Emmy nomination snubs and shocks: No 'Frasier,' but hooray for Selena Gomez
Did the Emmy voters get it – dare I say – right this time around?
The nominations for the 76th Primetime Emmy Awards were announced Wednesday, and I don't have too much to complain about when it comes to who's up for TV's biggest awards. "Reservation Dogs"? Hallelujah, I could shout with joy for this just-ended FX comedy! "Slow Horses"? Finally, this brilliant Apple TV+ spy drama got noticed! "The Morning Show"? Well, I guess that was on TV this year, too!
If you're thinking, "Wait, didn't we already do this in 2024?" you would be right! The 75th Primetime Emmys aired this January, a delayed ceremony pushed back from September 2023 by last year's dual actors' and writers' strikes. This time around, TV shows that aired or streamed between June 2023 and May 2024 qualify. This year's second Emmy ceremony will be held Sunday, Sept. 15, 8 p.m. EDT/5 p.m. PDT on ABC (which hasn't named a host yet).
So now we're looking at the best of the best from the past year in TV, at least according to the Television Academy. There were snubs, there were surprises and there were some very big "finally!" moments too. Here is everything you need to know about the 2024 Emmy nominations.
Biggest Emmy nomination surprise: Selena Gomez in 'Only Murders in the Building'
It took three seasons and five nominations for her costars Steve Martin and Martin Short (three for Short and two for Martin), but the third member of the "Murder" trio finally has a shot at Emmy gold. Fans have decried Gomez's snub for two straight years and are joyous today. And there is an argument to be made that the cartoonish performances by Short and Martin wouldn't play half as funny without Gomez's straight-man reactions.
Biggest Emmy nomination snub: Emma Stone and 'The Curse'
Showtime's "The Curse" was so very weird and also so very wonderful. Nathan Fielder and Emma Stone led the offbeat (and very disturbing) dramedy about an HGTV-like couple and the potential curse laid upon them. Oscar winner Stone delivered her second best performance of the year (after "Poor Things," of course) and at least deserved a nomination for her superb acting.
Best and most deserved Emmy nominations: All that 'Reservation Dogs' love
One of the best series of the past decade, FX's "Reservation Dogs" was ignored by the Emmys for its first three seasons. But it finally broke through for its exquisite finale, with a nomination for best comedy and best lead actor for the phenomenal D’Pharaoh Woon-A-Tai. I would have loved to see more love (it didn't write and direct itself), but I will happily take what I can get.
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Worst Emmy nominations: Anything and everything for 'Palm Royale'
Many of the nominees scream, "if it looks good, it must be good!" Amazon's "Mr. and Mrs. Smith" was all slick and edgy and philosophical but it was also very, very boring. "The Morning Show" similarly is a trainwreck of a series that gets consistent Emmy love, mostly on the goodwill its performers have garnered over their long careers. That same kind of goodwill has catapulted Apple TV+'s terrible "Palm Royale" to 11 nominations, including best comedy series and best actress in a comedy for Kristen Wiig. Look, I love Wiig and the many talented people she got to do this series, including the legendary Carol Burnett (also nominated). But this series was a cacophony of dumb plots and screechy characters wrapped up in 1960s flair with one of the most dumbfounding finales I've ever seen. That slot could have been taken up by so many great comedies from this past year, such as Peacock's "We Are Lady Parts" (always under-the-radar and underrated).
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The other big Emmy nomination snubs
Kelsey Grammer and "Frasier": I may not have enjoyed Paramount+'s revival of "Frasier" even a little bit, but many fans did, and were expecting the new version of the series to continue the Emmy run of the original, which won 37 Emmys over its 11 seasons.
"Masters of the Air" (Apple TV+): This World War II epic took years to make and was as heartfelt and stirring as the real heroes depicted by Austin Butler and a host of talented young actors. It deserved more than just three below-the-line nominations.
"The Gentlemen" and Theo James (Netflix): One of the biggest (and slickest) comedies of 2024 so far is this Netflix spinoff of the Guy Ritchie movie from 2020.
Cosmo Jarvis in "Shogun" (FX): The new adaptation of James Clavell's epic novel set in feudal Japan received quite a few nods, but supporting actor Jarvis wasn't among them. His fish-out-of-water Englishman in the middle of Japanese politics was a stirring (and often hilarious) performance.
"Manhunt" and Anthony Boyle (Apple TV+): One of the best shows of the year so far was Apple's adaptation of a nonfiction book about the hunt for John Wilkes Booth after he assassinated Abraham Lincoln. It was a shockingly fun and rollicking series that was made all the better by Boyle's stunning performance as the egotistical assassin, a star-making turn that should have been recognized.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Emmy snubs list: Who should be nominated for an award but isn't?
