The Nominees:
- Mahershala Ali for Netflix's House of Cards - Episode: "Chapter 44"
- Hank Azaria for Showtime's Ray Donovan - Episode: "One Night in Yerevan"
- Reg E. Cathey for Netflix's House of Cards - Episode: "Chapter 50"
- Michael J. Fox for CBS' The Good Wife - Episode: "Taxed"
- Paul Sparks for Netflix's House of Cards - Episode: "Chapter 49"
- Max von Sydow for HBO's Game of Thrones - Episode: "The Door"
Guest Drama Actor is the latest Emmy race that has more than one nominee from a given show. That's proving to be quite a trend with this year's nominations. The voters clearly have their favorites and want to reward them for as much as possible. So now, House of Cards has three acting nominees for Guest Actor. That's impressive. It shows the strength the show still has with voters. I didn't even have Paul Sparks as a contender in this race. And yet, he snuck in and got a nomination. In fact, I have to re-evaluate my thinking because House of Cards has such a major presence in this race. It won here last year with Reg E. Cathey. So, that would immediately make him the frontrunner again. A fact that is solidified by such a strong showing for the show in this category.
And yet, Cathey doesn't need to win again. He has his Emmy already. It's a performance voters clearly love and would like to reward again. However, Sparks and Mahershala Ali could be contenders for the prize as well. It would spread the wealth around for an ensemble voters clearly have so much affection for. So far, Cathey is the only actor to have won an Emmy for the show. That just seems strange given the voters appreciation for it. It indicates that the actors are good enough to be nominated but aren't quite great enough to actually win. Cathey was a bit of a surprise winner last year. But he still deserves an Emmy for a career of great work. If Sparks or Ali were to win though, it wouldn't be completely surprising.
However, Michael J. Fox, Max von Sydow and Hank Azaria have a shot at winning as well. At times, Fox's character on The Good Wife was a bit too one-note. And yet, it was a lot of fun to watch. He has been nominated for it several times over the years. Him winning would certainly be a nice sendoff from the Emmys for the beloved show. Azaria's nomination represents growing support for Ray Donovan. More and more voters are coming around on the show - especially in regards to the actors. I don't know if Azaria, Liev Schreiber or Jon Voight have a spot at winning in their respective fields. But all of them getting nominated makes it a strong possibility. And finally, von Sydow is on the most nominated drama series of the year. The move to a more popular vote has been very good for Game of Thrones. He is a beloved Academy Award-nominated actor. Sometimes, those kinds of accolades are enough to propel someone to victory - especially in the guest acting categories.
Should Win: Michael J. Fox
Will Win: Reg E. Cathey
Dark Horse: Max von Sydow
And yet, Cathey doesn't need to win again. He has his Emmy already. It's a performance voters clearly love and would like to reward again. However, Sparks and Mahershala Ali could be contenders for the prize as well. It would spread the wealth around for an ensemble voters clearly have so much affection for. So far, Cathey is the only actor to have won an Emmy for the show. That just seems strange given the voters appreciation for it. It indicates that the actors are good enough to be nominated but aren't quite great enough to actually win. Cathey was a bit of a surprise winner last year. But he still deserves an Emmy for a career of great work. If Sparks or Ali were to win though, it wouldn't be completely surprising.
However, Michael J. Fox, Max von Sydow and Hank Azaria have a shot at winning as well. At times, Fox's character on The Good Wife was a bit too one-note. And yet, it was a lot of fun to watch. He has been nominated for it several times over the years. Him winning would certainly be a nice sendoff from the Emmys for the beloved show. Azaria's nomination represents growing support for Ray Donovan. More and more voters are coming around on the show - especially in regards to the actors. I don't know if Azaria, Liev Schreiber or Jon Voight have a spot at winning in their respective fields. But all of them getting nominated makes it a strong possibility. And finally, von Sydow is on the most nominated drama series of the year. The move to a more popular vote has been very good for Game of Thrones. He is a beloved Academy Award-nominated actor. Sometimes, those kinds of accolades are enough to propel someone to victory - especially in the guest acting categories.
Should Win: Michael J. Fox
Will Win: Reg E. Cathey
Dark Horse: Max von Sydow
