, The White Lotus

• Natasha Rothwell, The White Lotus

• Aimee Lou Wood, The White Lotus

I am once again asking the Television Academy to free itself from The White Lotus. I really don’t mean to just spend this whole newsletter hating on The White Lotus but come on! I do think Carrie Coon and Natasha Rothwell deserve to be here, but respectfully to the other girlies, I don’t know that they needed to be nominated. 

I still need to finish The Pitt (promise, it’s next on my list) but from what I’ve seen and heard so far, Katherine LaNasa and everyone else on The Pitt are killing it.

Julianne Nicholson is so great in everything she does. I really didn’t think Paradise would get this much recognition this year, but I am glad her performance did. (Julianne Nicholson was also nominated for Best Guest Actress in a Comedy for her performance as “Dance Mom” in Hacks, and if she doesn’t win, that’s a crime on the level her Paradise character would kill people over).

No one is doing what Patricia Arquette is doing on Severance. Diving more into her character’s backstory this season was a great choice, not only for the extra lore about the world of Severance, but also because it allowed her to add new layers to an already great performance.

Comedy Series

Outstanding Comedy Series

• Abbott Elementary, ABC 

• The Bear, FX on Hulu

• Hacks, HBO Max

• Nobody Wants This, Netflix 

• Only Murders in the Building, Hulu 

• Shrinking, Apple TV+ 

• The Studio, Apple TV+ 

• What We Do in the Shadows, FX on Hulu

I have watched all of the shows nominated in this category and would say that I genuinely enjoy most of them. But…let’s talk about The Bear. Not only have they been committing egregious category fraud for years (the show is funny like 5% of the time, and it’s almost all being carried by Ayo Edebiri) it’s not even good anymore. I know they’re nominated for season three, but season four of the show came out a few weeks ago and was completely unwatchable, (notable exception for episode four which Ayo and Lionel Boyce wrote) and season three wasn’t that much better. Begging Television Academy voters to let go of the hold that The Bear inexplicably has on them and move on to REAL comedies (as Laraine Newman said, FUCK. THE. BEAR).

Abbot Elementary, Shrinking, and The Studio are all funny, entertaining, and worth a watch. Nobody Wants This is a pretty decent, bingable romcom series, though folks have rightfully pointed out several problematic elements of the show. What We Do in the Shadows was very funny, glad to see the show was able to secure a nom for its final season.

Also, I’ve been begging everyone to watch Hacks since the show first premiered, and have consistently found it to be one of the funniest and best written comedies out there. No one really listened to me until they won the Emmy for Best Comedy Series last year (btw I cheered so loud you would have thought my team won the Super Bowl or something), so here’s hoping they win big again, and the remaining non-Hacks watchers in my life get with the program.

Lead Actress in a Comedy Series

• Uzo Aduba, The Residence 

• Kristen Bell, Nobody Wants This 

• Quinta Brunson, Abbott Elementary 

• Ayo Edebiri, The Bear 

• Jean Smart, Hacks 

Ayo Edebiri is by far the best part of The Bear. The episodes that she writes/directs are the best episodes of the show (especially given its drop in quality in recent seasons), and she’s the only one making the show slightly worthy of its comedy status. She also made history as only the second woman since Lena Dunham to be nominated in the same year for both acting and directing for a comedy series. This makes complete sense to me, they’re both generational voices.

Uzo Aduba was good in The Residence, though I wouldn’t have classified the show as a traditional comedy necessarily, I guess its campy elements gave it that status. Quinta Brunson is always great in Abbott Elementary and is somehow still singlehandedly keeping network sitcoms alive. I’ve thought Kristen Bell deserved awards recognition since Veronica Mars (if you have never watched, make it your summer binge), but it’s really insane to me that this is her first nomination given her performance in The Good Place.

Still, no one is doing it like Jean Smart on Hacks. I promise I usually hate award show sweeps and find them super lame and boring, but I think Jean Smart genuinely deserves another Emmy for her performance as Deborah Vance. Each season they find a way to grow her character more and more, and she is truly so funny, but also makes you feel so deeply for her character in the show’s more emotional moments. She should pull a Julia Louis-Dreyfus and win for every single season.

Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series

• Liza Colon-Zayas, The Bear

• Hannah Einbinder, Hacks

• Kathryn Hahn, The Studio

• Janelle James, Abbott Elementary

• Catherine O’Hara, The Studio

• Sheryl Lee Ralph, Abbott Elementary

• Jessica Williams, Shrinking

If this award does not go to Hannah Einbinder I will be launching a January 6th-style insurrection against the Emmy Awards and the Television Academy. She truly gets better every single season of Hacks, and it’s criminal she hasn’t won an Emmy for her performance yet. This season she got to do even more (including having the most epic and warranted crash out of all time), and she deserves to finally be recognized. 

I am a big Kathryn Hahn fan and am so glad that between The Studio and Agatha All Along she’s finally getting the recognition she deserves. Catherine O’Hara is also funny as always in The Studio, though I did expect her character to have more to do throughout the season. 

Janelle James was great on this season of Abbot Elementary, we got to see a whole new side to her character, and she’s been overdue for more acknowledgement for her talents (she is the only person who could beat Hannah Einbinder this year that I wouldn’t be mad about). Sheryl Lee Ralph, Jessica Williams, and Liza Colon-Zayas were amazing as always in their respective shows, even if one of them is not a comedic performance.

Lead Actor in a Comedy Series

• Adam Brody, Nobody Wants This 

• Seth Rogen, The Studio 

• Jason Segel, Shrinking 

• Martin Short, Only Murders in the Building 

• Jeremy Allen White, The Bear 

Do I think Jeremy Allen White deserves to be nominated for The Bear? Yeah in the drama category. On a show that is not that funny, he is the least funny person, though he is giving a great dramatic performance. 

I have long-time love for the comedic work of Seth Rogan, Jason Segal, and Martin Short, and their performances in their respective shows are no exception (although admittedly, I stopped watching Only Murders in the Building like three seasons ago, it wasn’t Martin Short’s fault). I have some issues with Nobody Wants This, but Adam Brody is one of the few romcom leads as of late that actually does the job well.

Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series

• Ike Barinholtz, The Studio

• Colman Domingo, The Four Seasons

• Harrison Ford, Shrinking

• Jeff Hiller, Somebody Somewhere

• Ebon Moss-Bachrach, The Bear

• Michael Urie, Shrinking

• Bowen Yang, Saturday Night Live

I love a category that understands that more than two shows exist. 

I’ve been an Ike Bariholtz fan since The Mindy Project and love to see him finally get some deserved recognition. I really enjoyed The Four Seasons (to be fair the Tina Fey/Lang Fisher/Tracey Wigfield unionization was created in a lab to appeal to me personally), and I’m so glad Colman Domingo’s performance broke through and earned him a nomination because he was one of my favorite parts of the show.

Now, obviously, I've been a huge Harrison Ford fan basically since birth and getting to see a new side of his acting abilities at this stage of his career is so fun. You can really tell how much enjoyment he’s getting out of his performance in Shrinking, and he is so funny I could watch him do this role forever. Also, his congratulations texts to his costars were so cute. 

Ebon Moss-Bachrach and Michael Urie both give strong performances on their respective shows, and I always love to see Bowen Yang’s name up there. As a long time SNL fan I haven’t loved a lot of the choices the show has made in recent years (I could do a whole newsletter about how Lorne Michaels needs to retire), but Bowen is consistently one of my favorite parts.

Surprises + Snubs

• Melanie Lynskey, Yellowjackets, surprise snub

  • This is such a complicated one because I love Melanie Lynskey. But let’s be honest, Yellowjackets isn’t that good anymore. The show had such a strong first season that I think it’s absolutely worth a watch, but season two’s adult timeline was practically unwatchable (only doable because of great performances like Melanie’s). Season three struggled to come back from the horrible narrative decisions they made in season two, though there were moments where the show felt like it could potentially recapture its magic. Still, if any performances were going to be acknowledged from this season, it should have been Christina Ricci’s, or one of the incredibly talented wilderness timeline cast members (Sophie Thatcher!). Overall though, it’s probably correct that Yellowjackets earned no nominations this year.

• Meghann Fahy, Sirens, surprise nominee

  • I have been a fan of Meghann Fahy ever since someone forced me to watch The Bold Type in college, and she was by far the only watchable one. She was incredible in White Lotus, and her performance in Sirens was very good despite some of the issues I had with the show overall. 

• Dichen Lachman, Severance, surprising snub

  • I am mostly surprised about this omission because I think Dichen Lachman was outdoing several of The White Lotus folks that made it in her category instead. “Chikhai Bardo” was my favorite episode of this season of Severance, and Dichen’s performance in it and throughout the season was great. 

• Tyler James Williams, Abbott Elementary, surprise snub

  • This is just kind of a wild omission that makes little sense to me when the show is being nominated consistently in the rest of its categories? Tyler James Williams is so good and funny on Abbott, idk maybe if we stopped nominating non-comedies in the comedy category, this wouldn’t be a problem!

• Paul W. Downs, Hacks, surprise snub

  • Paul W. Downs created Hacks alongside fellow geniuses Lucia Aniello and Jen Statsky and writes/directs as well as acting on Hacks, so he is nominated for the show in other categories. Still, his and Meg Stalter’s (she’s a comedic genius btw) characters are a big part of the show, and he’s so great as Jimmy (also he almost helped Julianne Nicholson boof cocaine this season, how is that not Emmy nom worthy?).

• Kathryn Hahn, Agatha All Along, surprise snub

  • I have seen a lot of folks say that Kathryn Hahn was snubbed for her performance in Agatha All Along, but I wouldn’t necessarily agree (to be fair, I might have agreed had she not been nominated for The Studio.) I have established that I love Kathryn Hahn, and she gave a very strong performance as Agatha, but the show was a sneaky vehicle to introduce a totally different character? Also, while it was the best thing Marvel has put out in a while, the bar is on the floor. Sure, Kathryn is always giving award worthy performances, but I’m not surprised Emmy voters didn’t want to nominate the show.

• Say Nothing, semi-unsurprising snub

  • Say Nothing was one of my favorite shows of the last year, a lot better than some of the limited series that were nominated (@ Ryan Murphy’s Monsters). It was well written, with strong performances and a clear, engaging narrative. Unfortunately, it seems to have suffered from just not being watched, which is such a shame as it handled a really difficult subject matter with a lot of grace and deserved more acknowledgement.

• Deli Boys, unsurprising snub

  • Okay I’m not surprised Deli Boys received no nominations, but this is why Emmy voters should watch new things. I laughed more at Deli Boys than I ever have at The Bear, and the show needs to be renewed so Poorna Jagannathan can finally get the recognition she deserves at next year’s Emmys.

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The Silly Little Fun Shit 

Things that brought me joy + entertainment this week. Would love to hear about the things that are bringing y’all joy as well! 

• AMC A-List. I genuinely think AMC A-List is the best thing ever created. Most of my friends have it as well and it’s so nice to just easily be able to go grab a movie with people and then get a bite to eat and yap about it afterwards (s/o to The Grove AMC). This week we saw Superman which was really fun and I actually would recommend seeing (despite lowkey being a superhero movie hater). In conclusion, going to the movies and getting a little slushy and popcorn will heal you (as someone who worked at a movie theater for years and was miserable I never thought I’d say that, but here we are).

• Reading the latest Open Tabs.

  Lucy Ritzmann
  is awesome and if you’re chronically online like I am (which you probably are if you’re reading this) you should subscribe!

• Criminal Minds: Evolution. Listen, why is the Criminal Minds reboot not bad? It’s really more of a revival than a reboot, as most of the main cast and characters returned for the show’s streaming revival on Paramount+ only a couple years after the long-running CBS show ended. The reboot has had three seasons, and its most recent season (18) concluded last week. I think it was the best of the revival so far (despite the underwhelming finale) and honestly I’m not really looking for Emmy Award winning prestige from Criminal Minds. Sometimes you just need to watch a show that’s engaging and interesting enough, even if it’s not perfect, and Criminal Minds: Evolution delivers.

  • My Roman Empire is that the one time an Indian girl was a victim on Criminal Minds she survived and got away because she threw CURRY in her captor’s eyes. You literally cannot make this up (Season 11, Episode 7). 

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Thanks for reading the second iteration of Off Script! If you made it down here to the bottom I hope you’ll like/subscribe and continue to follow along. Comment or drop me a line (deviruia51@gmail.com) if there’s anything specific you want me to talk about in the coming weeks, or if you have thoughts about this week’s topic or anything else, always down to chat more about whatever!