The nominations have been announced for The 71st Annual Primetime Emmy Awards. So now, it's time to speculate on who will and should win in each major category. Next up for analysis is Supporting Actor in a Drama Series.The Nominees Ranked By Which Should Win:
- Jonathan Banks for AMC's Better Call Saul - "Winner"
- Giancarlo Esposito for AMC's Better Call Saul - "Piñata"
- Peter Dinklage for HBO's Game of Thrones - "The Iron Throne"
- Alfie Allen for HBO's Game of Thrones - "The Long Night"
- Nikolaj Coster-Waldau for HBO's Game of Thrones - "The Bells"
- Chris Sullivan for NBC's This Is Us - "Toby"
- Michael Kelly for Netflix's House of Cards - "Chapter 73"
The acting on Better Call Saul is simply some of the finest on all of television. That was first made clear on Breaking Bad. But it remains just as much the truth now as it did then. Both Jonathan Banks and Giancarlo Esposito are deserving of these nominations. Sure, their characters are often in the criminal underworld prequel aspects of the show which aren't quite as strong as the Jimmy McGill legal drama. However, the acting is still very impressive especially with both performer's ability to say so much without needing to say a whole lot. Elsewhere, the Game of Thrones men all certainly had their standout moments during the final season. The overall impression for the year may be one of strong moments and not an overall solid story. And yet, the acting can easily carry the show across the finish line. Epic sacrifices were made. Wisdom was shared. All of it was sold in a truly engaging way that dealt with ideas of redemption in a world seemed destined to end in war. All three nominees had their moments to really make quite an impression. Elsewhere, this was the year that I allowed This Is Us episodes to quickly pile up. However, it's just weird to see Chris Sullivan get such attention despite the character being very divisive. Some people may not be willing to admit that but Toby can be overbearing and annoying a lot of the time. That doesn't always impact the way voters approach the acting races. It just makes it a less exciting nomination than some of the others in this particular race.
The Nominees Ranked by Which Will Win:
- Peter Dinklage for HBO's Game of Thrones - "The Iron Throne"
- Jonathan Banks for AMC's Better Call Saul - "Winner"
- Nikolaj Coster-Waldau for HBO's Game of Thrones - "The Bells"
- Alfie Allen for HBO's Game of Thrones - "The Long Night"
- Michael Kelly for Netflix's House of Cards - "Chapter 73"
- Giancarlo Esposito for AMC's Better Call Saul - "Piñata"
- Chris Sullivan for NBC's This Is Us - "Toby"
If Peter Dinklage were to win this year, then he would become the performer with the most wins in this category. He is currently tied with Breaking Bad's Aaron Paul with three wins apiece. The odds may actually be in Dinklage's favor as well. He actually benefits from having two of his co-stars also in the race. Because there are three nominees from Game of Thrones, that means voters will watch three episodes from the final season. Dinklage was the only one who appeared in all three. Alfie Allen and Nikolaj Coster-Waldau are more confined to their specific submissions. As such, more screen time may be given to Dinklage than any over performer nominated in this category. Sometimes all it takes is having the most time onscreen to walk home with the trophy. Of course, Dinklage has also been nominated for every season of the HBO drama. That means that he has lost just as many times as he has won. So, he may not actually be a strong frontrunner. He just may hold that status because it's hard to see how the voters rally around someone else in the field. Jonathan Banks has long been deserving of a victory - first for Breaking Bad and now for Better Call Saul. He was actually nominated twice this year but one of those nods was rescinded due to the short-form series not quite meeting the Emmy requirements. Robbing him of that potential to win there may actually fuel the voters desire to give him the prize here. That could be a factor considering the voters are often just looking for a compelling story to get behind. But it would also be shocking if a true upset somehow occurred here.
What do you think? Do you agree or disagree with my predictions? Let me know in the comments below!
