Phase One of the Awards that can
potentially give insight into this year’s Emmys ended in late February with the
SAG Awards. We now begin Phase 2 which I have usually used smaller critics
groups to parse the idea.
In the recent past I have tried
to rely on more American based shows such as the MTV TV & Movie Awards and
the People’s Choice Awards. But the former never aired last year and the latter
has yet to schedule any nominations at all. (It’s conceivable the recent
wildfires in LA may well have had a similar effect.) So I’m going to go to a
somewhat unlikely place to try and comprehend America TV: England.
BAFTA has been giving television
nominations along with movies and anyone who has watched Peak TV knows the
overlap between the two over the past decade. Most of is related to streaming
services such as Netflix’s relationship with The Crown and Bridgerton
and Apple TV’s recent extraordinary series Slow Horses. There has
also often been an overlap between the limited series of Peak TV and combined
with both the number of British performers in American series as well as the
International Award there are possibilities for insight into what the Emmys may
do in just over three months.
So with that in mind let’s take
a look at the BAFTA nominations for television which were revealed earlier
today.
LEADING ACTRESS
Several of the series mentioned
were contenders for last year such as Mr. Bates Vs. The Post Office. However
two nominees do suggest a possibility: Lola Petticrew for the FX/Hulu limited
series Say Nothing which as we shall see is on the short list of Emmy
nominations for limited series and Marisa Abela for her work on the underrated
HBO drama Industry. The latter was nominated for Best Drama by the
Critics Choice Awards this past December. While it has a slight chance for
nominations, considering that such powerhouses as The White Lotus and The
Last Of Us will no doubt dominate the Emmy nominations, it is highly unlikely.
LEADING ACTOR
Richard Gadd, unsurprisingly, is
nominated in this category for Baby Reindeer and Gary Oldman is here for
Slow Horses. It is likely one or the other will triumph.
There are some interesting side
notes. David Tennant has been nominated in this category for Rivals a
series which has become a critical hit on Hulu and Martin Freeman has been
nominated for his work in the BBC one series The Responder.
SUPPORTING ACTOR
Here are three genuine
possibilities for nominations. Jonathan Pryce and Christopher Chung have been
nominated for their work in Slow Horses. (Jack Lowden isn’t here, which
is odd considering that he has already been nominated by the Golden Globes.)
Damian Lewis has been nominated for the most recent installment in Wolf Hall
and given that series popularity in connection with Masterpiece Theater, he
may be a dark horse for a nomination. Lewis, of course, has been part of many
American dramas and has received nominations for A Spy Among Friends just
two years ago.
SUPPORTING ACTRESS.
Little surprise to see Jessica
Gunning and Nava Mau nominated for Baby Reindeer as Gunning has
dominated the awards circuit this past year and Mau has won more than her
share. Maxine Peake is nominating for Say Nothing, which may well work
in her favor. None of the others are likely contenders.
FEMALE PERFORMANCE INA COMEDY
None that are likely to contend
though there are some interesting nominees. Anjana Vasan is nominated for the
cult sensation We are Lady Parts. Nicola Coughlan, who is known for her
work on Bridgerton is nominated for the show Big Mood and Lolly
Adefope was nominated for the now cancelled HBO/Sky collaboration The
Franchise.
MALE PERFORMANCE IN A COMEDY
The only series I recognize is
the failed Netflix mythology comedy Kaos for which Nabhaan Rizwan is
nominated.
DRAMA SERIES
Wolf Hall: The Mirror in the
Light will like
contend for Best Limited Series and fans of Supacell will be glad to see
it here.
LIMITED DRAMA
Both of the major contenders
were from last year: Baby Reindeer and Mr. Bates Vs. The Post Office.
Fans of One Day will be intrigued to see it here.
Those who are fans of reality TV
will be pleased to see The Traitors n contention in that category. And
considering it did with the Emmy for Best Reality show this past year I guess BAFTA
acknowledges reality to.
International
Two of the contenders are among
the bigger nominees from last year: Shogun and Night Country. Say
Nothing is nominated for International which would seem to give a slight
push for its chances. If you’re a fan of Colin From Accounts it’s here as
well.
Bridgerton fans will be glad to see that ‘THE’
carriage scene where Colin admits his feelings for Penelope is among the
contenders for Memorable Moment. Three of the other contenders are
fictional – including Mr. Bates Vs. The Post Office and Rivals and
two others are non-fictional. You’d think they’d have something for Donny’s
breakdown onstage in Baby Reindeer but it has gotten more than its share
of nominations.
I’ll now deal with some of the
craft nominations.
Directing has contenders from Baby
Reindeer, We Are Lady Parts and Wolf Hall. Writing in comedy has a
nomination for Brett Goldstein for his work for Shrinking and a writing nomination
for We Are Lady Parts. Drama nominates Mr. Bates, Baby
Reindeer – and Industry.
As for technical nominations as
you might expect House of The Dragon has more than its share of these
and I am pleased to see nominations for Day of The Jackal and Masters
of The Air. (I’m actually kind of surprising the former isn’t up for more
awards considering its popularity across the pond. Maybe the BBC can’t find
Peacock either.)
There are many nominations for Slow
Horses, Rivals and Shogun among the technical nominations, a couple
for Black Doves (which also didn’t have much of an imprint with BAFTA) There
are a few nominations for quiet sensations like Mary & George and Sweetpea.
(I guess they can find Starz.)
Overall Slow Horses and Rivals
have the most nominations apiece with 6 while Say Nothing finished
with four and Industry managed to get three. Considering how many British
actors are in House of the Dragon its striking it walked away with only
technical nominations. Then again this is a series that tends to honor only
British Actors and creative forces. The rest of the UK – well, there are some
other awards shows and I may follow up on that later on.
Clearly the series that are most
benefited by this are Slow Horses and Say Nothing. In a perfect
world Industry which is a better series than House of The Dragon and
far more of a contender for Best Drama then White Lotus would earn a
nomination for Best Drama from the Emmys. But since when have the Emmys ever
gone for merit when it comes to HBO? (In an unrelated subject take as much time
filming Season 3 of Euphoria as you need.) Wolf Hall remains a
dark horse in the Emmy race down the road but we’ll have to wait and see. I’ve
been meaning to look at the current season of Horses soon and now I have
an imperative to get to Say Nothing which was already contending for
casting and WGA awards.
Irish Film and Television have
their nominations and since I’m already there…
Bad Sisters got a whopping six nominations:
Best Drama, Best Director, Best Actress for Sharon Horgan, Best Supporting
Actor for Michale Smiley, Best
Supporting Actress nods for Fiona Shaw and Eve Hewson. Shaw was nominated by
the Critics Choice Awards and Horgan was nominated for Best Actress in 2023 by
the Emmys.
And as you’d expect for a series
that had to do with the Troubles Say Nothing was dominant with nominations
in every major category. Lola Petticrew was nominated here as she was at BAFTA
but rather than nominate Maxine Peake for Supporting Actress, Hazel Doupe was
nominated ins stead. How ironic of all the performers nominated it is more
likely the American in the cast Elisabeth Moss is the most likely nominee
Over all the Irish TV Awards seem
more likely to have contenders among the Emmys that the BAFTAs will. Day of
the Jackal is nominated for Directing and Writing, Colin Farrell is up for
Lead Actor in a Drama and he contends against Andrew Scott for Ripley. Michael
Fassbender is also present for his work in the Showtime Drama The Agency. Anthony
Boyle is nominated both for Say Nothing and his work in Masters of
the Air. Nicola Coughlan was nominated for Best Actress for Bridgerton. Even
3-Body Problem has a contender in Liam Cunningham for Supporting Actor.
The Penguin has nominations for
cinematography and House of The Dragon has been nominated for Costumes. 3
Body Problem is up for Editing and strangely enough Shogun for
Visual Effects. (The Crafts Awards don’t differentiate between film and
television, no doubt more fixed on the Best work of Irish people working in the
industry, which is why the editors for Bad Sisters and Say Nothing are
contending against Paddington in Peru.) For the record they got a
casting award creating and the Oscars are still a few years away.
Bad Sisters was a contender for many Emmys for
its first season and may very well contend again. Day of the Jackal has
been nominated for the majority of the Best Drama awards so far and this would
seem to boost its prominence. Will the nominations from Britain and Ireland
combined with its American footprint be enough to push Say Nothing into
what is basically a wide open Emmy race for nominations in the limited series
category? We will see.
I’ll be back some time in April
when I have news on the Peabodys and the TCA the next part of Phase Two.
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