There are six open slots in the Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series category this year with the new rules regarding nominations compared to submissions. There were 241 submissions in this category, thus resulting in 8 nominees. Since Barry isn’t eligible due to a new season not airing and Veep concluding it its run last year, there’s just about free range in this category. So who’s going to fill those slots by Harry Winkler, Stephen Root, Andrew Carrigan and Tony Hale?
Last years winner Tony Shalhoub (The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel) and Alan Arkin (The Kominsky Method) are guaranteed to return to the race this year. The Supporting Actor/Actress in a Comedy Series races always seem a bit chaotic because it always seems like an eclectic selection of nominees can show up here and it could be a bit of a head-scratcher, but that’s what makes the Emmys fun and excruciating at the same time!
There’s no way that Schitt’s Creek creator and star Daniel Levy misses a nomination this year for the shows final season, which was a pure masterpiece. I’m also expecting nominations for James Marsden for his dual role on Dead To Me, and Mahershala Ali for his role on Ramy. Even though Kenan Thompson wasn’t nominated last year, he could easily return – or in a surprising twist, his co-star Bowen Yang, who made a huge splash during his debut season on Saturday Night Live. I’m not quite on the cusp of fully predicting Yang (I’ll probably wait until the night before nominations are announced to finalize that prediction), but it would be an historic moment for a gay Asian man to be nominated for an Emmy for a sketch comedy series.
Even though I’m not betting on Yang yet, I am betting big on Gata, who completely stood out during the first season of FX’s breakout hit Dave. His episode “Hype Man” chronicled his characters struggle with bipolar depression, regulating his medication then finally coming out to the people closest to him about his disorder. It was an extremely tender and honest story – a story that’s not often talked about within the Black community – because this is actually Gata’s life story he’s telling on camera. There’s an added heart to Gata’s performance in not just this episode, but through the entire season that really gives Dave the heart and soul it needed to succeed. Gata’s Emmy nomination is one that I’m hoping the most for on nomination morning, but I worry that him being a relative unknown in the television industry and among voters he could be overlooked, but not on my watch!
In the midst of these frontrunners, there are plenty of other supporting actors vying for one of these eight nominations this year, including John Malkovich (Space Force), Kumail Nanjiani (Silicon Valley), Ty Burrell (Modern Family), Sterling K. Brown (The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel), Michael Zegen (The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel), Nicholas Hoult (The Great) and Louie Anderson (Baskets).
My frontrunners for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series:
- Tony Shalhoub – The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel
- Alan Arkin – The Kominsky Method
- Daniel Levy – Schitt’s Creek
- James Marsden – Dead To Me
- Gata – Dave
- Kenan Thompson – Saturday Night Live
- Mahershala Ali – Ramy
- John Malkovich – Space Force
My threats for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series:
- Bowen Yang – Saturday Night Live
- Ty Burrell – Modern Family
- Louie Anderson – Baskets
- Nicholas Hoult – The Great
- Sterling K. Brown –The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel
- Michael Zegen – The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel
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