Earlier this month the 2010 Emmy nominations were announced. Let’s start with the drama categories. Outstanding drama nominees include Lost, Breaking Bad, Dexter, Mad Men, True Blood, and The Good Wife. Lost received 12 Emmy nominations. In addition to the outstanding drama nod, Matthew Fox is up for outstanding actor, Terry O’Quinn and Michael Emerson are up for outstanding supporting actor, and Elizabeth Mitchell is up for outstanding guest actress. Also executive producers Carlton Cuse and Damon Lindelof were nominated for writing the show’s series finale, “The End.” Jon Hamm, Kyle Chandler, Bryan Cranston, Hugh Laurie, and Michael C. Hall join Fox in the outstanding actor category. 24’s Gregory Itzin got a nod for outstanding guest actor.
Moving on to the comedy categories. Outstanding comedy nominees include Glee, Modern Family, Curb Your Enthusiasm, Nurse Jackie, 30 Rock , and The Office. Glee received a total of 19 nominations. Matthew Morrison is up for outstanding actor, Lea Michele for outstanding actress, Chris Colfer for outstanding supporting actor, Jane Lynch for outstanding supporting actress, Mike O’Malley for outstanding guest actor, and Kristin Chenoweth for outstanding guest actress. Modern Family also led the way with 14 Emmy nominations. Ty Burrell, Eric Stonestreet, and Jesse Tyler Ferguson are all up for outstanding supporting actor, Julie Bowen and Sofia Vergara will duke it out for outstanding supporting actress, and Fred Willard got a nod for outstanding guest actor. Only patriarch Ed O’Neill was left out. The Glee (Ryan Murphy, Brad Falchuk, Ian Brennan) and Modern Family (Steven Levitan, Christopher Lloyd) pilot episodes received nods for best writing. Here’s a few more worthy mentions: Amy Poehler (Parks & Rec) is up for outstanding actress, Jim Parsons (The Big Bang Theory) is up for outstanding actor, NPH (How I Met Your Mother) is up for outstanding supporting actor, and SNL‘s Kristen Wiig nabbed a nod for outstanding supporting actress. And finally, The Tonight Show With Conan O’Brien (that’s right–suck it Leno!) got a nod for outstanding variety, music, or comedy series along with SNL, The Daily Show with John Stewart, and The Colbert Report.
Now it’s time to talk snubs. There’s no better place to start than Fringe‘s John Noble. Academy, what in the hell is wrong with you? Are you out of your bloody minds? John Noble, the man who plays the brilliant mad scientist and deadly serious Secretary Walter Bishop, is by far one of the greatest actors on television right now. With the introduction of an alternate universe, Noble masterfully portrays two distinctly different characters with grace, pose, and ease. His acting chops have been on a steady increase since season one, but it was his emotional portrayal as a broken father in season two’s episode “Peter” when I realized just how good Noble is. I thought to myself, if John Noble does not get an outstanding actor Emmy nod for performance in this episode then the awards show is a real crockpot! So I am very angry with the academy’s decision to overlook such a wonderful talent. Yes, I am aware that the academy does not respect the sci-fi genre like it does straight dramas and comedies, but this is that one time they should’ve made an exception. Moving on… where’s the love for Parks & Rec and Community in the outstanding comedy series category? After a lackluster first season, Parks picked itself up to quickly become one of the funniest sitcoms, like ever. I’m glad Poehler got a nod for her great work, but it would have been nice for the entire hilarious ensemble cast to be recognized. Last, this was the final year for Lost and 24. I am elated that Lost picked up so many nods, but I’m somewhat disappointed that 24 wasn’t nominated in the big categories. I agree that the final season was not nearly as spectacular as season’s past, but Kiefer Sutherland continued to dominate as the indestructable Jack Bauer with yet another exciting performance. You know I’ll be cheering for Itzin (who played President Charles Logan to perfect, yet again) when the nominees for outstanding guest actor in a drama roll around.
The 62nd Annual Emmy Awards, hosted by Jimmy Fallon, airs live on August 29 on NBC at 8PM. Look after the break for the full nomination list and my predictions.
[Via IGN]
*indicates my personal picks
Drama Categories
DRAMA SERIES
Lost (ABC)*
Breaking Bad (AMC)
Dexter (Showtime)
True Blood (HBO)
The Good Wife (CBS)
Mad Men (AMC)
Lost provided six seasons worth of brilliant television. The phenomenal scope of this show–including the characters, the plot, the writings, the visuals, the score–deserves this award. Season six proved to be one of the show’s best.
ACTOR IN A DRAMA
Matthew Fox – Lost (ABC) *
Bryan Cranston — Breaking Bad (AMC)
Michael C. Hall — Dexter (Showtime)
Jon Hamm — Mad Men (AMC)
Hugh Laurie — House (Fox)
Kyle Chandler – Friday Night Lights (DirecTV)
Finally. Lost‘s Matthew Fox is being recognized after six seasons of tremendous work. Jack was the crux of the entire show, and it would be a damn shame if The Man of Science wasn’t formally applauded for his impact on Lost fans ’round the world. If it wasn’t for Hugh Laurie’s amazing performance in House’s season opener “Broken”, I’d say this one was in the bag.
ACTRESS IN A DRAMA
Glenn Close — Damages (FX)
Julianna Margulies — The Good Wife (CBS) *
Mariska Hargitay — Law and Order: SVU (NBC)
Connie Britton — Friday Night Lights (DirecTV)
Kyra Sedgwick — The Closer (TNT)
January Jones – Mad Men (AMC)
SUPPORTING ACTOR IN A DRAMA
Michael Emerson – Lost (ABC)
Terry O’Quinn – Lost (ABC)*
John Slattery – Mad Men (AMC)
Andre Braugher – Men of a Certain Age (TNT)
Aaron Paul – Breaking Bad (AMC)
Martin Short – Damages (FX)
Ben or Flocke? I’m going with O’Quinn because he made us believe in two wildly different characters played by the same actor. There was the evil-incarnate Flocke aka Smokey and the flash-sideways John Locke we had come to know and love. He’s up against some tough competition, but he’s most worthy of the win in my book.
SUPPORTING ACTRESS IN A DRAMA
Rose Byrne – Damages (FX)
Christine Baranski – The Good Wife (CBS)
Christina Hendricks – Mad Men (AMC)
Elisabeth Moss – Mad Men (AMC)*
Sharon Gless – Burn Notice (USA)
Archie Panjabi – The Good Wife (CBS)
OUTSTANDING WRITING FOR A DRAMA SERIES
Lost, “The End”, Written by Carlton Cuse and Damon Lindelof (ABC)*
Mad Men, “Guy Walks Into an Advertising Agency”, Written by Robin Veith and Matthew Weiner (AMC)
Mad Men, “Shut the Door. Have a Seat”, Written by Matthew Weiner, Erin Levy (AMC)
Friday Night Lights, “The Son”, Written by Rolin Jones (DirecTV)
The Good Wife, “Pilot”, Written by Michelle King, Robert King (CBS)
C’mon, this one’s a no-brainer. “The End” is the final episode of one of the greatest shows of all-time, and man was it an emotional rollercoaster. Darlton, you deserve it.
Comedy Categories
COMEDY SERIES
Glee (FOX)*
30 Rock (NBC)
Curb Your Enthusiasm (HBO)
Nurse Jackie (Showtime)
The Office (NBC)
Modern Family (ABC)*
I’m sorry, but I cannot decided between these two. Both had tremendously successful starts this year, and I will be happy if either wins. (OK, fine, if you had a gun to my head…I’d pick MF.)
ACTOR IN A COMEDY
Alec Baldwin — 30 Rock (NBC)
Steve Carell — The Office (NBC)
Jim Parsons — The Big Bang Theory (CBS)*
Larry David — Curb Your Enthusiasm (HBO)
Tony Shalhoub — Monk (USA)
Matthew Morrison – Glee (FOX)
There’s no one like Sheldon Cooper. Parsons continues to shine as the nerdy theoretical physicist.
ACTRESS IN A COMEDY
Lea Michele — Glee (FOX)
Tina Fey — 30 Rock (NBC)
Julia Louis-Dreyfus — New Adventures of Old Christine (CBS)
Edie Falco — Nurse Jackie (Showtime)
Amy Poehler – Parks and Recreation (NBC)*
Toni Collette – The United States of Tara (Showtime)
Poheler all the way. She has lead the amazing ensemble in Pawnee to the top of the comedy class and for that she deserves a shiny award.
SUPPORTING ACTOR IN A COMEDY
Jon Cryer – Two and a Half Men (CBS)
Chris Colfer – Glee (FOX)
Neil Patrick Harris – How I Met Your Mother (CBS)
Jesse Tyler Ferguson – Modern Family (ABC)
Eric Stonestreet – Modern Family (ABC)
Ty Burrell – Modern Family (ABC)
Although Ferguson and Stonestreet play the most believable and hilarious gay couple TV has ever seen, it’s Ty Burell who carries the show on his shoulders. The man is comedic genius, and he’s the most relatable character on the show.
SUPPORTING ACTRESS IN A COMEDY
Jane Lynch – Glee (FOX)*
Holland Taylor – Two and a Half Men (CBS)
Kristin Wiig – Saturday Night Live (NBC)
Julie Bowen Modern Family (ABC)
Sofia Vergara – Modern Family (ABC)
Jane Krakowski – 30 Rock (NBC)
Sexy leading ladies Bowen, Vergara, and Wiig are a hoot, but they don’t see it the way Sue does.
OUTSTANDING WRITING FOR A COMEDY SERIES
Glee, “Pilot” (Director’s Cut), Written by Ryan Murphy, Brad Falchuk, Ian Brennan (FOX)*
Modern Family, “Pilot”, Written by Steven Levitan, Christopher Lloyd (ABC)
The Office, “Niagara”, Written by Mindy Kaling, Greg Daniels (NBC)
30 Rock, “Anna Howard Shaw Day”, Written by Matt Hubbard (NBC)
30 Rock, “Lee Marvin Vs. Derek Jeter”, Written by Tina Fey, Kay Cannon (NBC)
It’s a nail-biter between Modern Family and Glee, but when it comes down to it–Don’t Stop Believin’.
OUTSTANDING VARIETY, MUSIC OR COMEDY
The Colbert Report (Comedy Central)
The Daily Show With Jon Stewart (Comedy Central)
Real Time With Bill Maher (HBO)
Saturday Night Live (NBC)
The Tonight Show With Conan O’Brien (NBC)*
I’m with Coco.
REALITY HOST
Tom Bergeron – Dancing with the Stars (ABC)
Heidi Klum – Project Runway (Lifetime)
Jeff Probst – Survivor (CBS)
Ryan Seacrest – American Idol (FOX)
Phil Keoghan – The Amazing Race (CBS)
REALITY COMPETITION PROGRAM
The Amazing Race (CBS)
American Idol (FOX)
Dancing with The Stars (ABC)
Project Runway (Bravo)
Top Chef (Bravo)
Click here to see nominess for more categories at the official Emmys website.