Team Experience's Dream Emmy Ballot!
Sunday, June 25, 2017 at 10:00AM Emmy voting closes tomorrow evening, dear readers! Since Nathaniel and the team here at The Film Experience have been writing up our favorite FYCs of the past television year, we have decided to also do some fantasy Emmy voting of our own. Our own Emmy dream ballot has favorites you've read about here before, like nomination leaders Big Little Lies (7 nominations), Feud (6), The Leftovers and the conclusion of Looking (5).
That's a whole lot of love for HBO here at TFE, with Veep also being our most nominated comedy at 4 nods. Might HBO earn similar success with Emmy itself, even though mainstay Game of Thrones won't be eligible? Will this allow for The Leftovers to finally get some love?
Take a look at the results after the jump...
Outstanding Drama Series
- American Gods
- The Americans
- The Handmaid's Tale
- The Leftovers
- Orange is the New Black
- Westworld
Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series
- Carrie Coon - The Leftovers
- Claire Foy - The Crown
- Eva Green - Penny Dreadful
- Elisabeth Moss - The Handmaid's Tale
- Keri Russell - The Americans
- Evan Rachel Wood - Westworld
Moss was our most uninamous nominee in all categories - but will this be a trickier road to Emmy? Hulu has yet to be represented at the big ceremony in a strong way.
Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series
- Sterling K. Brown - This is Us
- Rami Malek - Mr. Robot
- Ian McShane - American Gods
- Matthew Rhys - The Americans
- Dan Stevens - Legion
- Justin Theroux - The Leftovers
Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series
- Amy Brenneman - The Leftovers
- Ann Dowd - The Handmaid's Tale
- Thandie Newton - Westworld
- Yvonne Strahovski - The Handmaid's Tale
- Samira Wiley - Orange is the New Black
- Constance Zimmer - UnREAL
Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series
- Mahershala Ali - Marvel's Luke Cage
- Christopher Eccleston - The Leftovers
- Jared Harris - The Crown
- Ron Cephas Jones - This is Us
- John Lithgow - The Crown
- Jeffrey Wright - Westworld
Outstanding Comedy Series
- Atlanta
- Crazy Ex-Girlfriend
- Fleabag
- Insecure
- Transparent
- Veep
This was an incredibly tight race with The Good Place and Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt being single vote misses, and about half a dozen other shows that nearly made it like One Day at a Time, Difficult People, and Girls.
Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series
- Rachel Bloom - Crazy Ex-Girlfriend
- Julia Louis-Dreyfus - Veep
- Issa Rae - Insecure
- Gina Rodriguez - Jane the Virgin
- Phoebe Waller-Bridge - Fleabag
- Constance Wu - Fresh Off the Boat
Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series
- Aziz Ansari - Master of None
- Ted Danson - The Good Place
- Billy Eichner - Difficult People
- Donald Glover - Atlanta
- Randall Park - Fresh Off the Boat
- Jeffrey Tambor - Transparent
Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series
- Donna Lynn Champlin - Crazy Ex-Girlfriend
- Anna Chlumsky - Veep
- Kether Donohue - You're the Worst
- Judith Light - Transparent
- Kate McKinnon - Saturday Night Live
- Rita Moreno - One Day at a Time
Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series
- Alec Baldwin - Saturday Night Live
- Titus Burgess - Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt
- Jaime Camil - Jane the Virgin
- Tony Hale - Veep
- Bryan Tyree Henry - Atlanta
- Andrew Rannells - Girls
Veep was our most nominated comedy with 4 nominations, but its supporting male ensemble was omnipresent on ballots - Tony Hale was the still concensus favorite of them. Alec Baldwin returned to SNL enough times to be ineligible for guest actor, and we bet he's still a frontrunner in this category for Emmy.
Outstanding Limited Series
- Big Little Lies
- Fargo
- Feud: Bette and Joan
- The Night Of
- When We Rise
- The Young Pope
Outstanding TV Movie
- Black Mirror: San Junipero
- Hairspray Live!
- The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks
- Looking: The Movie
- The Most Hated Woman in America
- Wild Oats
Emmy never recognized Looking over its two seasons - do we think being in the less competitive TV movie and corresponding male acting categories this year might help its chances? Has it evaporated from memory since arriving towards the beginning at the season?
Outstanding Lead Actress in a Limited Series or TV Movie
- Carrie Coon - Fargo
- Bryce Dallas Howard - Black Mirror: Nosedive
- Nicole Kidman - Big Little Lies
- Jessica Lange - Feud: Bette and Joan
- Susan Surandon - Feud: Bette and Joan
- Reese Witherspoon - Big Little Lies
Nicole and Reese showed up on the exact number of ballots, so expect a tight race between the two come Emmy time. As far as Feud is concerned, Surandon was the more popular among our team though Lange safely made this lineup. Bryce Dallas Howard is our most surprising inclusion - could Emmy be so bold?
Outstanding Lead Actor in a Limited Series or TV Movie
- Riz Ahmed - The Night Of
- Johnathan Groff - Looking: The Movie
- Jude Law - The Young Pope
- Ewan McGregor - Fargo
- Guy Pearce - When We Rise
- John Turturro - The Night Of
Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Limited Series or TV Movie
- Judy Davis - Feud: Bette and Joan
- Laura Dern - Big Little Lies
- Gugu Mbatha-Raw - Black Mirror: San Junipero
- Lauren Weedman - Looking: The Movie
- Mary Elizabeth Winstead - Fargo
- Shailene Woodley - Big Little Lies
Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Limited Series or TV Movie
- Raúl Castillo - Looking: The Movie
- Alfred Molina - Feud: Bette and Joan
- Adam Scott - Big Little Lies
- Alexander Skarsgård - Big Little Lies
- Russell Tovey - Looking: The Movie
- Stanley Tucci - Feud: Bette and Joan
Did any of our collective picks surprise you? What are your own Emmy hopefuls this season?
Reader Comments (47)
Bryce Dallas Howard! I hope the academy hears you. She's phenomenal in "Nosedive".
some worthy shows that got completely left out:
> Black Sails
> 12 Monkeys
> Brain Dead (esp. MEW's lead performance)
> Halt and Catch Fire
As great as the acting is, the Leftovers is too inconsistent for me to ever consider it one of the best (in today's golden age of telivision anyways).
I think Handmaids tale will hit it big with Emmy. It's been THE show recently and is fresh in everyone's minds. I love the acting here but, as a whole, the show itself and the writing is a bit heavy handed in everything it does. I also take issues with shows that rely heavily on narration but that's just a me thing.
Black Sails, 12 Monkeys and Brain Dead (and esp MEW within) got robbed! Halt and Catch Gite also had some great acting going on this season.
I'm sad that my beloved YOUNGER didn't make the cut anywhere even though it was all over my ballot.
Jackie Hoffman. Jackie Hoffman. Jackie Hoffman.
Was Twin Peaks eligible?
Handmaid's Tales is the best thing I've seen on t.v. in a looong time, comedy wise I thing Girls & The good place are WAY better shows than the VERY bad season of Veep, I believe once Selina Meyers is no longer VEEP or President, the show lost all interest for me, the acting is still very good (specially Anna Chlumsky) but it's pointless and often not particularly funny...
My dream ballot would have more 'Gilmore Girls: A Year in the Life', particularly for Lauren Graham and Kelly Bishop, 'The OA' and Brit Marling in Drama Series, Supp. Actress Jamie Clayton for 'Sense8', and Supp. Actress Sian Clifford for 'Fleabag'.
No David Thewlis in Fargo? He was the best thing in that show this season.
Can I ask how close Tatiana Maslany was to making the line-up? Say what you will about the show itself but she is undeniably amazing.
Mary Elizabeth Winstead was the standout on Fargo but Thewlis and Stuhlbarg deserve nods over anything the over praised nominations for Looking.
Nothing for The Wizard of Lies? Interesting.
Love the premise of Feud, but the execution of it? Oof. Alfred Molina, Judy Davis and a smattering of technical nods (ex. those opening credits!) would be more than generous, IMO. Also fascinating subject matter is The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks, which sadly left much to be desired on arrival. I'm glad no one is defaulting to Oprah, who ultimately may snag the sixth spot anyway.
Is Thandie Newton really supporting?
huh, Tatiana Maslany isn't eligible for the emmys in the 16/17 season, so I don't think she was eligible here.
My dram ballot has Catalina Sandino Moreno for best actress in a TV movie for Custody just because I want to see her shine once more. Has anyone seen that movie?
It also has Emily Watson for Genious because it's so ridicolous how she's been snubbed for Appropiate Adult and Life and Death of Peter Sellers.
Does anyone know if Suite Française might get any nomination? Michelle Williams, Kristin Scott Thomas anyone?
I know Breaking Bad is unpopular here, so I assume no one watches Better Call Saul, which was very good this season. I hope Michael McKean wins his category at the Emmys. I'm also sad to see Rectify excluded.
OTOH, Bryce Dallas Howard completely deserves a nomination - she had much more to work with than Carrie Coon in Fargo, and honestly I thought she was a lot more impressive than Sarandon or Lange.
I'm thrilled AMERICAN GODS could sneak into our Drama Series lineup! Season 1 was such an overload of exposition, too much at times, but there's such beauty there, I have no doubt more brilliance is coming. I mean the Salim/Jinn sequence alone...
Not enough of the Orange is the New Black women are mentioned.
Suzanne - fwiw, Better Call Saul was all over my ballot! And I wasn't even a huge Breaking Bad fan, but I actually think BCS is better.
I hate to repeat the ever same complaint, but could somebody please finally explain to me why "Transparent" is considered comedy? Anyone?
Jackie Hoffman was easily the MVP in Feud for me and I consider myself a Judy Davis fanatic. By the way has everybody just stopped watching The Affair? I think the acting was extremely solid this season and at least Maura Tierney should have been in contention. Also, while Bates Motel's last season was as disappointing as the previous two, I'd still definitely put Freddie Highmore in top three in his category.
Anonny - YES! Halt and Catch Fire is one of TV's most criminally underwateched, full stop
Karen - per Emmy cutoff dates, Twin Peaks is in next Emmy's voting year
Suzanne - we had quite a few mentions for the show in a few places, but not enough to land a spot
MrW - technically per Emmy guidelines, 30 minute programs are comedy - which is also why OITNB is considered drama since it is an hour long. But I would still argue that it is a comedy even though this recent season really leaned in on the heartbreak
lylee, I knew I liked your style! I agree that BCS is a better show than Breaking Bad, but unfortunately, most people who did not watch Breaking Bad will not tune into BCS (which I understand) and a number of Breaking Bad viewers think BCS is too slow.
Is Shailene Woodley really supporting in Big Little Lies? She has just as much of an arc as Reese and Nicole in the show.
Does anyone know if she's being submitted as Lead or Supporting at the Emmys? I really hope Lead, cause Laura Dern 100% deserves the supporting Emmy this year.
Aaron - we went by Emmy eligibility (and like SAG & Globes, unlike Oscars, their voters have to follow studio submission categories regardless of whether it's accurate or not)
Mr W -- you dont think it's funny? I think it's a really funny show. But then again I'm one of those people who think there's a strangely limited idea of what qualifies as comedy out in the world because I often have this same reaction to Globe nominated films people complain about in comedy.
Mareko -- well, you know I voted for Pfeiffer at least from Wizard of Lies ;) but i guess not enough of my team did!
Too bad that Robin Weigart missed the ballot for Big Little Lies. I suspect she would've made the TFE shortlist.
Where the fuck is Girls?
Umm... I think it would marvelous if Sarandon got the nomination and Lange didn't à la real life Bette & Joan.
Team Nicole Emmy
Peggy Sue - a close call for Comedy series, Lena Dunham, AND Allison Williams, but they just didn't make the cut
No Pfeiffer? R U 4 real, Nath?
Does anyone even watch THE GOOD FIGHT?!
The first season of that show is arguably better than the last season of The Good Wife.
And CHRISTINE BARANSKI deserves an Emmy nom as leading actress this time.
Veep is still superbly funny and still the best comedy on TV.
Oprah will eventually snatch the sixth nom at the Emmys.
Nothing for Wizard of Lies tho here? Michelle is amazing in that.
I am here for the rise of Carrie Coon!!!
NICOLE FOR THE WIN!
I can only hope Looking gets this much love, and I completely agree with The Good Fight's lack of love. I feel like card-carrying actressexuals will someday be very sad they didn't keep up on the Good run. Also surprised Master of None didn't get more love.
@Nate:
It certainly has inherently funny moments, but being funny certainly isn't its primary purpose. On the other hand, it's more profound than half the shows from the Drama category.
Tony AKA Fernano -- this is not my ballot. This is the cumulative ballot from all the team members at the blog. I voted for her!!!
I know all the categories are fraught with talent, but I would've loved to see the Goliath team up there: more specifically, Billy Bob Thornton, Nina Arianda and Molly Parker.
As regards Feud, if it had to be just one I would have preferred Jackie Hoffman to Judy Davis.
Does no one else watch Black Sails? About the most perfect thrilling well made pirate adventure show you can make. And [spoiler] the main character is gay so I'd think it'd be on TFE's radar.
I also enjoy TNT's Animal Kingdom with Ellen Barkin and Scott Speedman. Not perfect by any means but something to consider. got better and better as it went along and the finale couple episodes were very good indeed.
Lena - really? I thought Jamie Clayton was easily one of the worst actors on that show, although she and her girlfriend were also often given the worst dialogue.
Aaron - but Woodley really didn't have as big a part as them. In fact, there's one whole episode where she's barely in it at all.
Loving the attention to Fleabag and Crazy Ex-Girlfriend here. Was hoping other imports like Chewing Gum or Please Like Me would also get some love but you can't have everything.
I was prepared to fill out my ballot, then I realized how much GREAT television I didn't see this year. I couldn't in good conscious fill a ballot that had no Master of None, Handmaiden's Tale, Big Little Lies, Fresh Off the Boat, Orange is the New Black, Black Mirror, Insecure, Fleabag or Difficult People on it.
Just shows that we are in the "Golden Age of Television"
How do people find the time to watch so much TV? Yikes.
Glenn -- i do not know. I know it throws off my work if i watch too many shows so i have to dump one for every new series i add. Currently on my chopping block: Empire and The Flash both of which I used to like much more.
Did no one else on the team watch Trial & Error?!? That show is SO funny and John Lithgow is brilliant on it. Actually everyone in the cast is hilarious, despite the characters being ridiculous everything felt true and not just "small-town southern hicks" stereotypes. It probably JUST edges out The Good Place as my favorite new comedy.
Bryce Dallas Howard is freaking BRILLIANT in that episode of Black Mirror, so I'm thrilled she made the team's ballot. She better make Emmy's, too.
I am APPALLED that Diane Keaton didn't make this ballot for The Young Pope. APPALLED.
@Craver - I'll bet a ton of people WOULD watch The Good Fight if CBS didn't do that ridiculous thing by putting it on their streaming site. In fact, most folks I know (and also in my demographic) were HUGE fans of The Good Wife, Christine Baranski, and Cush Jumbo. But none of us have seen the show.
Even though it missed the cut for Emmy noms last year and no new season this year, I'm super glad Sarah Lancashire (Happy Valley) beat out Claire Foy (The Crown) for a BAFTA last month.
As good as Elisabeth Moss is, Yvonne Strahovski is really amazing too. Prob my fav supporting performance in TV drama right now.
Yes, I would definitely watch The Good Fight if it were on CBS. But I won't pay for CBS All Access. I pay for too many streaming services already!
I would love to see some of the individual ballots.
Nathaniel, U R excused! U did your job!
suzanne & pam and others -- yeah, i was not the target audience since I didn't watch The Good Wife (my actressexuality was at war with my loathing of legal procedurals!) -- but I will also not pay for streaming services that are not major (i.e. that have lots of movies and originals and such. I'm not paying for a single show all by itself. No way.
I loved Wizard of Lies... DeNIro should be up for Best Actor... although Pfeiffer was very good in her role, it was not award worthy IMO