Some viewers may no longer be checking into The White Lotus like they have over the last two years, at least on the Emmy ballot that is. The Television Academy is about to alter a six-year change in their balloting process and as a result, highly popular shows like Lotus, Succession, and Ted Lasso, may find their winning streaks at an end.
Since 2017 Emmy voters have been able to vote for as many entries in a category as they think are nomination-worthy but that six-year run seems to have come to a halt as of today’s announcement. According to the rule change, “The number of selections each voting member is allowed to make per category in first-round voting will now be capped at the number of nominations specified for that category.” That boils down to roughly five to six nominations per category — the number of nominees that would be announced prior to the ceremony.
Under the prior unlimited format, voters could easily nominate a show’s entire cast for awards, or even the entire cast of multiple shows. Meaning that while every guest at the Lotus gets a grab at the brass ring, shows that are less popular may not be considered at all. Prior to the original rule changes, big shows still would rack up multiple noms, but they weren’t dominating the way they currently are.
Nominations for 2023 are expected to be announced in Jul. 2023. It remains to be seen if the nominations will course correct under the reset.