Emmys: Will Returning Shows Dominate Drama & Comedy Categories?
Sunday, May 15, 2022 at 4:08PM
Christopher James in Emmys, Outstanding Comedy Series, Outstanding Drama Series, Squid Game, Succession, Ted Lasso, comedy

By Christopher James

Can both of last year's Emmy winners prevail in much more competitive conditions?

When it comes to the Emmys, voters tend to stick with what they know. Once a show gets nominated for Outstanding Series, it will forever be on the Emmys radar and a threat to repeat its nomination. Yes, some shows drop off but prevailing wisdom says that, when filling out a prediction sheet for the Emmys, always start with what was nominated previously before adding in new shows.

However this year that may prove to be a somewhat difficult predictive approach. Due to the pandemic, some shows were not eligible each of the past two years, forcing the Emmys to choose new favourites to nominate. Now, most of their former favourites have aired new seasons, including some programs that had laid dormant for many seasons. What we have, then, is a returning show bottleneck...

Seven previous nominees are eligible for Drama Series, while a whopping 14 previous nominees are eligible for Comedy Series. Who will pull through in the end? Let’s take a look at the contenders.

PREVIOUS DRAMA SERIES NOMINEES

PREVIOUS COMEDY SERIES NOMINEES

Many of the returning Drama Series shows stand good chances of repeating. Better Call Saul, Ozark and This Is Us are all contending for their final seasons. Fans will likely want to give them a strong goodbye. Granted, Better Call Saul is splitting its final season in two parts, so it will have one more year to compete with the final batch of episodes released in July (which won't be eligible for another year). Few shows are as talked about as Succession, making it the frontrunner for the win and assured of another Drama Series nomination. The other three shows have different degrees of vulnerability. Bridgerton season two surely has its fans, but the less sexy season two may have lost a few voters who championed it for season one. No one has seen Stranger Things season four, as it releases on May 22. However, each previous season has earned a Drama Series nomination, so we should assume it will repeat. Finally, the fourth season of Killing Eve received a mixed response and feels most likely to drop. Still, the third season also wasn’t well received by critics but still managed a Drama Series nomination, so it’s possible the show could pull this off.

With 14 returning shows, Outstanding Comedy Series will be a bloodbath. Last year’s winner Ted Lasso (Apple TV+) should still be safe, even if the second season alienated some fans of the runaway hit. Previous Emmy hits like Hacks (HBO MAX) and The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel (Prime Video) should also feel comfortable. After that, it’s anyone’s game. Atlanta and Barry both return after a long hiatus and are hoping that the Emmy voters will pick back up where they left off. Both won major Emmys previously, but their latest seasons have received cooler reception and don’t seem to be as talked about. It’s possible that the Emmys will move on. In fact, now more than ever it will matter whether shows lived up to their initial promise, or if they have squandered their audience. FX’s What We Do In The Shadows continues to get funnier and funnier, which hopefully pays off with another nomination.  Similarly, HBO’s Insecure stuck the landing with its incredible final season. Meanwhile, the brilliant Pen15 (Hulu) had a comparably weaker final season, which could push it out of contention. Similarly, many felt Russian Doll (Netflix) season two didn’t live up to the inventiveness of the first’s Groundhog Day premise. Even last year’s hit The Flight Attendant seems less discussed in season two. Stalwarts Curb Your Enthusiasm and black-ish usually only factor in when there’s room, so they will likely drop off during this crowded year. Finally, a number of shows that snuck in during last year’s less competitive lineup will likely drop off. Cobra Kai and Emily in Paris have likely had their time in the Emmy sun, and won’t return this year.

Both "Only Murders in the Building" and "Squid Games" hope to make a play in the crowded series categories.

NEW AND RETURNING SERIES NOMINEES

 

The pandemic caused many shows to sit out the 2020-2021 season. This left room for new shows to fill the vacancies. Leading up to last year, the Emmys were already nominating more new shows, likely due to the expanded number of nominees (now up to eight slots). From 2012 - 2016, there would never be more than two new shows cracking the series lineup. Drama Series was the first to really embrace new blood, with 2017 and 2019 each honoring five new shows to the lineup. Change was a little slower to Comedy Series. It wasn’t until 2018 that three new shows were able to crack the category. Since then, that number has only gone up.

So what new shows will hope to vanquish the previous nominees in these categories? For Drama, there will be at least one new nominee guaranteed for the eighth slot. The biggest hit and most likely nominee is Netflix’s Squid Game, an international juggernaut that ran away with all the major wins at the SAG Awards. If we consider that spot sewn up, then all other new shows will need to dethrone an incumbent, which is possible as three of them are vulnerable. Severance (Apple TV+) and Yellowjackets (Showtime) each command a pretty strong following and are bolstered by great reviews. After missing the nomination for season one, Euphoria hopes season two will do the trick, especially as Zendaya’s star is on the rise. One can’t forget that in order to be nominated, voters have to be watching the show. There are few shows as big as Yellowstone right now, ratings wise, and that popularity could make it a spoiler.

Meanwhile, the crowded Comedy Series category also has a slew of new shows. Only Murders in the Building is a favorite for a nomination, thanks to its popularity, starry cast and awards run so far. We just recently talked about the greatness of some new network sitcoms and Abbott Elementary stands the best chance of representing network TV in the Comedy Series category. There are also fervent fans of Reservation Dogs (FX), The Afterparty (Apple TV+), The Other Two (HBO MAX) and Our Flag Means Death (HBO MAX) that could all factor in.

Which shows do you predict will be nominated for the Emmys? 

Article originally appeared on The Film Experience (http://thefilmexperience.net/).
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