The 78th Annual Primetime Emmy Award nominations have been revealed, and there are plenty of noms for some nerdy genre favorites this year. Not quite as many as last year, when Severance, Andor, and The Last of Us got a metric ton of nominations, but still way more than in years past. Widow’s Bay, A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms, and Pluribus received many nominations, and all have a fair shot at winning. And there were some surprises we didn’t see coming as well, and as always, there were some major snubs. Past Emmy winners Liza Colón-Zayas and Jeff Hiller announced the nominations.
The winner of last year’s Best Drama Series, the medical drama The Pitt, once again leads all nominees, with 25 total. This is followed by Hacks in the comedy category with 24. But Widow’s Bay, the quirky supernatural comedy series from Apple TV+, came in third, with 19 nominations. Not bad for a freshman genre series. It garnered nominations for Outstanding Comedy Series, as well as for Matthew Rhys (Lead Actor), Stephen Root (Supporting Actor), Dale Dickey and Kate O’Flynn (Supporting Actress), and Hamish Linklater and Betty Gilpin (Guest Actors). Also, Hiro Murai and Katie Dippold received directing nominations for the pilot “Welcome to Widow’s Bay!”
Apple TV’s other genre show with several nominations is the sci-fi hit Pluribus, coming in at 18. In the major categories, it received Best Drama Series, Best Supporting Actress (Karolina Wydra), Best Lead Actress (Rhea Seehorn), and Best Supporting Actor (Carlos-Manuel Vesga). Turning to Westeros, HBO’s A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms didn’t get any acting nominations, which is a bummer, but it did receive a nomination for Outstanding Drama Series. So that’s not exactly nothing. Prime Video’s fan-favorite Fallout received 10 nominations, but none in the major categories. Not even for the excellent Walton Goggins.
Horror fans got some love as well, as Netflix’s Monster: The Ed Gein Story received nominations for its lead performers, Charlie Hunnam and Laurie Metcalf. That series was often tasteless, but the acting was top-notch. For its final season, Stranger Things received 7 technical nominations, but nothing in the major categories. Netflix’s spooky comedy megahit Wednesday received 6 nominations, but again, nothing in the major categories. And It: Welcome to Derry only received two technical nominations. Which is a shame.
A few comic book shows received nominations in technical categories too, but that’s pretty much it. The Boys got 7 nominations for its final season, but none in the major categories. No, not even for Antony Starr as Homelander. Which just feels wrong, no matter how you felt about the last season. However, Yahya Abdul-Mateen got a nom for Outstanding Actor in a Comedy Series for Wonder Man. And Spider-Noir received several nods in the technical categories. Will any of these nerdy shows win? We think Widow’s Bay has an excellent shot. We’ll have to wait and see when they hand out the awards on Monday, September 14, on NBC. For the full list of this year’s Emmy nominations, head on over to Deadline.