Earlier this week the Board of Governors voted on two new rules for the Emmy Awards that will go into place throughout the next year.
The Board of Governors addressed two points of discussion; one tackling head on the increasingly common loophole that allows Oscar contenders to compete in the Emmy documentary race while the other takes a big step in becoming more inclusive to nonbinary actors.
No Double Dipping at the Oscars and Emmys
For years awards watchers have scratched their heads at the loose rules that have allowed documentaries to double dip at both the Oscars and the Emmys. Why are there such rigid rules designating films and TV movies when documentaries like Free Solo can win the Oscar and then go on to sweep the Emmys and take home another seven trophies?
That all changed this week when the Television Academy’s Board of Governors voted on a new rule to prevent any sort of double dipping at the Emmys. The new rules, which go into effect in 2022, dictate that any film placed on the AMPAS viewing platform will be deemed a theatrical motion picture and thus ineligible for the Emmy competition.”
This will disqualify a large number of films that were snubbed by Oscar voters that were hoping to get a second chance at the Emmys. In recent years we’ve seen a lot of well-respected documentaries collect a lot of nominations at the Emmys after being left out of the Oscars like Jane, Three Identical Strangers, One Child Nation and The Cave.
The Television Academy has already attempted steps to curb this double dipping. Already in effect this year is the new rule that any film nominated for an Oscar cannot be nominated at the Emmys. So don’t expect nominations for Crip Camp, My Octopus Teacher, or Time. The new rule announced this week takes the stance even further to draw the line between the two ceremonies and voting bodies.
Becoming More Inclusive for Nonbinary Performers
The other rule established at by the Board of Governors this week is one that allows anyone nominated in an acting category may “request that their nomination certificate and Emmy statuette carry the term ‘Performer’ in place of Actor or Actress.” The new rule is effective immediately beginning with the 2021 nominees that are being voted on as we speak.
It is worth pointing out that no performance category at the Emmys has ever had a gender requirement when it comes to submissions and non-binary actors have been welcome to submit themselves in whichever category they deem appropriate. While this new rule does not change the voting process it does allow all performers the opportunity to celebrate their career achievement without being unnecessarily mis-gendered in the process.
In recent years we have seen an increase in nonbinary submissions at the Emmys. Most notably with the supporting performance from Asia Kate Dillon on Showtime’s Billions. Dillon, a three time Critics’ Choice nominee, is a nonbinary actor who has opted into submitting their performance in the Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series Race