Share Your Emmy (Comedy) Ballots
Tuesday, June 14, 2016 at 5:00PM If you follow me on Twitter you may have already seen these but I've shared all my ballots for TV acting as it's the only thing I have energy for today. Tough week for the world so honoring comedy seems emotionally right, laughter being the best medicine. Otherwise today is a mental health day break from blogging.
Younger (S2) my fantasy for a Best Comedy Series nomination. I'm aware it won't happen
Trust me when I tell you that I had to leave out a ton of people I love. But unlike Emmy I move on if a performance doesn't continue evolving (even if I still love it just as much) and I also move on if, in my personal fantasy ballots each year, I feel like I've amply awarded that actor for that character already. Even if they continue to excel. Rare is the case when I would nominate the same actor over and over again from a strong ensemble show as most performances as well as most shows have peaks and valleys when it comes to various characters.
My ballots are after the jump... Share yours in the comments!
winner: Jeffrey Tambor, Transparent
Winner: Sutton Foster, Younger
Note: I left out Julia Louis-Dreyfus only because I believe there ought to be a cap on how many awards you can receive for a single character. She's brilliant but four in a row is more than enough for any actor playing the same character. I'd actually cap it at 3. With hundreds and hundreds of programs and thousands of gifted actors it's just not right to not share the wealth.
Winner: Andrew Rannells, Girls
Winner: Amy Landecker, Transparent
Winner: David Wain, Younger
Winner: Anna Camp, Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt
Reader Comments (38)
Anna Camp over Amy Sedaris? No way! Camp was terrific, but Sedaris was gut-bustingly funny.
I think Niecy Nash is the lead of Getting On and the others are supporting. But either way I love that show! It's a remake that's just as good as the original - Nathaniel have you seen the British version? Amazing as well!!
Why has Carol Kane received no love for her work in Kimmy Schmidt, Her line readings are hilarious and she has had more of a presence this season than Jane Krakowski,
Adam -- with Emmy you have to go by their categorizations. it's interesting that you think Nash is the lead because I've always thought it was Borstein.
Raul - i think Anna Camp is genuinely mega-inspired in that role. It's like she's having psychotic breaks and they're delighting her because she feels something for once. she just gets better and better as a comic actress.
Billy Eichner's masc4masc face....no, gurl.
I will share my picks later, but I want to echo your "Younger" love. However, my favorite part of season 2 was Hilary Duff and sad to see her not on the list.
The world also shares your "Younger" love as they just renewed it for season 4!!! http://www.ew.com/article/2016/06/14/younger-season-4-tv-land
Nat: Just checked the ballots for the Always Sunny cast and...they're all Supporting? DeVito should be there, sure, but the other four should be in lead. Gross.
Man i hate Unbreakable Kimmy Schmitt with a passion. Season 1 anyways - won't put myself through a season 2.
Nathaniel - looks like you used some sort of voting/poll system? Is that for public consumption? If so, link please!
Anonny: I tried doing Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt and I just don't get how Ellie Kemper works as a main character. I really hope she doesn't get Squirrel Girl.
Nathan Baby you have likely not seen the latest episode of Veep. "He looks like Ike Turner handing Tina a snack!"
You're not going to give Anjelica Huston a mercy Emmy for her decades worth of losses? That's how Kathy Bates won for Two and a Half Men.
LEAD ACTOR
Anderson, black-ish
Ansari, Master of None
Daly, Review
Ferguson, The Real O'Neals (actually Supporting)
Forte, The Last Man on Earth
Tambor, Transparent
write-in: Benjamin, Archer
LEAD ACTRESS
Jones, Angie Tribeca
Louis-Dreyfus, Veep
O'Hara, Schitt's Creek
Plimpton, The Real O'Neals
Ross, blac-kish
Schaal, The Last Man on Earth
SUPPORTING ACTOR
Burrell, Modern Family
Day, Elhenney, Howerton, It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia
Duplass, Transparent
Scribner, black-ish
write-in: Parnell, Archer
SUPPORTING ACTRESS
Hoffmann, Landecker, Light, Transparent
McKinnon, Saturday Night Live
Olson, It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia
Peet, Togetherness
write-in: Greer, Nash, Archer
GUEST ACTOR
Charles, Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt
DeVine, Modern Family
Gosling, Saturday Night Live
Huebel, Transparent
Slattery, Veep
Stoll, Girls
write-in: Oswalt, Archer
GUEST ACTRESS
Conroy, The Real O'Neals
Greer, Mom
Hardin, Transparent
Kudrow, Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt
Spencer, Drunk History
Sykes, black-ish
Not finalized yet since some shows are still airing but here are my current ballots in ranked order(i.e. winner first):
Lead Actor:Anthony Anderson, Jeffrey Tambor, Aziz Ansari, Thomas Middleditch, Jessie Usher, Don Cheadle
Lead Actress: Tracee Ellis Ross, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Lena Dunham, Ellie Kemper, Lily Tomlin and Jane Fonda (still deciding my placing between them)
Supporting Actor: Mike Epps, Marcus Scribner, Titus Burgess, Glenn Howerton, Charlie Day, Adam Driver
Supporting Actress: Amy Landecker, Jenifer Lewis, Kathryn Hahn, Jane Krakowski, Elizabeth Banks, Carol Kane
Guest Actor: Fred Armisen, Christopher Abbott, Peter Scolari, Corey Stoll, Mike Carlsen, Sam Elliott
Guest Actress: Amy Schumer, Amy Sedaris, Megan Fox, Anna Camp, Jenny Slate, Estelle Parsons
The JLD wins for Veep have actively made me dislike her. It's sad. I shouldn't but I do.
What's your list for actual best comedy series? Or did I miss that?
I actually like Kimmy Schmidt, but I found Anna Camp really annoying this season.
I'm close to abandoning Transparent. I wish that one of the main characters would get a job (other than a part-time job that is not in the music industry) to support what seems to be a lavish lifestyle. Not to mention the youngest sister's admission to an supposedly prestigious grad program after apparently doing nothing for approximately 10 years.
Anyway, my Emmy picks:
Lead Actor, Comedy - Aziz Ansari, Master of None
Lead Actress, Comedy - Gina Rodriguez, Jane the Virgin
Supporting Actor, Comedy - Jaime Camil, Jane the Virgin (but I love Tituss, too)
Supporting Actress, Comedy - Donna Lynne Champlin, Crazy Ex Girlfriend
Guest Actor, Comedy - Shoukath Ansari, Master of None
Guest Actress, Comedy - Amy Sedaris, Kimmy Schmidt
@Paul I love how in sync we are with some of our more atypical choices. Howerton, Day, Scribner..cool picks!
@Squasher88
And I'm pretty sure at least half of our choices haven't got a chance in hell of being nominated...
i don't have ballots, but my favorite performances for the comedy categories that i think should get Emmy nods are:
*Rachel Bloom, Crazy Ex-girlfriend
*Donna Lynne Champlin, Crazy Ex-girlfriend
*Tovah Feldshuh, Crazy ex-girlfriend
*Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Veep
*Timothy Simmons, Veep
*Sarah Sutherland, Veep
*Peter MacNicol, Veep
*Sam Richardson, Veep
*Gael García Bernal, Mozart in the jungle
*Jeffrey Tambor, Transparent
*Jay Duplass, Transparent
*Kathryn Hahn, Transparent
*Gaby Hoffman, Transparent
*Anna Faris, Mom
*Allison Janney, Mom
*Jamie Pressly, Mom
*Linda Lavin, Mom
Lead Actor: I don't know. I don't watch enough comedies with leading men, apparently. But Gael Garcia Bernal is GREAT on Mozart in the Jungle. Looking at the official ballot, I'd probably add Bill Hader in Documentary Now (the Grey Gardens episode ALONE), Jake Johnson in New Girl (which was really invigorated this season), and Josh Thomas(!!!!!!!) in Please Like Me (which is just brilliant and you should all watch it!)
Supporting Actor: Fred Armisen in Documentary Now, Tituss Burgess, Jaime Camil, Kevin Dunn, Lamorne Morris, Andrew Rannells, and Sam Richardson.
Lead Actress: Gina Rodriguez, Rachel Bloom, Allison Janney (THIS IS WHERE SHE BELONGS, EMMY. DON'T LET ANYONE TELL YOU OTHERWISE), Lena Dunham, Lily Tomlin, Ellie Kemper, and Julia Louis-Dreyfus (who I wouldn't otherwise, because yes she has definitely been rewarded enough, but her performance in the funeral episode was fucking SUBLIME, probably the best comic performance of the year). And Michaela Watkins in Casual.
Supporting Actress: Donna Lynne Champlin, Yael Grobglas, Kate McKinnon, June Diane Raphael, Isidora Goreshter (HILARIOUS this season as Svetlana on Shameless), Zosia Mamet, and Allison Williams.
I've just realized that I don't watch too many comedies! For instance, I don't watch Younger or Kimmy, but I guess I should since I love Anna Camp and Amy Sedaris.
I still can't believe that OITNB competes as Drama. Anyway, I love your ballot. The love for Getting On and the fact that you mentioned Amy Landeker. I think she was very good in S2.
I'll add a few names:
Supporting
Zoe Lister-Jones, Life in Pieces
Zosia Mamet, Girls
Amanda Peet, Togetherness
Sarah Sutherland, Veep
Brett Diers, Jane the Virgin
Alex Karpovsky, Girls
Guest
Sherilyn Fenn, Shameless
Linda Lavin, Mom
Rob Huebel, Transparent
Can't believe that Mimi Kennedy (Mom), Jason Mantzoukas (Transparent) and Rita Wilson (Girls) are not eligible.
No Bruce Campbell for Ash vs. the Evil Dead? You guys suck!
I still can't believe that OITNB competes as Drama
What's funny about the series?
I watch TV, but clearly not enough to discuss it meaningfully. You could make a credible list of nominees in every category using only shows I don't watch.
Here is the link for the giant lists of wannabe nominees (look for actors under "Performer" and shows under "Program"):
http://www.emmys.com/ballots/2016
I'm just pleased Jenifer Lewis and Jaime Camil are listed, and in the right categories. I like what I like, and just see the Emmy choices as a series of mainstream opinions that mix the pleasurable and the painful.
LOL You guys suck indeed.
JLD deserves to win AGAIN this year for her superbly hilarious work on VEEP, especially for the "Mother" episode, which is just a comedy masterpiece.
It's evident that you don't see Veep, a series which totally deserves its acclaim, and the sentiment that JLD has won too many times is just stupid. Awards should be on quality, not on frequency, race, or any other shit.
My choices:
Lead Actor: Eichner
Lead Actress: JLD
Supp. Actor: Burgess
Supp. Actress: Krakowski
Guest Actor: Hugh Laurie - Veep
Guest Actress: Christine Baranski - TBBT
wait wait wait wait wait....but MARIA BAMFORD - "Lady Dynamite"
SERIES
documentary now
girls
the goldbergs
jane the virgin*
schitt's creek
unbreakable kimmy schmidt
ACTRESS
lena dunham - girls
sharon horgan - catastrophe
gillian jacobs - love
wendy mcclendon-covey - the goldbergs
catherine o'hara - schitt's creek
gina rodriguez - jane the virgin*
ACTOR
david cross - w/bob & david
bill hader - documentary now*
eugene levy - schitt's creek
thomas middleditch - silicon valley
bob odenkirk - w/bob & david
fred savage - the grinder
SUPPORTING ACTRESS
yael groblas - jane the virgin
emily hampshire - schitt's creek
jane krakowki - unbreable kimmy schmidt
claudia o'doherty - love*
chelsea peretti - brooklyn nine nine
kristen schaal - the last man on earth
SUPPORTING ACTOR
jaime camil - jane the virgin*
troy gentile - the goldbergs
lamorne morris - new girl
dan levy - schitt's creek
andrew rannells - girls
zach woods - silicon valley
GUEST ACTRESS
aidy bryant - girls
tina fey - unbreakable kimmy schmidt
lisa kudrow - unbreakable kimmy schmidt*
natasha lyonne - portlandia
amy sedaris - unbreakable kimmy schmidt
jenny slate - girls
GUEST ACTOR
christopher abbott - girls
david cross - unbreakable kimmy schmidt
jeff goldblum - unbreakable kimmy schmidt
kumail nanjiani - portlandia
peter scolari - girls
corey stoll - girls*
I just really want Tracee Ellis Ross nominated. I would delve into my other wants, but that's the only one that's even a longshot.
Craver -- i do watch Veep sometimes (not faithfully) but JLD has been amply rewarded - time to honor other brilliant comediennes. In the grand scheme of the performing arts, and art being subjective and all of that no one is THAT MUCH BETTER than everyone else that they deserve every single trophy for years on end. I would literally never give anyone that many trophies for the same series. Especially today. It might have been acceptable in the 80s when there were only 3 tv networks but with each passing year it's less and less acceptable as the number of programs goes up up up up up and the quality has generally trended that way, too.
BD -- i was desperate to put someone in there. I don't think he's a great actor (other than being very funny) but it's the one category i struggled to fill. I gave up on New Girl a while back and I'm definitely not watching it if the title character is gone. that's when it's time to wrap (it's not like they didn't have a good run)
Y'all bitches need to watch You're The Worst.
Tbh I never heard of Documentary Now, Catastrophe, Love or Life in Pieces until this thread...
How could you leave out Paul Rust and Gillian Jacobs from Love - they were great.
Paul --every time we do these pieces someone mentions a show (or multiple shows) i haven't heard of. just goes to show you how splintered audiences are now with 100s of channels plus web series.
Anna Camp has been on my radar since she was in True Blood, of all places. I can't wait to see her get a major vehicle that will put her on the map.
It's insane to me that Noah Galvin is being categorized as "supporting" for THE REAL O'NEIL'S. Far more egregious category fraud that anything we've seen at the Oscars in recent years.
My picks probably both have no chance, but if I could vote, I would pick Kaitlin Olson and Glenn Howerton for It's Always Sunny In Philadelphia. Glenn Howerton's performance in the episode Mac And Dennis Move To The Suburbs was the best acting I've seen from him. I can't believe Kaitlin Olson has never been nominated for an Emmy. I hope that her roles in Finding Dory and The Mick make her a bigger star.
@ Nathaniel
And then there are the shows that I have heard of but never watched a single episode even though people keep telling me how great they are: Portlandia, Getting On, Jane the Virgin, Mozart in the Jungle, Difficult People, Crazy Ex-Girlfriend, Shameless (!), Younger, Fresh Off the Boat, Please Like Me, Casual, Ash vs. the Evil Dead, Silicon Valley, The Goldbergs, The Middle, W/ Bob & David, The Grinder, Broad City...
And y'all know I watch a shitload of TV.
I hope Josh Thomas could get some recognition for his work in Please Like Me.
If they snub Broad City and Abbi and Ilana again then there is truly no justice in this world. Otherwise, I'm team Transparent (especially Amy Landecker) and it'd be great if the best season yet of Girls can regain some awards traction.
I agree with your comment about Julia Louis Dreyfus and rewarding one performance too much, but not having any of the veep cast getting nominated feels wrong, best comedy ensemble on tv in awhile. I don't understand why the Emmys keep nominating tony hale and ignoring the other supporting actors on that show. Kevin Dunn in particular should have a trophy by now. It's to hard to get people to agree on the Emmys outside of the insanely popular because Tv is so big now it's hard to keep up, I don't know many of your choices. What the fuck is Younger?