This is starting to get redundant.
Once again dominating the Emmy nominations, (124 in total, a whopping 59 more than its nearest competitor, NBC), HBO is simply on top.
Having already dominated the Golden Globes in January, HBO’s biggest coup this year in Emmy nominations (21 in total) was the superb miniseries Angels in America, directed by Mike Nichols and written by Tony-winning playwright Tony Kushner. Nods went to pretty much all of the cast, including Meryl Streep, Emma Thompson, Al Pacino, Jeffrey Wright and Mary-Louise Parker. Kinda feel sorry for the rest of the competition.
HBO’s The Sopranos, back for a fourth season, lead the pack in the drama series department with 20 noms in all, including best drama series. The gangster-fest is also nominated in other top categories including actor (the mob boss himself, James Gandolfini); actress (Edie Falco as the newly independent Carmela Soprano); supporting actors (Michael Imperioli as the beleaguered Christopher Moltisanti and Steve Buscemi as Tony’s cousin Tony Blundetto); and supporting actress (Drea de Matteo as the doomed Adriana, her first nomination).
HBO’s other ringer is once again Sex and the City, which got 11 nominations this year including best comedy series. The racy show made its final adieu this year, so it could very well win the best comedy award as a farewell gift. Same goes for its star Sarah Jessica Parker as the perky Carrie Bradshaw, who goes for her sixth try in the best actress category; in fact, she could be a shoo-in, just on pure principal. In the supporting actress category, Cynthia Nixon as sharp-witted Miranda and Kim Cattrall as sexy mama Samantha are once again nominees with their comrade, Kristin Davis as the sweet Charlotte, making the list for the first time.
Up against Sex and the City is HBO’s acerbic Curb Your Enthusiasm, which the Emmys saw fit to crown with 8 nominations, as it goes for its third try at best comedy series while its off-kilter star, Larry David, goes for his second try at best actor. Meanwhile, Deadwood, a newcomer to HBO’s original series, got 11 nominations, including nods for supporting actress and actor in a drama series (Robin Weigart as the volatile Calamity Jane and Brad Dourif as the kindly Doc Cochran).
The cabler also had a few made-for-TV movies make it to the Emmy list, including And Starring Pancho Villa as Himself, a film about the legendary Mexican revolutionist which really stars Emmy nominee Antonio Banderas; and Something the Lord Made, a real-life story about an ambitious white surgeon and a gifted black carpenter turned lab technician–who defied the racial strictures of the Jim Crow South and together pioneered the field of heart surgery–starring nominees Mos Def and Alan Rickman.
Other Cable Networks
HBO’s only real rival in original program is Showtime, which fared much better this year with 18 nominations, mostly in the made-for-TV movie category. Nominees include the drama The Lion in Winter, about a battle for power in 12th-century England between Henry II (Patrick Stewart) and his strong-willed wife Eleanor of Aquitaine (played by Glenn Close, nominee for best actress in a miniseries or movie), and the controversial The Reagans, about the late Ronald Reagan and his rise to the presidency, starring nominees James Brolin as Reagan and Judy Davis as his steely wife, Nancy.
The USA network garnered nine nominations, including another lead actor in a comedy series nod for Monk‘s Tony Shalhoub, as the show’s obsessive-compulsive detective, and a nomination in the miniseries category for the drug drama Traffic: The Miniseries.
No longer such a dark horse, Comedy Central pulled out seven nominations, including last year’s winner for outstanding variety, music or comedy series, The Daily Show With Jon Stewart, and a first nomination for comedian Dave Chappelle‘s Chappelle’s Show.
A&E’s seaworthy Horatio Hornblower miniseries and their made-for-TV movie Ike: Countdown to D-Day helped the network collect a total of 24 nominations.
