A pair of key changes made by the TV academy could affect the outcomes in Sunday’s 27 categories.
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HBO’s “Game of Thrones” and “Veep” hope to defend their crowns Sunday night as television’s best drama and best comedy series, while a miniseries chronicling the fall of O.J. Simpson will try to make a splash at the 68th annual Primetime Emmy Awards.
The HBO series picked up nine statuettes at last weekend’s Creative Arts Emmys, which reward artistic and technical achievement, giving it a total haul over the years of 35 – more than any other drama series.
Who will win: Robin Wright, “House of Cards – Despite all her nominations, she hasn’t won yet, and this year it may be her turn”. She is well-loved, gets better in the role every year and will make history as the most awarded lead comedy actress in the history of the Emmys if she wins.
“‘Thrones’ hasn’t won this category yet, but Lena Headey has been earning this role since the beginning”.
Tufts grad Hank Azaria already won outstanding guest actor in a drama series at the Creative Arts Emmys last weekend for his turn as a whacked-out Federal Bureau of Investigation boss in “Ray Donovan”. Among the ladies, only Empire’s Taraji P. Henson and How To Get Away With Murder’s Viola Davis are representing broadcast networks in the best drama actress category.
Who will win: Jeffrey Tambor, “Transparent” – As last year’s victor in this category, Tabor has a lot going for him in this race. William H. Macy of Showtime’s “Shameless”, Will Forte of Fox’s “The Last Man on Earth” and Thomas Middleditch of “Silicon Valley” will look to score an upset win.
Veep, the U.S. version of The Thick Of It, has earned a string of nominations including best comedy series, best lead actress in a comedy series for its star Julia-Louis Dreyfus and and outstanding direction in a comedy series for British comedian Chris Addison. She should. She’s the favorite, although it’s just possible that a couple of other names might pop out of the envelope: Amy Schumer (Comedy Central’s “Inside Amy Schumer”) or Tracee Ellis Ross (ABC’s “Black-ish”).
Kimmel joked about “People v. O.J. Simpson: American Crime Story” actress Sarah Paulson, who is nominated for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Limited Series or Movie for her portrayal of lead prosecutor Marcia Clark, whom she plays in the series, as her date to the awards ceremony.
Fargo bagged a whopping 18 nominations putting it on the map of the most nominated shows at the Emmys this year.
The form: Where do you even start with a line-up that includes Bryan Cranston, Benedict Cumberbatch and Idris Elba?
However, the biggest victor could be FX’s “The People v O.J. Simpson: American Crime Story”.
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One-time host Jimmy Kimmel, who’s nominated for Outstanding Variety Talk Series, will return to the Emmys stage after hosting the 64th Annual Emmy Awards back in 2012. Keegan-Michael Key from Key & Peele could be this year’s victor.
