We can all agree that season two of The White Lotus was a stand-out piece of television over the past year. With the gang trading dreamy Hawaii for whimsy Sicily, the potential for extravagance and misadventure doubled, all while the new cast and showrunner Mike White seemed to feed off of each other’s talent with every new episode.
It’s only natural, then, that the show became one of the most heavily nominated at the 2023 Emmys, neck and neck with HBO siblings Succession and The Last of Us. Among its total of 23 nods at the biggest awards for television, nine were for acting in the Supporting Actor and Actress in a Drama Series categories. As an ensemble cast, every member of the Mike White series campaigned in the Supporting category, but the final line-up of nominees is questionable at best.
Jennifer Coolidge, Aubrey Plaza, and Meghann Fahy were shoo-ins on the ladies’ side, with any of them being a worthy possible winner after delivering bewitching performances of female anger, despair, resilience, and deception. Every other nomination could easily be replaced by the handful of actors that missed out.
F. Murray Abraham, Michael Imperioli, Theo James, and Will Sharpe all received nods on the men’s turf, but Tom Hollander’s fantastic turn as the double-crossing Quentin definitely deserved one of those spots. While not as glaringly, Leo Woodall and Adam DiMarco were also robbed of a nomination, arguably in place of F. Murray Abraham. The 83-year-old Oscar-winning actor’s long career and household name could be the reasons behind his nomination, seeing as his on-screen performance wasn’t remotely as fleshed out or interesting as his younger counterparts.
Imperioli was fine as Dominic but is hardly a contender for the top spot. James and Sharpe benefited from being given some of the best material to play with in the season but were also able to aptly convey the conflicting personalities and emotions of each of their characters. While they were outshone by their scene partners — because White’s female characters are just that much better than his male ones — they were still among the best in the show. Regardless, Hollander should have rounded out the nominations and his absence from the list is a major oversight on the Academy’s part.
Haley Lu Richardson, who played the evasive Portia, and Beatrice Grannó as the sweet but deadly Mia were both deserving of a place among the nominees, as well. Their category is much more balanced, however, and, unlike the men, it’s hard to argue against the actresses that did get picked. Sabrina Impacciatore was the definition of scene-stealer every time she was on screen, while Simona Tabasco’s Lucia quickly became everyone’s favorite character.
The White Lotus managed to top a great first season with a much richer second season. For the third outing, White is taking his troupe of wealthy and insane, or insanely wealthy, to Thailand for the holidays, and we can only hope the level stays just as high.
The 75th Primetime Emmy Awards air Monday, Sep. 18, on Fox.