Hello, hello, hello! It’s me, your resident Awards Show Expert… or Awards Show Obsessive at least. The Emmys (which are the TV awards, in case you aren’t all up in awards shows like I am) are Monday, September 14. They are airing LIVE on Peacock and I will be watching.
If you know me and awards shows, you will know that there is always one category I consider to by my “pet” category. This show, there were two:
1. Guest Actress in a Comedy
This award was, uh, awarded September 7 during the Creative Arts Emmys. And, y’all, this category was STACKED. 5 nominees from Hacks, one nominee from The Bear and a single nominee from Widow’s Bay.
Now, before I watched Widow’s Bay, I was happy with one of the Hacks ladies winning this one. In this particular order:
- Kaitlin Olson
- Lauren Weedman
- Laurie Metcalf
- Leslie Bibb
- Cherry Jones
But once I watched epsiode 6 (“Our History”) of Widow’s Bay there was no other winner than Betty Gilpin. I already loved her because of her incredible turn as Liberty Belle Glow AND her gracefully stepping into the hoop skirt to become the second-ever Mary Todd Lincoln in “Oh Mary!” (which is coming to HBO next year and I cannot wait.). Her turn in WB was amazing though. She wholly inhabited this character and 5 minutes into her performance, I wanted her to get nominated for and win, a big shiny emmy.
And y’all she did. And she gave her speech in poem format.
2. Lead Actress in a Comedy
The winner for this award has been 21 years in the making. Now, don’t get me wrong, I think Jean Smart, who is the odds-on favorite to win, was astounding in final season of Hacks. She made me laugh, she made me cry, she made me feel.
HOWEVER, Lisa Kudrow as Valerie Cherish in the third (and also final) season of The Comeback made me laugh harder, made me feel more, and made me cry so hard so many times. She’s been nominated for this role twice before: Season 1 in 2006 and season 2 in 2015. She has done hysterically moving work on all three seasons. I wanted her to win so badly, y’all. I STILL want her to win.
This was me and Jeff Hiller (Somebody, Somewhere) last year, y’all. There is a clear favorite in the category who totally deserves to win but I want my pick to win more. Jeff did it last year (and even scored another nom for a different show this year) and I neeeeeeed Lisa Kudrow to do this again this year for me.
PLUS, Bob Mackie passed away, and he was Val’s fave designer when she was on I’m It!, so it feels like she should win tonight. So, let’s make that happen.
Okay? Ok.
Now here are the rest of my picks and maybe some commentary if I am feeling like it or if I am passionate about the topic.
Lead Actress in a Limited or Anthology Series or Movie
- Claire Danes, The Beast in Me
- Sally Field, Remarkably Bright Creatures
- Carey Mulligan, Beef
- Sarah Pidgeon, Love Story
- Sarah Snook, All Her Fault
I only saw “Beef” in this category, so I’m going with Carey Mulligan. I mean, she’s the favorite to win, so it’s not to big of a swing.
Lead Actor in a Limited or Anthology Series or Movie
- Riz Ahmed, Bait
- Jason Bateman, Black Rabbit
- Charlie Hunnam, Monster: The Ed Gein Story
- Oscar Isaac, Beef
- Matthew Rhys, The Beast in Me
I have also only seen “Beef” in this category, and Oscar Isaac was fine. HOWEVER, I kinda want to see Matthew Rhys pull off a double win. This would give him Emmys in three categories:
- Lead Actor Drama (2018, The Americans)
- Lead Actor Comedy (2026, Widow’s Bay)
- Lead Actor in a Limited or Anthology Series or Movie (2026, The Beast in Me)
Supporting Actress in a Limited or Anthology Series or Movie
- Linda Cardellini, DTF St. Louis
- Dakota Fanning, All Her Fault
- Laurie Metcalf, Monster: The Ed Gein Story
- Joy Sunday, DTF St. Louis
- Youn Yuh-jung, Beef
- Constance Zimmer, Love Story
Girl already won this one and she totally deserved it. I can’t stop hearing her say, “Just snag it!” in my head after. That scene alone deserved an award.
Supporting Actor in a Limited or Anthology Series or Movie
- Jason Bateman, DTF St. Louis
- Richard Gadd, Half Man
- David Harbour, DTF St. Louis
- Richard Jenkins, DTF St. Louis
- Charles Melton, Beef
- Nick Offerman, Death By Lightning
I don’t like him as a human, but he was the standout in this show. However, if I had my druthers (which I do not), I woud have given this to Charles Melton (who’s shaping up to be a serious actor’s actor) or Nick Offerman.
Directing for a Limited or Anthology Series or Movie
- Jake Schreier, Beef
- Lee Sung Jin, Beef
- Jason Bateman, Black Rabbit
- Steven Conrad, DTF St. Louis
I mean, that guy won and it’s fine.
Limited or Anthology Series
- All Her Fault
- The Beast in Me
- Beef
- DTF St. Louis
- Love Story
Give this shit to “Beef”. To me, Season 1 was all right and Season 2 was fantastic. DTF St. Louis was good too, but not AS good.
Lead Actor in a Comedy Series
- Yahya Abdul-Mateen II, Wonder Man
- Steve Carell, Rooster
- Matthew Rhys, Widow’s Bay
- Jason Segel, Shrinking
- Martin Short, Only Murders in the Building
Give this to my boy Matt, please. He’s incredible in everything and I definitely have a talent crush on him. If you haven’t seen The Americans yet, do it. It’s SO GOOD. I put it off for far to long and I have tickling of a need to rewatch it soon.
Lead Actress in a Comedy Series
- Quinta Brunson, Abbott Elementary
- Ayo Edebiri, The Bear
- Elle Fanning, Margo’s Got Money Troubles
- Lisa Kudrow, The Comeback
- Jean Smart, Hacks
I mean, duh. This is my category of the night. I need Lisa to win. I need Valerie to get her flowers. It’s a physical need inside of me (I know this is unhealthy). I will cry when this happens.
Not if, when.
Yes, that is threat.
Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series
- Colman Domingo, The Four Seasons
- Paul W. Downs, Hacks
- Harrison Ford, Shrinking
- Nick Offerman, Margo’s Got Money Troubles
- Stephen Root, Widow’s Bay
- Michael Urie, Shrinking
- Tyler James Williams, Abbott Elementary
Can… everyone win this award? Please? I literally can’t pick?
The only two I would MAYBE be angry at if they win would be Coleman (who I love and think is incredible talented) and Michael Urie (also incredibly talented and played Mary’s Teacher to Jinx Monsoon’s Mary on Broadway. It’s looking more and more like all good art comes back to Cole Escola’s Oh, Mary!)
I guess my heart win would go to Harrison or Nick or Stephen.
DON’T MAKE ME PICK JUST ONE.
Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series
- Dale Dickey, Widow’s Bay
- Hannah Einbinder, Hacks
- Janelle James, Abbott Elementary
- Kate O’Flynn, Widow’s Bay
- Michelle Pfeiffer, Margo’s Got Money Troubles
- Megan Stalter, Hacks
- Jessica Williams, Shrinking
I almost always want Janelle James to win this, but this year is different. I feel like season 5 of Abbott Elementary kind of lost the plot a bit. The heart was missing and all the characters felt like caricatures of themselves. I hope they find their way back next season, cause this show normally fills my love meter way up to the top.
This is another one, though, thjat I feel I’d be happy with anyone winning. I think Kate’s got this wrapped up, though. And she totally deserves it. It’ll be fun to see her get nominated for an Oscar later this year in Mike Leigh’s final movie too.
Guest Actor in a Comedy Series
- Michael J. Fox, Shrinking
- Brett Goldstein, Shrinking
- Hamish Linklater, Widow’s Bay
- Christopher McDonald, Hacks
- Rob Reiner, The Bear
- Connor Storrie, Saturday Night Live
When I saw Rob Reiner won this award at the Creative Arts Emmys, I got a little butthurt. But then I remembered he recently met an untimely end and became okay with it.
(however I feel like the acting categories should be performance based and not emotion based.)
Guest Actress in a Comedy Series
- Leslie Bibb, Hacks
- Jamie Lee Curtis, The Bear
- Betty Gilpin, Widow’s Bay
- Cherry Jones, Hacks
- Laurie Metcalf, Hacks
- Kaitlin Olson, Hacks
- Lauren Weedman, Hacks
D E S E R V E D.
Directing for a Comedy Series
- Randall Einhorn, Abbott Elementary
- Christopher Storer, The Bear
- Andrew DeYoung, The Chair Company
- Lucia Aniello, Hacks
- Mary Lou Belli, The Ms. Pat Show
- Hiro Murai, Widow’s Bay
I know this will not happen, but I would really like it to. The actual winner will probably be Hiro Murai for Widow’s Bay.
Writing for a Comedy Series
- Quinta Brunson, Abbott Elementary
- Tim Robinson and Zach Kanin, The Chair Company
- Michael Patrick King and Lisa Kudrow, Hacks
- Lucia Aniello, Paul W. Downs and Jen Statsky, Hacks
- Anthony King, Jury Duty Presents: Company Retreat
- Katie Dippold, Widow’s Bay
I would also like this to happen. I LOVED The Chair Company, y’all. I rewatched it when I took a trip to Canton, Ohio and it’s simply perfect.
Comedy Series
- Abbott Elementary
- The Bear
- Hacks
- Margo’s Got Money Troubles
- Nobody Wants This
- Only Murders in the Building
- Shrinking
- Widow’s Bay
The only reason I’m even reluctantly choosing Hacks is because The Comeback and The Chair Company got overlooked. I would delete OMITB and Nobody Wants This in the nominee list and put those two in and give the win to Valerie Cherish’s final bow.
I watched Nobody Wants This recently to see if it deserved a nomination above Valerie Cherish and Ron Trospoer, but it does not. It was good though. Insane chemistry all around.
Lead Actress in a Drama Series
- Carrie Coon, The Gilded Age
- Chase Infiniti, The Testaments
- Keri Russell, The Diplomat
- Rhea Seehorn, Pluribus
- Zendaya, Euphoria
I think Rhea’s got this on lock.
Lead Actor in a Drama Series
- Sterling K. Brown, Paradise
- Gary Oldman, Slow Horses
- Mark Ruffalo, Task
- Rufus Sewell, The Diplomat
- Noah Wyle, The Pitt
There is no queston here. Any other win would be a massive upset.
Supporting Actress in a Drama Series
- Taylor Dearden, The Pitt
- Fiona Dourif, The Pitt
- Allison Janney, The Diplomat
- Katherine LaNasa, The Pitt
- Sepideh Moafi, The Pitt
- Julianne Nicholson, Paradise
- Karolina Wydra, Pluribus
I know this is the least likely win, but I think it was the most subtle, human performance of the bunch.
Supporting Actor in a Drama Series
- Patrick Ball, The Pitt
- Billy Crudup, The Morning Show
- Gerran Howell, The Pitt
- Jack Lowden, Slow Horses
- Tom Pelphrey, Task
- Carlos-Manuel Vesga, Pluribus
See above.
Also, it blows my mind that Billy Crudup keeps getting nominations for The Morning Show when he’s not even the strongest perforance in the show.
Guest Actor in a Drama Series
- Colman Domingo, Euphoria
- Ernest Harden Jr., The Pitt
- Jeff Hiller, Pluribus
- Jeff Kober, The Pitt
- Jonathan Pryce, Slow Horses
- Bradley Whitford, The Diplomat
He already won and would have been my pick anyway.
Guest Actress in a Drama Series
- Brittany Allen, The Pitt
- Tal Anderson, The Pitt
- Tina Ivlev, The Pitt
- Miriam Shor, Pluribus
- Merritt Wever, The Gilded Age
- Shailene Woodley, Paradise
Shailene won, but I was hoping Tal Anderson would take this.
Writing for a Drama Series
- Debora Cahn, The Diplomat
- Kirsten Pierre-Geyfman and R. Scott Gemmill, The Pitt
- Valerie Chu, The Pitt
- Vince Gilligan, Pluribus
- Will Smith, Slow Horses
- Brad Ingelsby, Task
I think The Pitt is likely to sweep.
Directing for a Drama Series
- Salli Richardson Whitfield, The Gilded Age
- Hanelle M. Culpepper, Paradise
- Noah Wyle, The Pitt
- Vince Gilligan, Pluribus
- Saul Metzstein, Slow Horses
- Salli Richardson Whitfield, Task
See above.
Drama Series
- The Diplomat
- The Gilded Age
- A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms
- Paradise
- The Pitt
- Pluribus
- Slow Horses
- Your Friends & Neighbors
NO QUESTION.
Also, I started Your Friends and Neighbors to see if it was Emmy-worthy. It’s fun and well done, but it is absolutely not good enough for me to stop watching it the instant I realized Caroline in the City was streaming on Paramount Plus.
Structured Reality Program
- Antiques Roadshow
- Diners, Drive-ins and Dives
- Love Is Blind
- Queer Eye
- Shark Tank
Already won, and this is fine.
Unstructured Reality Program
- America’s Sweethearts: Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders
- Love on the Spectrum
- RuPaul’s Drag Race: Untucked
- Summer House
- Welcome to Wrexham
This won already and I’d rather it’ve been Wrexham.
Host for a Reality or Reality Competition Program
- RuPaul Charles, RuPaul’s Drag Race
- Alan Cumming, The Traitors
- Kristen Kish, Top Chef
- Ariana Madix, Love Island USA
- Jeff Probst, Survivor
Yes, deserve, but only because Sam Reich was not nominated.
Directing for a Reality Program
- Bertram van Munster, The Amazing Race
- Cian O’Clery, Love on the Spectrum
- Nick Murray, RuPaul’s Drag Race
- Anna Moulaison, Top Chef
- Ben Archard, The Traitors
Already won… and see above. I feel like Game Changer should be in the Emmy mix.
Reality Competition Program
- Dancing With the Stars
- RuPaul’s Drag Race
- Survivor
- Top Chef
- The Traitors
This will win, but only because Game Changer on Dropout TV is not nominated.
Writing for a Variety Series
- Jimmy Kimmel Live!
- Last Week Tonight With John Oliver
- The Late Show With Stephen Colbert
This won at the Creative Arts Emmys already and I am not surprised.
Directing for a Variety Series
- Andy Fisher, Jimmy Kimmel Live!
- Yvonne De Mare, The Late Show With Stephen Colbert
- Liz Patrick, Saturday Night Live
See above.
Variety Series
- The Daily Show
- Jimmy Kimmel Live!
- Last Week Tonight With John Oliver
- The Late Show With Stephen Colbert
- Saturday Night Live
Colbert’s got this in the bag.
Variety Special (Live)
- The Apple Music Super Bowl LX Halftime Show Starring Bad Bunny
- 83rd Annual Golden Globes
- 68th Annual Grammy Awards
- The Oscars
- 78th Annual Tony Awards
This won and hell yeah, it did.
Variety Special (Prerecorded)
- Dave Chappelle: The Unstoppable…
- The Muppet Show
- Nikki Glaser: Good Girl
- Taylor Swift | The Eras Tour | The Final Show
- Wicked: One Wonderful Night
Creative Arts winner and I vote yes, it is deserved.
Directing for a Variety Special
- Hamish Hamilton, The Apple Music Super Bowl LX Halftime Show Starring Bad Bunny
- Rikki Hughes, Dave Chappelle: The Unstoppable…
- Glenn Weiss, Taylor Swift | The Eras Tour | The Final Show
- Glenn Weiss, 78th Annual Tony Awards
- Julie Dash, Wanda Sykes: Legacy
Deserved.
Short Form Comedy, Drama or Variety Series
- Bad Thoughts
- Colbert Before Air
- The Daily Show
- The Randy Rainbow Show
- SubwayTakes with Kareem Rahma
I need to look into this category more, idk anything about any of ’em, except Subway Takes.
Short Form Nonfiction or Reality Series
- Hacks: Bit By Bit
- Inside The Pitt
- Love Story
- Shrinking — In It Together
- This Is a Gardening Show
Yes, fine.
Performer in a Short Form Comedy or Drama Series
- Kim Estes, Big Law
- Desi Lydic, The Daily Show: Desi Lydic Foxsplains
- Randy Rainbow, The Randy Rainbow Show
I am glad this winner was already announced, bc I know nothing about this one.
Directing for a Documentary/Nonfiction Program
- Lawrence Kasdan, Marty, Life Is Short
- Judd Apatow and Michael Bonfiglio, Mel Brooks: The 99 Year Old Man!
- Rebecca Miller, Mr. Scorsese
- Mariska Hargitay, My Mom Jayne: A Film By Mariska Hargitay
- Alexandria Stapleton, Sean Combs: The Reckoning
Sweet. She won. Love that the Emmy’s Host is a winner.
Documentary or Nonfiction Special
- John Candy: I Like Me
- Marty, Life Is Short
- Mel Brooks: The 99 Year Old Man!
- My Mom Jayne: A Film by Mariska Hargitay
- Ocean with David Attenborough
Sorry, double winner.
I’ll be watching the awards tonight on Peacock, so please do not disturb me, unless you also want to celebrate Lisa Kudrow’s win for playing Valerie Cherish.
