The Emmy nominations were handed down today, and while most of the shows gifted with nods don’t fall into our wheelhouse, the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences sure went to town with one notable title: “American Horror Story: Coven”.
The FX series received a stunning 17 nominations, good for the third most nominated show in television, right behind “Game of Thrones” and “Fargo”. Among the highlights: Outstanding Miniseries; Jessica Lange and Sarah Paulson both grabbed Best Actress in a Miniseries noms; Kathy Bates, Frances Conroy and Angela Bassett all received Best Supporting Actress in a Miniseries noms; Outstanding Writing for a Miniseries (“Bitchcraft”) and Outstanding Directing for a Miniseries (“Bitchcraft”). Then a slew of technical nominations.
Meanwhile, the rest of TV horror was all but shut out. “The Walking Dead”, the most popular show on cable (and perhaps television) was once again denied any significant Emmy love, nabbing two technical noms. (I was expecting at least a nomination for Melissa McBride.) Ditto for “True Blood”, now in its final season.
“Hannibal” and “Bates Motel” were left out in the dark completely. The former is one of TV’s most compelling shows – not to mention the best looking – while the latter features two outstanding performances week in and week out from Vera Farmiga and Freddie Highmore. Farmiga was nominated in the Best Actress category last year, yes, but I’d argue her performance this season was even stronger (while the show itself was weaker).
What do you think of “American Horror Story’s” amazing Emmy success? Furthermore, what else was egregiously snubbed?