2024 Emmys: How much screen time does each Best Drama Actor nominee have?
When Kieran Culkin won the 2023 Best Drama Actor Emmy for his 20-minute and 44-second performance in the “Church and State” episode of “Succession,” he had a lower amount of physical screen time than all but one of his challengers (namely, his TV dad, Brian Cox, at 17:22). Now, five of the category’s newest candidates fall far below his total, with none even cracking 30 minutes as four comfortably did last year.
The six current drama actor contenders asked voters to consider their work in episodes in which they appear for an average of 14 minutes and 34 seconds (or 31.67% of the total running time). This data was calculated using a simple definition of stand-alone screen time, which is any time a given performer can be seen on screen or heard off screen. Contiguous moments of silent and non-visible scene time were not counted.
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This group’s physical average is nearly half the size of the corresponding female one, whereas the 2023 men outpaced the women by close to 12 minutes. Clocking in a full 11 minutes ahead of his competitors is former comedy lead champ Donald Glover (“Atlanta,” 2017), who is now recognized for his 28 minutes and 24 seconds of work in the “Mr. & Mrs. Smith” episode “Couples Therapy (Naked and Afraid),” which amounts to a whopping 69.69%.
The only other member of this lineup who exceeds its averages is “The Crown” star Dominic West, who is seen for 16 minutes and 38 seconds (or 32.70%) in “Aftermath.” He is directly followed by past supporting contender Walton Goggins (“Justified,” 2011), whose performance in the “Fallout” episode “The Ghouls” amounts to 13 minutes and 44 seconds (or 30.70%).
The fourth place positions in this category’s length and percentage rankings are split between Hiroyuki Sanada (“Shōgun”) and Gary Oldman (“Slow Horses”), primarily due to the 13-minute difference in the running times of their chosen episodes. Sanada appears in 11 minutes and 19 seconds (or 19.78%) of “The Abyss of Life,” while Oldman is seen in nine minutes and 40 seconds (or 22.17%) of “Footprints.” That leaves Idris Elba, a former limited series lead nominee for “Luther” whose new submitted turn in the “Comply Slowly” installment of “Hijack” adds up to seven minutes and 39 seconds (or 15.00%). It is thus the third briefest performance currently nominated for any drama regular award, after those of supporting males Mark Duplass (“The Morning Show,” 2:58) and Takehiro Hira (“Shōgun,” 4:03).
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