My Picks For This Years Emmys: Best Supporting Actress In A Drama

I know, this is a Game of Thrones dominated category, and when it isn’t Handmaid’s Tale and Orange is the New Black tend to dominate. But considering that the former series is basically ineligible, and the latter is well past its prime, let’s consider some of the other actresses who are more than worthy to fill this category.

Carrie Coon, The Sinner

Coon has more than anyone else in the new Golden Age demonstrated that she is by far one of the most versatile actresses of this era. From her incredible work as Nora, the woman who lost her family in The Leftovers, and who was the center of so much magnificent drama, to her work on Fargo as the devoted sheriff trying to solve a murder no one else was interested in closing, she has been one of the most underrated forces. And her work as the cult leader centered around a murderous child, was no less astonishing. Initially appearing to be the heavy, she seemed to be one of the few characters on that series with a clear moral compass, however skewed. The odds are remote that she’ll be recognized, but I’d at least like it to be considered

Julia Garner, Ozark

Garner is one of the more remarkable discoveries of the last few years – a teenage actress who seems to have the ability to play characters decades wiser and cagier than the veterans she surrounds herself with. As the teenage head of the Langmore crime family, who has taken the Byrde family from one dark situation after another, we find ourselves dealing with a new kind of character even within the world of antiheroes – a child who has the acuity to outthink the elders. This looks to be her breakout year, with her earning raves and a SAG nomination for her work in Bravo’s Dirty John, and if she makes it into this category, even the women of Westeros will have to watch their backs.

Chrissy Metz, This is Us

Much like Hartley’s omission last year, the lack of consideration for Metz was especially upsetting, considering how brilliant her work has been over the past couple of years. Despite everything she does, some people still find it hard to empathize with Kate, even though by far, she’s had the hardest road to climb of the group. This season was no exception – her continued struggle to become pregnant, her problems with her husband’s depression, and the always frayed relationship she has with Rebecca. Some people may be wondering whether her character is dead in the flashforwards we saw throughout Season 3. I really hope she isn’t. There’s something about Kate that really makes me pull for, and I hope voters feel the same way

Retta, Good Girls

There are some characters you relate to no matter how bad they get, mainly because of the characters they play. And of the three title characters on this criminally undervalued NBC series, it’s the easiest to root for Ruby. With her husband in the glare of the FBI and fully aware of the criminal activities his wife’s involved in, she remains the only member of the group who seems to still have a moral compass, however skewed it occasionally gets. She’s still determined to the right thing and try to help her friends at the same time, even though they’re basically mutually exclusive. I feel the most anguish over her when things inevitably go wrong, and I really hope there’s some way out. Add to this, she’s been owed an Emmy nod since Parks and Rec, and there’s no way she shouldn’t be considered, no matter how much of a long shot she may be.

Rhea Seehorn, Better Call Saul

The women in Vince Gilligan’s dramas tend to get short shrift, and even the ones who get recognized for their value can take their share of abuse for standing in the way of the antiheroes that populate it. I seriously doubt people will say any of the same things about Seehorn’s exceptional work as Kim Wexler, Jimmy’s girlfriend and the only person who seems to believe in him unconditionally. She spent much of this season embracing her inner goals and trying to live and still love Jimmy’s cons. So the final episodes – where Jimmy turned his rage on her and she learned that, at his heart, the man she loved was a fraud – were painful in a way that the writers rarely show. It took three seasons for the Emmys to recognize Anna Gunn. I think the same rule will apply for Seehorn.

Susan Kalechi Watson, This is Us

Beth has always been one of the more stalwart people in this series, who loves her family, and has always been willing to support Randall’s dreams. So this season, where we saw the cracks in their marriage, and finally got a look at her backstory –were among the most emotional moments of a very emotional series. And when we saw her flashbacks in the penultimate episode, her work made use believe that their entire marriage might have been far more one-sided that the viewer had been willing to acknowledge for the last three seasons. Watson’s been ignored for the last two years; it’s going to be really hard to it this year.

FOR YOUR CONSIDERATION

Maggie Siff, Billions

Ever since her work in the debut season of Mad Men, Siff has been one of the most undervalued actresses in the Golden Age. And her work as Wendy Rhoades, the implacable, (literally) dominant performance coach at Axe Capital has always been exceptional. But she took her game to a new level this season. Her rage against Chuck after he ‘outed’ her, her manipulation of medical records in order to try and get to Taylor, which led to a war over her, a near breakdown, and the suspension of her medical license, to her season long struggle with Chuck which may have led to a permanent break in the season finale – this year by far featured some of the greatest work this actress has ever done. In a perfect world, she’d get a long overdue Emmy nomination. Of course, as Wendy herself knows, the perfect world doesn’t exist.