The Emmy nominations are in, and this year home-grown talent from Down Under is set to come out on top.
Cate Blanchett’s stellar performance as ultra-conservative Phyllis Schlafly in Mrs America landed her a nomination for lead actress in a limited series or movie.
Despite having two Oscars and three Golden Globes under her belt already, this is Blanchett’s first Emmy nomination.
Blanchett also shared the Mrs America screen with fellow Aussie, Rose Byrne, who played feminist queen Gloria Steinem.
Toni Collette has swapped Muriel’s daggy wedding dress for a badge and a gun in Netflix’s Unbelievable, and has scored herself a nomination in best supporting actress in a limited series or movie.
Unbelievable, which is based on a true story, will battle it out against Mrs America for best outstanding series.
Another Aussie lady leading the way is Sarah Snook, who earned a nod in the category of best actress in a drama series for her role as Shiv Roy in Succession.
Succession, about the quarrelling family of a media mogul, landed nominations for nine of its actors, bringing the tally for the satirical show to an outstanding 18 nominations in total.
Snook is up against industry heavyweights Laura Dern and Meryl Streep, who both starred in season two of Big Little Lies.
Comedian Hannah Gadsby, who won an Emmy in 2019 for her comedy special Nanette is up again in outstanding variety special (pre-recorded) for her second Netflix special, Douglas.
Australia’s golden boy and triple threat, Hugh Jackman, has been put up for outstanding lead actor in a limited series or movie for his portrayal of Frank Tassone in Bad Education.
But this won’t be the first Emmy win for the 51-year-old, Jackman won back in 2005 for his gig hosting the Tony Awards the previous year.
While the Aussies battle it out to win big, it seems this year’s Emmys will also play host to a different kind of battle; the struggle of the streaming giants.
Clash of the platforms
This year, Netflix has landed an unprecedented 160 nominations, smashing HBO’s record for the most Emmy nominations ever and proving once again that it’s the king of the platforms.
Netflix’s most popular shows, Stranger Things, Hollywood, The Crown and Ozark did most of the heavy lifting, totalling 59 nominations between them, Ozark raking in 18 on its own.
The highly binge-able Tiger King, which has been one of Netflix’s most popular programs and averaged 19 million viewers in its first 10 days, received six nominations, including outstanding directing for a documentary/non-fiction.
HBO trailed behind with 107 nominations, but claimed the record for the most nominated show for Watchmen, which scored 26.
Amazon’s Emmy-favourite, The Marvellous Mrs Maisel came second with 20.
After years of Emmy snubs, CBC’s cult comedy series, Schitt’s Creek, was nominated in 15 categories for its final season, with all four stars getting a nod.
The series was nominated for three awards last year but failed to snag any.
Eugene Levy, who stars alongside co-writer and real-life son, Dan Levy, said finding popularity was a slow burn.
“The love and inclusivity that the show had touched people in a meaningful way, particularly now, but [also] in the past year certainly with the mood and tone of what was going on in the world,” Levy said on Tuesday (US time).
Helena Bonham Carter is up for her portrayal as Princess Margaret in The Crown, and praise the diversity of the nominations this year.
“Women of all ages and colour have never had it better,” Bonham Carter said.
According to Variety, 34.3 per cent of the nominated actors are people of colour, totalling 102 nominations which is a step up from the previous high of 27.7 per cent in 2018.
Nominations went to Kerry Washington for American Son and Little Fires Everywhere, Regina King landed a nod for Watchmen, Zendaya was nominated for her performance in Euphoria, and Muslim-American actor Ramy Yousef was put up for best actor in a comedy series for Ramy.
To have @LittleFiresHulu, #AmericanSon and #LiveInFrontOfAStudioAudience be recognized by the @TelevisionAcad, this morning is such an honor. Feeling so much love, and feeling so blessed XOXOXOXOXOX
— kerry washington (@kerrywashington) July 28, 2020
Comedian Tiffany Haddish scored two nominations for her two Netflix specials They Ready and Black Mitzvah, while Jeremy Pope – who was nominated for his role in Hollywood – praised the diversity of this year’s nominees.
“I’m proud to see so many black artists nominated this year,” Pope said.
“It gives me hope that systemic change in our entertainment industry is not only possible, it’s imminent.”
The Emmys will air on Monday, 21 September (Australia time), but no word yet on how the ongoing pandemic will affect the ceremony.
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