The 2019 Golden Globe Nominees were announced yesterday and the big news coming out was the number of new shows being singled out. Seven shows in their first season broke into the comedy or drama categories while two shows in various stages of their runs were nominated for the first time as well. This is particularly exciting for a new crop of drama nominees that are vying for any help to stand out in an Emmy race without many of the usual contenders.
Shows from the second half of the year like Pose, Homecoming, The Kominsky Method, Escape at Dannemora, Bodyguard, and Kidding were nominated in the top categories while left-field performances were singled out like Kieran Cullen (Succession), Sacha Baron Cohen (Who Is America?).
On top of the excitement for all of the new shows in the lineup some of the biggest headlines were for critical darlings finally receiving some major recognition. In its final season The Americans was nominated for the top drama award for the first time along with its two leads. The Hollywood Foreign Press rarely singles out shows in their final season like this but this might be a hint that they are passionate about the spy drama. It was also a huge day The Good Place which earned its first major series nomination after being championed by passionate fans for three seasons.
This is the second year in a row where HFPA voters have rubber stamped the winners from the Emmys just months before with The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, Barry, Matthew Rhys, Thandie Newton, Regina King, and The Assassination of Gianni Versace all being singled out. This seems to be the new normal for Emmy winners to be guaranteed a follow up Golden Globe nomination and it will be interesting to see if their Emmy wins give them a better chance at actually winning or if HFPA voters will want to single someone new out.
Drama Series
As expected all three front runners in the drama series race were welcomed with open arms by the HFPA. Pose, Killing Eve, and Homecoming all received series nominations as well as at least one nomination for one of their leads.
Perhaps the biggest surprise in the drama categories was how voters were how completely opposed to any past nominees. All five shows were first time nominees with four being new dramas and the fifth being The Americans earning its first nomination it its final season. Voters went out of their way to nominate new shows by ignoring past nominees like Westworld and This Is Us as well as last year’s winner The Handmaid’s Tale. For the first time This Is Us was completely shutout which comes as a surprise especially in the acting categories. Voters being so quick to move on from The Handmaid’s Tale was particularly surprising especially since they nominated both Elizabeth Moss and Yvonne Strahovski in the performance categories. 2018 might have been just too competitive for the groundbreaking drama however Strahovski is one to look out for in the supporting race. The Australian actress has the opportunity to follow in the footsteps of Maura Tierney who won for the second season of The Affair after the rest of the show was left out of the top races.
Perhaps the biggest surprise in the drama categories is just how much voters loved Bodyguard. Richard Madden came as no surprise since the Scottish actor’s star power has only risen since Game of Thrones. The surprise was that voters loved the political thriller enough for it to stand out in an insanely crowded drama series category. It was a massive hit in the UK earlier this year but it went largely under the radar with American audiences when it premiered on Netflix. It will be interesting to see if the two nominations helps American audiences discover the show and turn it into an unlikely Emmy contender, especially if Richard Madden pulls off an upset in the lead actor category.
Comedy Series
HFPA voters are notorious for quickly ditching past winners and nominees for new shows but this year they took it to a whole new level with voters abandoning every past series nominee with the sole exception of last year’s comedy winner, The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel. The Emmy award winning comedy built on its Golden Globe wins from last year and was nominated for comedy series, Rachel Brosnahan, and Alex Borstein. The Golden Globes rarely award the same show twice but Mrs. Maisel might be an exception. The lavishly decadent comedy is even bigger in its second season with beautiful Paris and New York production and costume designs that will help it continue to stand out.
As expected the two biggest new comedies celebrated by the Hollywood Foreign Press were Barry and The Kominsky Method – two shows that both featured an aging acting coach played by a Hollywood veteran. Both new comedies were nominated for best series as well as for lead and supporting actor. Are they both well-liked enough to win Golden Globes or will they split the vote in a bizarre way? The Kominsky Method will be a lot more fresh in the minds offer and is a lot more accessible tonally while Barry has stronger support from critics, is the new comedy from the HFPA’s favorite network, and has already received the stamp of approval from the Emmys.
The comedy lineup also features a lot of new shows from Showtime. The Mr. Rogers inspired Kidding earned nominations for comedy series and its star Jim Carrey. Sacha Baron Cohen also earned his first TV nomination for his new political satire Who Is America?
In the middle of its third season The Good Place finally broke through in a major way with nominations for series and lead actress. Overall it was a huge day for the NBC comedy after it also was nominated at the WGA awards as well. As the momentum continues to grow for the comedy breaking into the comedy race at the Emmys doesn’t seem completely out of the question especially as repeat nominees continue to lose favor with voters.
The most jarring element of this year’s comedy nominees is the overall lack of diversity. Donald Glover was the only actor of color to be nominated for comedic work and Atlanta was even left out of the series race after pulling off an upset for its first season. Voters moved on from favorites like Black-Ish, Issa Rae, and Gael Garcia Bernal while skipping over new performances from Maya Rudolph and Tiffany Haddish.
Limited Series / TV Movie
As many expected limited series earned multiple nominations this year including Sharp Objects, Escape at Dannemora, The Assassination of Gianni Versace, and A Very English Scandal. All four shows were nominated in the limited series category as well as at least one acting nomination with many of them receiving at least two. All four seem to be incredibly popular with voters leading to an endless amount of possible winners however The Assassination of Gianni Versace is the most nominated show of any genre and will likely end its awards run with at least one win.
So far the Golden Globes nominations have confirmed Sharp Objects as the early Emmy front runner for the 2019 awards. After three Golden Globe nominations as well as one from WGA the southern gothic mystery is proving to be of the water cooler shows of the year and strong enough to last the year. Escape at Dannemora was given a huge boost from voters which is great news for Patricia Arquette.
The Alienist became a surprise nominee not only in the limited series race but for lead actor Daniel Bruhl as well. The Alienist has continued to surprise throughout awards season first with four Emmy nominations and now from the Golden Globes nearly a year after it premiered. The success for the limited series in terms of awards recognition and ratings is good news for TNT which is hoping to continue that success with the upcoming I Am the Night.
There were a couple of major surprises left out of the limited series categories. Maniac and The Little Drummer Girl were widely believed to be strong contenders in the top three categories but were shockingly left out entirely. In the end The Little Drummer Girl probably didn’t have enough buzz to standout in such a crowded field. Maniac on the other hand was one of the most buzzed about limited series of the year with two A-list stars. The ambitious drama likely suffered from mixed reactions to its polarizing story and tone. That’s not the end for its awards chances though especially after it received recognition from the WGA in the same day. Just last year another Netflix limited series was completely snubbed by HFPA voters only to rebound at the Emmys with 12 total nominations and two major acting wins.
Readers, what are your reactions to this year’s nominees? Is there a show you are particularly excited for? Is there a show you felt deserved better?
