This morning saw the announcement of the 2012 Emmy nominations and as expected, all the usual suspects showed up in their respective categories. It’s a rather dull list as the same shows that got nominated last year seemed to have picked up the same nominations this year, though I guess that is to be expected. The best shows on television do usually remain as the best shows on television, year after year.
As for the nominees themselves, I’m still not on board the Downton Abbey train but the voters seem to love it, seeing as the show picked up a whole handful of high profile nominations.
To no surprise, Game of Thrones snagged the top nomination for outstanding drama series but I’m a bit disappointed that it failed to show up in any of the main acting categories. Yes, Peter Dinklage did get his much deserved nomination but there are a ton of other great actors and actresses on that show who don’t seem to get the recognition that they deserve. Dinklage steals the spotlight but there are definitely some other very talented individuals on the show.
The nominations I’m most happy about are those for BBC’s Sherlock, which is absolutely excellent and a personal favorite of mine. It received all the right nominations and I have no doubt that it will clean up in its categories.
Mad Men and Breaking Bad also continued to assert their dominance on the TV world by earning several top nominations, and deservedly so. As always, the Lead Actor in a Drama Series category is going to be interesting as all six nominees are outstanding in their respective shows. I think Cranston is still most deserving of the award but really, any of these six men can walk home with it.
It’s also nice to see HBO’s new show Girls picking up some nominations, but as always, the comedy zone is dominated by Modern Family and I really don’t think any of the other nominees stand much of a chance.
The 64th Annual Primetime Emmy Awards will take place on Sunday, September 23 at the Nokia Theatre in Los Angeles with Jimmy Kimmel as the host.
Check out the full list of nominees below.
Outstanding Drama Series:
Boardwalk Empire
Breaking Bad
Downton Abbey
Game of Thrones
Homeland
Mad Men
Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series:
Kathy Bates, Harry’s Law
Glenn Close, Damages
Claire Danes, Homeland
Michelle Dockery, Downton Abbey
Julianna Margulies, The Good Wife
Elisabeth Moss, Mad Men
Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series:
Hugh Bonneville, Downton Abbey
Steve Buscemi, Boardwalk Empire
Bryan Cranston, Breaking Bad
Michael C. Hall, Dexter
Jon Hamm, Mad Men
Damian Lewis, Homeland
Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series:
Christine Baranski, The Good Wife
Joanne Froggat, Downton Abbey
Anna Gunn, Breaking Bad
Christina Hendricks, Mad Men
Archie Panjabi, The Good Wife
Maggie Smith, Downton Abbey
Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series:
Jim Carter, Downton Abbey
Brendan Coyle, Downton Abbey
Peter Dinklage, Game of Thrones
Giancarlo Esposito, Breaking Bad
Jared Harris, Mad Men
Aaron Paul, Breaking Bad
Outstanding Miniseries or Movie:
American Horror Story
Game Change
Hatfields & McCoys
Hemingway & Gellhorn
Luther
Sherlock: A Scandal in Belgravia (Masterpiece)
Outstanding Lead Actress in a Miniseries or Movie:
Connie Britton, American Horror Story
Ashley Judd, Missing
Nicole Kidman, Hemingway & Gellhorn
Julianne Moore, Game Change
Emma Thompson, The Song of Lunch (Masterpiece)
Outstanding Lead Actor in a Miniseries or Movie:
Kevin Costner, Hatfields & McCoys
Benedict Cumberbatch, Sherlock: A Scandal in Belgravia (Masterpiece)
Idris Elba, Luther
Woody Harrelson, Game Change
Clive Owen, Hemingway & Gellhorn
Bill Paxton, Hatfields & McCoys
Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Miniseries or Movie:
Frances Conroy, American Horror Story
Judy Davis, Page Eight (Masterpiece)
Jessica Lange, American Horror Story
Sarah Paulson, Game Change
Mare Winningham, Hatfields & McCoys
Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Miniseries or Movie:
Tom Berenger, Hatfields & McCoys
Martin Freeman, Sherlock: A Scandal In Belgravia (Masterpiece)
Ed Harris, Game Change
Denis O’Hare, American Horror Story
David Strathairn, Hemingway & Gellhorn
Outstanding Variety Series:
The Colbert Report
The Daily Show with Jon Stewart
Jimmy Kimmel Live
Late Night with Jimmy Fallon
Real Time with Bill Maher
Saturday Night Live
Outstanding Reality Program:
The Amazing Race
Dancing With the Stars
Project Runway
So You Think You Can Dance
Top Chef
The Voice
Outstanding Host for a Reality:
Tom Bergeron, Dancing With the Stars
Cat Deeley, So You Think You Can Dance
Phil Keoghan, The Amazing Race
Ryan Seacrest, American Idol
Betty White, Betty White’s Off Their Rockers
Outstanding Comedy Series:
The Big Bang Theory
Curb Your Enthusiasm
Girls
Modern Family
30 Rock
Veep
Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series:
Zooey Deschanel, New Girl
Lena Dunham, Girls
Edie Falco, Nurse Jackie
Tina Fey, 30 Rock
Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Veep
Melissa McCarthy, Mike & Molly
Amy Poehler, Parks & Recreation
Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series:
Alec Baldwin, 30 Rock
Don Cheadle, House of Lies
Louis C.K., Louie
Jon Cryer, Two and a Half Men
Larry David, Curb Your Enthusiasm
Jim Parsons, The Big Bang Theory
Outstanding Supporting Actress in Comedy Series:
Mayim Bialik, The Big Bang Theory
Julie Bowen, Modern Family
Kathryn Joosten, Desperate Housewives
Sofia Vergara, Modern Family
Merritt Weaver, Nurse Jackie
Kristen Wiig, Saturday Night Live
Outstanding Supporting Actor in Comedy Series:
Ty Burrell, Modern Family
Max Greenfield, New Girl
Bill Hader, Saturday Night Live
Jesse Tyler Ferguson, Modern Family
Ed O’Neill, Modern Family
Eric Stonestreet, Modern Family