Jimmy Kimmel and Kerry Washington had the fortune of announcing this year’s nominees for the 64th Primetime Emmy Awards, which Kimmel will be hosting this September.
Roughly speaking, for those unacquainted, the Emmys are the equivalent of the Academy Awards for television – if you were to have one of these on your mantelpiece, ‘proud’ wouldn’t begin to describe it.
We all know that the past decade or so has seen a massive improvement in the quality of small-screen programming, and this year’s nominations highlight some of the best – Modern Family (particularly in the Best Supporting Comedy Actor category), Breaking Bad, Mad Men, Girls, and a slew of nominations for programmes from our own shores in Downton Abbey, Sherlock, and Luther.
The awards ceremony itself will be held on Sunday, 23rd September, and all the programmes and casts that will be heading there are as follows:
Best Comedy
- Curb Your Enthusiasm (HBO)
- Girls (HBO)
- 30 Rock (NBC)
- Veep (HBO)
- Modern Family (ABC)
- The Big Bang Theory (CBS)
Lead Actress in a Comedy Series
- Zooey Deschanel – New Girl
- Lena Dunham – Girls
- Edie Falco – Nurse Jackie
- Amy Poehler – Parks and Recreation
- Tina Fey – 30 Rock
- Julia Louis-Dreyfus – Veep
- Melissa McCarthy – Mike & Molly
Lead Actor in a Comedy Series
- Larry David – Curb Your Enthusiasm
- Jon Cryer – Two and a Half Men
- Louis C.K. – Louis
- Jim Parsons – The Big Bang Theory
- Don Cheadle – House of Lies
- Alec Baldwin – 30 Rock
Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series
- Mayim Bialik – The Big Bang Theory
- Merritt Wever – Nurse Jackie
- Julie Bowen – Modern Family
- Kristen Wiig – Saturday Night Live
- Sofía Vergara – Modern Family
- Kathryn Joosten – Desperate Housewives
Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series
- Ed O’Neill – Modern Family
- Jesse Tyler Ferguson – Modern Family
- Ty Burrell – Modern Family
- Eric Stonestreet – Modern Family
- Bill Hader – Saturday Night Live
- Max Greenfield – New Girl
Best Drama
- Boardwalk Empire (HBO)
- Breaking Bad (HBO)
- Downton Abbey (PBS)
- Mad Men (AMC)
- Homeland (Showtime)
- Game of Thrones (HBO)
Lead Actress in a Drama Series
- Julianna Marguilies – The Good Wife
- Michelle Dockery – Downton Abbey
- Elisabeth Moss – Mad Men
- Kathy Bates – Harry’s Law
- Claire Danes – Homeland
- Glenn Close – Damages
Lead Actor in a Drama Series
- Steve Buscemi – Boardwalk Empire
- Michael C. Hall – Dexter
- Bryan Cranston – Breaking Bad
- Hugh Bonneville – Downton Abbey
- Jon Hamm – Mad Men
- Damien Lewis – Homeland
Supporting Actress in a Drama Series
- Archie Panjabi – The Good Wife
- Anna Gunn – Breaking Bad
- Maggie Smith – Downton Abbey
- Joanne Froggart – Downton Abbey
- Christina Hendricks – Mad Men
- Christine Baranski – The Good Wife
Supporting Actor in a Drama Series
- Aaron Paul – Breaking Bad
- Giancarlo Esposito – Breaking Bad
- Brendan Coyle – Downton Abbey
- Jim Carter – Downton Abbey
- Jared Harris – Mad Men
- Peter Dinklage – Game of Thrones
Best Miniseries or Movie
- Game Change (HBO)
- American Horror Story (FX Networks)
- Hemingway & Gilhorn (HBO)
- Sherlock: A Scandal in Belgravia (Masterpiece) (PBS)
- Luther (BBC America)
- Hatfields & McCoys (History)
Lead Actress in a Miniseries or Movie
- Julianne Moore – Game Change
- Connie Britton – American Horror Story
- Nicole Kidman – Hemingway & Gellhorn
- Emma Thompson – The Song of Lunch
- Ashley Judd – Missing
Lead Actor in a Miniseries or Movie
- Woody Harrelson – Game Change
- Clive Owen – Hemingway & Gellhorn
- Benedict Cumberbatch – Sherlock: A Scandal in Belgravia
- Idris Elba – Luther
- Kevin Costner – Hatfields & McCoys
- Bill Paxton – Hatfields & McCoys
Supporting Actress in a Miniseries or Movie
- Sarah Paulson – Game Change
- Frances Conroy – American Horror Story
- Jessica Lange – American Horror Story
- Judy Davis – Page Eight
- Mare Winningham – Hatfields & McCoys
Supporting Actor in a Miniseries or Movie
- Ed Harris – Game Change
- Denis O’Hare – American Horror Story
- David Straithairn – Hemingway & Gellhorn
- Martin Freeman – Sherlock: A Scandal in Belgravia
- Tom Berenger – Hatfields & McCoys
Variety Series
- The Daily Show with Jon Stewart (Comedy Central)
- The Colbert Report (Comedy Central)
- Real Time with Bill Maher (HBO)
- Saturday Night Live (NBC)
- Jimmy Kimmel Live (ABC)
- Late Night with Jimmy Fallon (NBC)
Reality – Competition Program
- So You Think You Can Dance (Fox)
- The Amazing Race (CBS)
- Dancing with the Stars (ABC)
- Top Chef (Bravo)
- Project Runway (Lifetime)
- The Voice (NBC)
Host for a Reality or Reality-Competition Program
- Cat Deeley – So You Think You Can Dance
- Phil Keoghan – The Amazing Race
- Ryan Seacrest – American Idol
- Betty White – Betty White’s Off Their Rockers
- Tom Bergeron – Dancing with the Stars
