‘Mare of Easttown’ gets 16 Emmy nominations. ‘The Crown’ and ‘Mandalorian’ lead with 24 each.
The nominations reinforced the rapid rise of streaming, with the top-nominated scripted shows on services that largely emerged in the past two years.
LOS ANGELES — The Crown tied with The Mandalorian for the most Emmy nominations Tuesday with 24 apiece, but the Marvel universe also got bragging rights with runner-up WandaVision.
Hometown favorite Mare of Easttown raked in 16 nominations in the “limited or anthology series” category, including, best series, best lead actress (for Kate Winslet), best supporting actress (both Julianne Nicholson and Jean Smart), best supporting actor (Evan Peters, as Detective Colin Zabel), best writing (for series creator Brad Ingelsby), and best directing (Craig Zobel).
Mare also cleaned up in nominations in the technical categories for its authentic Delco vibe, including excellence in wardrobe, makeup, hairstyling, and production design.
Broadway star Leslie Odom Jr., of East Oak Lane, was also nominated, with a nod for best actor in a limited series or TV movie for the Disney+ Hamilton movie. Madeline Brewer of Pitman was a nominee for supporting actress in a drama series for her performance in The Handmaid’s Tale.
The nominations reinforced the rapid rise of streaming, with the top-nominated scripted shows on services that largely emerged in the last two years. In the top three categories — drama, comedy and limited series — only the NBC show This Is Us and ABC’s black-ish snagged nominations.
» READ MORE: Kate Winslet on HBO’s ‘Mare of Easttown’ and that Delco accent: ‘I’m an actor who doesn’t like to get things wrong’
During an oppressive pandemic in which housebound Americans relied more than ever on television for distraction, TV academy voters recognized a varied mix of storytelling and a diverse group of actors and creators.
One example: Mj Rodriguez of Pose is the first trans woman to be nominated in a lead acting category. The show also earned a best drama series nod.
“The moment my name was announced, I just screamed and I broke,” Rodriguez said. “My mom grabbed me. She kind of flung me around. ... I remember falling into my boyfriend’s arms and just crying tears of joy, tears of happiness. I felt so seen.”
Netflix’s The Crown received its fourth nomination for best series, and is likely the streaming service’s best chance to win its first-ever top series trophy. The British royal drama moved closer to contemporary events with its version of the courtship and rocky marriage of Prince Charles and Diana Spencer, played by Josh O’Connor and Emma Corrin.
O’Connor and Corrin received lead drama acting nods, as did the series’ Olivia Colman for her portrayal of Queen Elizabeth II, with a supporting bid to Gillian Anderson for her performance as Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher.
The showings by The Mandalorian, an extension of the Star Wars franchise, and the inventive WandaVison featuring the Marvel characters Wanda and Vision, put the series in the ranks of past sci-fi and fantasy Emmy favorites Game of Thrones and Lost.
“I would never have thought in a million years that playing a witch in a Marvel show would lead to this. It’s like a dream,” said WandaVision costar Kathryn Hahn. The show’s total of 23 nominations was especially sweet.
“I’m so moved that the whole of it has been recognized,” Hahn said. “It was incredibly difficult. It was a hard, hard shoot. But ... the experience of making this meant so much to me, and it was so unexpectedly deep.”
The front-runner on the comedy side is the good-hearted Ted Lasso, about a middling American football coach imported to England to handle a soccer team. The Apple TV+ series received 20 nominations, including for top comedy, star Jason Sudeikis, and six cast members.
Hacks, starring Jean Smart as a stand-up comedian who resists getting aged out of Las Vegas and life, was next with 15 nods, including a lead actor award for Smart, who some have said is enjoying a career “Jeannaisance,” and a supporting bid for Hannah Einbinder.
Among the others who doubled down on nominations: Saturday Night Live stars Kenan Thompson and Aidy Bryant, who received supporting acting bids for the variety show as well as lead comedy series acting nods for, respectively, Kenan and Shrill.
There were surprises, as usual. Nicole Kidman failed to receive a nomination for limited series The Undoing, while costar Hugh Grant was recognized. But the critically acclaimed miniseries I May Destroy You and its star and creator, Michaela Coel, grabbed nine Emmy nods after being snubbed by the Golden Globes.
One blast from the past getting new respect: Cobra Kai, set 30 years after the events of the Karate Kid film, earned a best comedy series nod and four nominations in all.
The other nominees for best drama series are: The Boys; Bridgerton; The Handmaid’s Tale, and Lovecraft Country.
The other nominees for best comedy series are: Emily in Paris; The Flight Attendant; The Kominsky Method, and PEN15.
The nominees for best miniseries are: The Queen’s Gambit; I May Destroy You; Mare of Easttown; The Underground Railroad; WandaVision.
The nominees for best actress in a comedy series besides Bryant and Smart are: Kaley Cuoco, The Flight Attendant; Tracee Ellis Ross, black-ish; Allison Janney, Mom.
The nominees for best actor in a comedy series besides Sudeikis and Thompson are: Anthony Anderson, black-ish; Michael Douglas, The Kominsky Method; William H. Macy, Shameless.
The nominees for best actress in a drama series besides Colman and Corrin are: Elisabeth Moss,The Handmaid’s Tale; Uzo Aduba, In Treatment; Mj Rodriguez, Pose; Jurnee Smollett, Lovecraft Country.
The nominees for best actor in a drama series besides O’Connor are: Sterling K. Brown, This Is Us; Jonathan Majors, Lovecraft Country; Regé-Jean Page, Bridgerton; Billy Porter, Pose; Matthew Rhys, Perry Mason.
The nominees for best actor in a limited series or TV movie besides Odom are: Paul Bettany, WandaVision; Hugh Grant, The Undoing; Ewan McGregor, Halston; Lin-Manuel Miranda, Hamilton; Leslie Odom Jr., “Hamilton.
The nominees for best actress in a limited series or TV movie besides Winslet and Coel are: Cynthia Erivo, Genius: Aretha; Elizabeth Olsen, WandaVision; Anya Taylor-Joy, The Queen’s Gambit.
» READ MORE: Meet the Chester County detective who taught Kate Winslet to be ‘Mare of Easttown’
Father-and-daughter actors Ron Cephas Jones (This Is Us) and Jasmine Cephas Jones (Blindspotting) and TV Academy head Frank Scherma announced the nominees. There were awkward moments when the pair mispronounced some nominees’ names, including referring to Taylor-Joy as “Anna.”
The Sept. 19 ceremony, which last year was held virtually because of the COVID-19 pandemic, will air live on CBS from a theater and include a limited in-person audience of nominees and guests. Cedric the Entertainer is the host.