The 2019 Primetime Emmy Awards nominations have been announced, and as always when it comes to this notoriously finnicky organization, it’s a mixed bag. The big news is that, as expected, the final season ofGame of Throneswas recognized across the board. In fact,Throneslanded a whopping 32 nominations, breaking a long standing record set byNYPD Bluefor the most nominations for a single season. Emmy voters really threw it around this final go-around, givingKit HaringtonandEmilia ClarkeBest Actor and Actress nominations and filling out the supporting categories with the likes ofSophie Turner,Maisie Williams,Gwendoline Christie, and evenLena Headeydespite the fact that Cersei just sat in a castle the whole season and hadmaybe20 minutes of screentime.
Offscreen,Throneswas also nominated for Best Directing in a Drama Series for the Battle of Winterfell episode “The Long Night”, the aftermath episode “The Last of the Starks”, and the series finale “The Iron Throne.” The series finale—which was written and directed by showrunnersDavid BenioffandD.B. Weiss—was also nominated for Best Writing
HBO—which, it should be noted, has the most voters in the TV Academy which in turn feeds into their dominance—shined bright even beyondThrones. After losing out on total noms to Netflix last year, HBO was back on top with 137 total nominations this year. The excellent, critically acclaimedBarrycollected 17 total Emmy nominations.Bill Haderwon Best Actor in a Comedy andHenry Winklerwon Best Supporting Actor last year, but in addition to nominations for the two this year, actorsSarah Goldberg,Anthony Carrigan, andStephen Rootwere all nominated in the Supporting category. Hader is also nominated this year for writing and directing the tour-de-force episode “ronny/lily” (read my lengthy chat with Hader on bringing that episode to lifehere).
Outside of the Home Box Office, the acclaimed PopTV seriesSchitt’s Creekfinally picked up deserving nominations for Best Comedy Series and Actor and Actress forCatherine O’HaraandEugene Levy, whileThe Good Placealso picked up its first-ever Best Comedy Series nomination. AndFleabagSeason 2—one of the best pieces of storytelling in 2019, across all mediums—scored a number of nominations including Best Actress in a Comedy forPhoebe Waller-Bridge. But I have to say, the total snubbing ofAndrew Scottas The (Hot) Priest is completely uncalled for and I will be writing several strongly worded letters.
On the limited series/TV movie side of things, two of the most critically acclaimed pieces of television scored big: HBO’sChernobyland Netflix’sWhen They See Us. The latter fared particularly well in the acting categories, withJharrel Jeromepicking up a Lead Actor nominations alongsideChernobyl’sJared Harris.
The biggest snubs in my book?The Haunting of Hill Housefor Limited Series and acting andLate Night with Seth Meyersfor Outstanding Variety Talk Series—although I was heartened by the writing noms for bothLate NightandDocumentary Now!
Check out the major Emmy nominations highlights below. The 2019 Primetime Emmy Awards will air live on FOX on September 22nd.
Comedy Series
Barry(HBO)
Fleabag(Amazon)
The Good Place(NBC)
The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel(Amazon)
Russian Doll(Netflix)
Schitt’s Creek(Pop)
Drama Series
Better Call Saul(AMC)
Bodyguard(Netflix)
Game of Thrones(HBO)
Killing Eve(BBC America)
Ozark(Netflix)
Succession(HBO)
This Is Us(NBC)
Limited Series
Chernobyl(HBO)
Escape at Dannemora(Showtime)
Fosse/Verdon(FX)
Sharp Objects(HBO)
When They See Us(Netflix)
Television Movie
Black Mirror: Bandersnatch(Netflix)
Brexit: The Uncivil War(HBO)
Deadwood: The Movie(HBO)
My Dinner With Herve(HBO)
King Lear(Amazon)
Lead Actor in a Limited Series or TV Movie
Mahershala Ali (True Detective)
Benicio Del Toro (Escape at Dannemora)
Hugh Grant (A Very English Scandal)
Jared Harris (Chernobyl)
Jharrel Jerome (When They See Us)
Sam Rockwell (Fosse/Verdon)
Lead Actress in a Limited Series or TV Movie
Amy Adams (Sharp Objects)
Patricia Arquette (Escape at Dannemora)
Joey King (The Act)
Niecy Nash (When They See Us)
Michelle Williams (Fosse/Verdon)
Aunjanue Ellis (When They See Us)
Lead Actor in a Comedy Series
Anthony Anderson (Black-ish)
Don Cheadle (Black Monday)
Ted Danson (The Good Place)
Michael Douglas (The Kominsky Method)
Bill Hader (Barry)
Eugene Levy (Schitt’s Creek)
Lead Actress in a Comedy Series
Christina Applegate (Dead to Me)
Rachel Brosnahan (The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel)
Julia Louis-Dreyfus (Veep)
Natasha Lyonne (Russian Doll)
Catherine O’Hara (Schitt’s Creek)
Phoebe Waller-Bridge (Fleabag)
Lead Actor in a Drama Series
Jason Bateman (Ozark)
Sterling K. Brown (This Is Us)
Kit Harington (Game of Thrones)
Bob Odenkirk (Better Call Saul)
Billy Porter (Pose)
Milo Ventimiglia (This Is Us)
Lead Actress in a Drama Series
Emilia Clarke (Game of Thrones)
Jodie Comer (Killing Eve)
Viola Davis (How to Get Away With Murder)
Laura Linney (Ozark)
Mandy Moore (This Is Us)
Sandra Oh (Killing Eve)
Robin Wright (House of Cards)
Supporting Actor in a Drama Series
Alfie Allen (Game of Thrones)
Jonathan Banks (Better Call Saul)
Nikolaj Coster-Waldau (Game of Thrones)
Peter Dinklage (Game of Thrones)
Giancarlo Esposito (Better Call Saul)
Michael Kelly (House of Cards)
Chris Sullivan (This Is Us)
Supporting Actress in a Drama Series
Gwendoline Christie (Game of Thrones)
Julia Garner (Ozark)
Lena Headey (Game of Thrones)
Fiona Shaw (Killing Eve)
Sophie Turner (Game of Thrones)
Maisie Williams (Game of Thrones)
Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series
Alan Arkin (The Kominsky Method)
Anthony Carrigan (Barry)
Tony Hale (Veep)
Stephen Root (Barry)
Tony Shalhoub (The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel)
Henry Winkler (Barry)
Supporting Actress in Comedy Series
Alex Borstein (The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel)
Anna Chlumsky (Veep)
Olivia Colman (Fleabag)
Sian Clifford (Fleabag)
Betty Gilpin (GLOW)
Sarah Goldberg (Barry)
Marin Hinkle (The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel)
Kate McKinnon (Saturday Night Live)
Writing for a Comedy Series
Barry- “ronny/lily” - Bill Hader and Alec Berg
Fleabag- “Episode 1” - Phoebe Waller-Bridge
Pen15- “Anna Ishii-Peters” - Maya Erskine and Anna Konkle
Russian Doll- “Nothing in This World Is Easy” - Teleplay by and Story by Leslye Headland, Story by Natasha Lyonne and Amy Poehler
Russian Doll- “A Warm Body” - Allison Silverman
The Good Place- “Janet(s)” - Josh Siegal and Dylan Morgan
Veep- “Veep” - David Mandel
Directing for a Comedy Series
Barry- “The Audition” - Alec Berg
Barry- “ronny/lily” - Bill Hader
Fleabag- “Episode 1” - Harry Bradbeer
The Big Bang Theory- “Stockholm Syndrome” - Mark Cendrowski
The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel- “All Alone” - Amy Sherman-Palladino
The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel- “We’re Going to the Catskills!” - Daniel Palladino
Writing for a Drama Series
Better Call Saul- “Winner” - Peter Gould and Thomas Schnauz
Bodyguard- “Episode 1” - Jed Mercurio
Game of Thrones- “The Iron Throne” - David Benioff and D.B. Weiss
Killing Eve- “Nice and Neat” - Emerald Fennell
Succession- “Nobody Is Ever Missing” - Jesse Armstrong
The Handmaid’s Tale- “Holly” - Bruce Miller and Kira Snyder
Directing for a Drama Series
Game of Thrones- “The Last of the Starks” - David Nutter
