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“Legacy,” HBO’s gripping drama about an ultra-rich and dysfunctional family that runs a media empire, earned the most nominations at the 74th Emmy Awards on Tuesday morning, with 25 total.
The series earned nominations for best drama, as well as a slew of acting nominations for nearly its entire main cast, including Brian Cox, Jeremy Strong, Kieran Culkin, Nicholas Brown, Matthew Macfadyen, Sarah Snook and J.K. Smith-Cameron.
Close behind with 20 nominations were “Ted Lasso,” the Apple TV Plus comedy starring Jason Sudeikis as an earnest American coach of a Major League Soccer team, and “The White Lotus,” HBO’s acclaimed limited series about a group unfortunate rich people on vacation at a luxury resort in Hawaii.
As usual, HBO (and HBO Max) continued to dominate with 140 total nominations, including honors for comedian-centric comedy Hacks and teen nightmare Euphoria with 17 and 16 nominations, respectively. But in a win for Hulu, the streaming service’s breakout comedy-mystery “Murder Only in the Building” also earned 17 nominations, with acting nods for Steve Martin and Martin Short, though the Television Academy curiously snubbed co-lead Selena Gomez.
Netflix, of course, had a big presence among the nominees with 105 nominations, including a history-maker: “Squid Game,” the wildly popular Korean series about debt-ridden people who sign up to compete in deadly games for money, is now the first non-English-language series competing in the best drama category along with Legacy, Euphoria, Better Call Sol, Ozark, The Breakup, Stranger Things and Yellow Vests .
And even as network shows increasingly get pushed out of the Emmys, ABC’s critically-loved freshman hit “Abbott Elementary,” set in an underfunded public school in Philadelphia, earned seven nominations, including acting nods for Janelle James, Sheryl Lee Ralph, Tyler James Williams and creator and star Quinta Brunson.
NBC’s incredible variety sketch series “Saturday Night Live” saw nine nominations, with Kate McKinnon getting the nod for supporting actress in her farewell season, as well as Bowen Young for supporting actor. Jerod Carmichael was the only guest host to earn a nomination, for his memorable episode shortly after the infamous slap at the Oscars.
The Emmy Awards will air Monday, September 12 on NBC.
Read on for a list of the 2022 nominees with our analysis.
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Better Call Saul (AMC)
Severance (Apple TV Plus)
Squid Game (Netflix)
Stranger Things (Netflix)
Yellow Vests (Showtime)
Analysis: “Squid Game,” Korean giant Netflix, is making history here, but there is stiff competition in the category from departing Academy favorites (“Better Call Saul” and “Ozark”) and newcomers (“Yellow Vests” and “ Severance”) similar. HBO’s “Euphoria” is a pleasant surprise, but only to an extent, given Zendaya’s big win at the ceremony in 2020. Note the lack of network shows, though — there was clearly no love for “This Is Us” in its latest season.
An outstanding comedy series
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Abbott Elementary (ABC)
Curb Your Enthusiasm (HBO)
“The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel” (Amazon Prime Video)
Only Murder in the Building (Hulu)
“Ted Lasso” (Apple TV Plus)
“What We Do in the Shadows” (FX)
Analysis: Fans of newcomers Abbott Elementary and Only Murders in the Building will be pleased to see the critically acclaimed shows appear in this category alongside a slew of returning nominees. Other series have decent chances to take home the Emmys — “Hacks,” for example, managed a successful sophomore season — but if the academy keeps its finger on the pulse, it will likely go with either “Abbott” or “Only Killings” in the end.
Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series
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Laura Linney, Ozark (Netflix)
Melanie Lynskey, The Yellow Jackets (Showtime)
Zendaya, “Euphoria” (HBO)
Jodie Comer, “Killing Eve” (AMC)
Sandra Oh, Killing Eve (AMC)
Reese Witherspoon, The Morning Show (Apple TV Plus)
Analysis: This is the 13th Emmy nomination for Sandra Oh, who has yet to win a trophy. Can I have this finally be her year? The awards-season veteran faces stiff competition from his own co-star — Jodie Comer, who won the category three years ago — and four-time Emmy winner Laura Linney. Critics’ Choice winner Melanie Lynskey picking up another Yellow Vest award would be a nice end to a long-awaited year of attention; Zendaya, who won the year after Comer, usually gets a lot of attention, but she really put her all into this past season of “Euphoria.” Reese Witherspoon, who beat out co-star Jennifer Aniston for The Morning Show this year, doesn’t seem likely to win.
Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series
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Jason Bateman, Ozark (Netflix)
Brian Cox, “Legacy” (HBO)
Lee Jung-jae, “Squid Game” (Netflix)
Bob Odenkirk, Better Call Saul (AMC)
Adam Scott, Severance (Apple TV Plus)
Jeremy Strong, “Legacy” (HBO)
Analysis: The Television Academy adores “Ozark” as much as it recognizes a series in its final season, so Jason Bateman’s nomination was a safe bet. Legacy stars Brian Cox and Jeremy Strong have appeared in the category before — Strong won in 2020 — as has Bob Odenkirk, who has been nominated for Better Call Saul almost every year since 2015 . over here. The most interesting nominees here are “The Rift” star Adam Scott, better known for his comedic chops, and “Critics’ Choice” winner Lee Jung-jae of “Squid Game.”
Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series
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Rachel Brosnahan, The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel (Amazon Prime Video)
Quinta Brunson, Abbott Elementary (ABC)
Issa Rae, “Insecure” (HBO)
Gene Smart, “Hacks” (HBO Max)
Kaley Cuoco, The Flight Attendant (HBO Max)
Elle Fanning, “The Great” (Hulu)
Analysis: Three cheers to first-time Emmy-nominated actors Elle Fanning and Quinta Brunson, whose established comedic talent shines brightly in her network sitcom breakthrough. It’s a (deserved) goodbye nomination for Issa Rae — previously nominated in 2018 for Insecure , which wrapped late last year — and “keep doing what you’re doing” for Rachel Brosnahan, Jean Smart and Kaley Cuoco, all of whom have been nominated and the first two have won for those roles before. It’s a tight race that pits newcomers against comedy veterans; we’d love to see Brunson take home a trophy.
Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series
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Donald Glover, “Atlanta” (FX)
Bill Hader, “Barry” (HBO)
Nicholas Hoult, The Great One (Hulu)
Steve Martin, Only Murder in the Building (Hulu)
Martin Short, Only Murder in the Building (Hulu)
Jason Sudeikis, Ted Lasso (Apple TV Plus)
Analysis: Atlanta’s last season flew under the radar compared to others, making Donald Glover’s nod a bit of a surprise. The ones we expected to see? Bill Hader and Jason Sudeikis, both of whom have won for the same roles in recent years, as well as the dynamic Just Killing duo Steve Martin and Martin Short, whose complementary performances drive the quirky series. Nicholas Hoult is a welcome addition, though unlikely to win.
Exclusive limited edition
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“The White Lotus” (HBO)
The Invention of Anna (Netflix)
Analysis: Well, hello Hulu. Academy voters clearly loved “Dopesick,” the streamer’s in-depth (and utterly heartbreaking) series about the opioid epidemic. They also showed love to “The Dropout,” which follows the rise and fall of Theranos (and Amanda Seyfried’s vocal chords). “The Invention of Anna” and “Pam and Tommy” are the odd wild cards here. But HBO’s The White Lotus might be enough of a love-to-hate-the-character watch to top them all. We’re a little surprised not to see The Staircase, which won best acting nods, or the well-reviewed The Maid, which landed Margaret Qualley as the lead actress, in the mix.
Outstanding Lead Actress in a Limited Series or Movie
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Toni Collette, The Staircase (HBO Max)
Julia Garner, The Invention of Anna (Netflix)
Lily James, Pam and Tommy (Hulu)
Sarah Paulson, Impeachment: American Crime Story (FX)
Margaret Qualley, The Maid (Netflix)
Amanda Seyfried, The Dropout (Hulu)
Analysis: The talent in this category is top-notch, and several actresses — Collette, Garner and Paulson — have earned numerous accolades from the academy during their careers. Seyfried and James are newcomers to the Emmy race, and Qualley earns her most visible nod (following her 2019 supporting actress nomination for “Fosse/Verdon”). Who will win is anyone’s guess, but there’s a strong case to be made that the Emmys are Seyfried’s loss after rave reviews for her turn as Elizabeth Holmes.
Outstanding Lead Actor in a Limited Series or Movie
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Colin Firth, The Staircase (HBO Max)
Andrew Garfield, Under the Banner of Heaven (Hulu)
Oscar Isaac, Scenes from a Marriage (HBO)
Michael Keaton, “Dopesick” (Hulu)
Himesh Patel, Station Eleven (HBO Max)
Sebastian Stan, Pam and Tommy (Hulu)
Analysis: Colin Firth and Sebastian Stan are classic Emmy nominees recognized for taking on real-life figures well known to audiences (convicted murderer Michael Peterson and musician Tommy Lee, respectively). Andrew Garfield and Michael Keaton are halfway there, playing fictional characters in real, harrowing situations (the former a detective investigating a murder ostensibly linked to the Mormon faith, the latter a doctor who unwittingly contributed to the opioid epidemic in its early days). “Scenes From a Marriage” was completely filled with lead performances by Juilliard classmates Jessica Chastain and…
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