Here’s Who We Think Should Win This Weekend’s Comedy Emmys
The slow death of the sitcom has made the annual Emmy Awards less integral for comedy fans, but there are still some intriguing races to be decided on Sunday night. Who will Nate Bargatze chase off the stage during their overlong acceptance speeches? With Bryan Cranston (The Studio) and Julianne Nicholson (Hacks) already winners for best guest performers, here are my favorites for each of the five main comedy awards…
Best Actress in a Comedy Series
- Jean Smart, Hacks
- Kristen Bell, Nobody Wants This
- Ayo Edebiri, The Bear
- Quinta Brunson, Abbott Elementary
- Uzo Aduba, The Residence
Smart should be considered the favorite, given her three previous wins for playing acerbic comic Deborah Vance, though Brunson and Edebiri (for Best Supporting Actress) have also taken home the gold. I’m putting my money on Bell, a first-time nominee who’s done good work for decades, from Veronica Mars to Gossip Girl to The Good Place. It’s time for some career achievement recognition.
Best Actor in a Comedy Series
- Seth Rogen, The Studio
- Jeremy Allen White, The Bear
- Adam Brody, Nobody Wants This
- Jason Segel, Shrinking
- Martin Short, Only Murders in the Building
Rogen’s The Studio is the shiny new thing, but his Matt Remick suffers from First Season Michael Scott Syndrome — he’s so incompetent that he’s hard to like. After multiple nominations back to the 1980s with no trophies to show for it, it’s time to give the statue to Martin Short. Then maybe he really can start dating Meryl Streep.
Best Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series
- Liza Colón-Zayas, The Bear
- Hannah Einbinder, Hacks
- Kathryn Hahn, The Studio
- Janelle James, Abbott Elementary
- Catherine O’Hara, The Studio
- Sheryl Lee Ralph, Abbott Elementary
- Jessica Williams, Shrinking
Brunson and Ralph have taken home acting Emmys for Abbott Elementary, so isn’t it time for the show’s funniest character to get hers? “I’m undeniable at this point,” four-time nominee Janelle James told Variety, and I agree. James is due.
Best Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series
- Ike Barinholtz, The Studio
- Harrison Ford, Shrinking
- Ebon Moss-Bachrach, The Bear
- Bowen Yang, Saturday Night Live
- Colman Domingo, The Four Seasons
- Michael Urie, Shrinking
- Jeff Hiller, Somebody Somewhere
I’d love to see Hiller win for his moving performance as Joel on Somebody Somewhere, but the nomination for the overlooked show may be recognition enough. Instead, let’s give it to The Studio’s hilarious Barinholtz, who makes Continental Studio’s Sal Saperstein the Hollywood creep we can’t help loving.
Best Comedy Series
- Abbott Elementary
- The Bear
- Hacks
- Nobody Wants This
- Only Murders in the Building
- Shrinking
- The Studio
- What We Do in the Shadows
While the show is occasionally uneven and overproduced, no comedy was assembled with more care than The Studio, a vicious Hollywood satire that loves to bite the hand that feeds it. As long as Apple TV+ has money to throw around, let’s hope they continue lavishing it on comedies like this.