Emmys Snubs & Surprises: ‘Outlander,’ ‘Reservation Dogs,’ ‘Ghosts’ & More
Emmys
Each year, the Emmys drum up debates surrounding nominations, and 2024 is much the same as viewers lament their non-nominated favorites and rejoice in the titles they love being recognized, whether it’s for the first time or not.
The big question is, did your favorites surprise or were they snubbed? While fan favorites like Ghosts, Outlander, Our Flag Means Death, 9-1-1, and more were shut out in the metaphorical cold, others were recognized in ways like never before with What We Do in the Shadows earning its first acting nomination for star Matt Berry and FX‘s other streaming hit Reservation Dogs making its long-overdue breakthrough for the third and final season alongside returning favorite The Bear.
And then there were the stars from heavily nominated shows like Fargo and Shōgun that didn’t make the acting category cut. Below, we’re breaking down some of the biggest shockers when it comes to snubs and exciting surprises. Let us know what you thought of the nominations, below, and sound off in the comments section.
76th Emmy Awards, Live, Sunday, September 15, 8/7c, ABC
SNUB: The Sympathizer
It’s astounding to me that HBO‘s The Sympathizer has received so little attention. While Robert Downey Jr. is certainly deserving of his nomination for his performance as multiple different characters, the fact that he received the limited series’ only nomination is just wrong. The series, set during the Vietnam War and starring mostly Asian actors, spends an entire episode depicting Hollywood’s failure to fairly represent Asian people onscreen and recognize their stories as ones worth telling. It’s painfully ironic, given that, that the great work from star Hoa Xuande and other Asian artists in this show were not recognized. — Kelli Boyle
SURPRISE: Reservation Dogs' Overdue Breakthrough
Reservation Dogs has long-deserved Emmy love, but not until its third and final season has it been shown or reflected in the nominations. While there was hope that it would break through, fans were certainly prepared for potential heartbreak, making D’Pharaoh Woon-A-Tai‘s nomination and the show’s overall nomination even sweeter than imaginable. —Meaghan Darwish
SNUB: Outlander
In a year that was arguably light on drama juggernauts, it feels like there was a lost opportunity in not nominating Starz‘s drama, which is long overdue for some Emmys love. The first half of Outlander‘s seventh season was eligible for nominations but was unfortunately not acknowledged, despite delivering one of its strongest seasons to date. —Meaghan Darwish
SURPRISE: What We Do in the Shadows' Matt Berry
When it comes to line deliveries, Matt Berry knows how to take down the house as vamp Laszlo, so it’s an exciting surprise to see the deserving comedy star earn a nomination in the Lead Actor category. Additionally, Berry’s nomination only boosts What We Do in the Shadows‘ notoriety at the ceremony, where the show is also nominated for Outstanding Comedy Series and Outstanding Writing for a Comedy Series. —Meaghan Darwish
SNUB: Ghosts
CBS‘s fan-favorite comedy Ghosts remains shut out of the nominations despite the fact that it continues to be one of TV’s overall best comedies, delivering laughs week after week. Along with engaging fans through Flower’s (Sheila Carrasco) mystery storyline in Season 3, some other elements seemed like a surefire bet to score the series a nom or two, particularly with Isaac’s (Brandon Scott Jones) conflicted feelings after meeting a stripper at his bachelor party. While there’s more to Ghosts‘ run in the future with an upcoming fourth season, we’re hoping this lack of nominations doesn’t remain a trend in the future. —Meaghan Darwish
SNUB: Chris Perfetti on Abbott Elementary
Sure, Jacob may not always be at the top of everyone’s mind while tuning into ABC‘s acclaimed comedy Abbott Elementary, but Chris Perfetti‘s performance was a notable one in Season 3, making his exclusion from the acting categories under comedy a total snub. While we’re sure he’ll be rooting for his costars on the big night, we’re keeping our fingers crossed Perfetti gets some Emmys love next time around. —Meaghan Darwish
SURPRISE: Paul Rudd, Only Murders in the Building
Who would have thought? Not a lot of people, apparently, because Paul Rudd wasn’t on too many predictions lists. As usual, though, Rudd’s effortless charm and fierce commitment to the wackiest bits make this one seem inevitable in retrospect. – Amanda Bell
SNUB: Our Flag Means Death
Max‘s pirate rom-com starring Taika Waititi and Rhys Darby as loves Blackbeard and Stede Bonnet may have gotten the boot after its most recent second season, but that doesn’t mean it should have been excluded from receiving some much-deserved Emmy attention. Sadly, the series was shut out of all categories, but it’s safe to say it will always be a winner in our hearts. —Meaghan Darwish
SNUB: The Fall of the House of Usher
Once again, the Academy has blinders on when it comes to yet another exquisite Mike Flanagan miniseries. This time, the horror auteur seamlessly wove together the various tales of Edgar Allan Poe to screen and simplified them all under the banner of a wicked family drama in The Fall of the House of Usher. The performances were divine (Carla Gugino, ever radiant and bewitching, was the centerpiece, while Bruce Greenwood, Mary McDonnell, Carl Lumbly, Mark Hamill, Henry Thomas, Kyliegh Curran, Rahul Kohli, Samantha Sloyan, Kate Siegel, Zach Gilford, T’Nia Miller, and Willa Fitzgerald all seized their chances to shine). And the writing and directing were simply undeniably excellent. It’s not the first time a Flanagan masterpiece was overlooked, and it probably won’t be the last, but it’s still a crying shame. — Amanda Bell
SURPRISE: Jack Lowden, Slow Horses
And a very welcome one indeed! Jack Lowden‘s River was certainly in the middle of much of the action and character-driven plot of Season 3 of the Apple TV+ thriller, and his performance especially in the finale as his character was betrayed by his grandfather (Jonathan Pryce) deserves the recognition! —Meredith Jacobs
SNUB: Fargo's Other Fantastic Stars
Don’t get us wrong, we’re thrilled Fargo earned several nominations including Outstanding Limited Or Anthology Series as well as acting nods for Jon Hamm, Juno Temple, and Lamorne Morris, but in a talented ensemble, we were almost certain that Sam Spruell (who played the hauntingly scary sin-eater Ole Munch), Jennifer Jason Leigh (who commanded the screen as Lorraine Lyon), and Joe Keery (who stepped out of his Stranger Things box as Gator Tillman) might also be among the acting nominations. Sadly, they were not. —Meaghan Darwish
SNUB: David Tennant, Good Omens
It’s hard to believe that David Tennant‘s best work in the comedy Good Omens as the demon Crowley didn’t get recognized with a Lead Actor nomination. (He was nominated for a BAFTA this year.) From his work in the dramatic and heartbreaking ending with Michael Sheen as Aziraphale to his line delivery throughout the episodes to the very fun moments with Jon Hamm as Jim, the minisode in Scotland with the laudanum (pictured above) and Crowley sneaking around Heaven disguised as an angel, his Season 2 performance was brilliant. (Nominations for Sheen and Hamm, as well as the series itself, would have also been appreciated.)—Meredith Jacobs
SURPRISE: Ryan Gosling, Saturday Night Live
The Gos deserved his flowers, but it wasn’t a sure thing. Thankfully, the Television Academy didn’t treat him like Ken and overlook Ryan Gosling‘s truly delightful (and almost flawless) performance as a host of SNL last season. – Amanda Bell
SNUB: Mary & George
Starz‘s period drama chronicling the rise of Mary and George Villiers in the court of King James I didn’t deserve to be almost completely shut out of the Limited Series categories. The performances from all three leads—Julianne Moore, Nicholas Galitzine, and Tony Curran—were noteworthy, but at the very least Curran should have received a nomination for his gorgeous performance in Episode 4. Its only nomination is for its fabulous costumes, which is a deserved nod, but its production design was also worthy of recognition. — Kelli Boyle
SURPRISE: The Gilded Age
The Gilded Age won its sole nomination in Season 1 (for production design), so to see two actors from the cast, Carrie Coon and Christine Baranski, recognized for their work is a delightful surprise, as is its nomination for Outstanding Drama Series. Kasia Walicka-Maimone’s fabulous costume designs are finally nominated as well, as are the expert hair stylings and the production design for a second time.
There is also a snub here, however. Coon’s performance is bolstered by her talented scene partner Morgan Spector, who was not nominated for his performance. — Kelli Boyle
SNUB: Hijack
First of all, let me just say that I’m glad that Idris Elba was nominated for his work in this Apple TV+ series. However, the show itself deserved to be nominated for Drama Series, considering the real-time aspect, which heightened the tension, the stakes, and the rest of the cast. —Meredith Jacobs
SNUB: 9-1-1
Remember the days of broadcast love at awards shows? Season 7 of 9-1-1 is a perfect example of two performances that deserved to be recognized: Peter Krause (for Lead Actor in a Drama) and Malcolm-Jamal Warner (for Guest Actor in a Drama). The latter played a victim of the fire that the former tragically was responsible for years ago, and when the two crossed paths, it was intense, tough, and emotional, especially when the two took center stage in an episode that forced them to rely on one another to survive. —Meredith Jacobs
SNUB: Cosmo Jarvis & Moeka Hoshi, Shōgun
These are two of the biggest snubs of this year’s nominations. Jarvis was splendid as the always confused but increasingly tender John Blackthorne and was one half of the central relationship (Mariko and Blackthorne) that helped make the spectacular FX series so great. And Moeka Hoshi’s quiet power as the grieving Fuji was captivating in every single episode. They both should have been nominated alongside their very deserving co-stars who received recognition, Anna Sawai, Hiroyuki Sanada, Tadanobu Asano, Takehiro Hira, and Néstor Carbonell. — Kelli Boyle
SURPRISE: Alan Cumming, The Traitors
The field of reality star-centric competition series is getting crowded with shows like House of Villains, Special Forces: World’s Toughest Test, and more, but The Traitors was absolutely the standout show of the year. Still, it’s a bit surprising to see its sartorially excellent host Alan Cumming edge out Phil Keoghan for this best hosting nod. – Amanda Bell
SNUB: A Murder at the End of the World
After The OA was so maddeningly canceled by Netflix, Brit Marling and Zal Batmanglij made a rather triumphant return to the small screen with their limited series for FX and Hulu, A Murder at the End of the World. The self-contained murder-mystery series had a little something for everyone: Great acting (particularly by Marling herself, Emma Corrin, and Clive Owen), a futuristic backdrop and toys, a twisty love story, and a villain who was both archetypal and modern all at once. The fact that it didn’t get any love from the Emmys is a pity. — Amanda Bell
SNUB: One Day
Ambika Mod and Leo Woodall breathed new life into Emmy Morley and Dexter Mayhew in Netflix’s adaptation of David Nicholls’ bestseller One Day. Mod and Woodall effortlessly embraced and wrangled the vast range of emotions that embodied Emma and Dexter’s friendship and later romantic relationship. The actors gave such beautiful, career-defining performances. It’s astonishing that their work wasn’t recognized. The show was shut out completely. Justice for One Day. — Avery Thompson
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