So, it's drama time for the Emmy predictions today, usually the more interesting categories, although with everything so up in the air this year, all the races will likely be a bit quirky.
LEAD ACTOR IN A DRAMA
- Bob Odenkirk, Better Call Saul
- Kyle Chandler, Bloodline
- Kevin Spacey, House of Cards
- Jon Hamm, Mad Men
- Jeff Daniels, The Newsroom
- Liev Schreiber, Ray Donovan
I'm sticking with Jon Hamm here until it kills me. With a popular vote system in place, this is his best ever chance to win on sentiment, and since to me it would be a crime if he never won an Emmy for the iconic television character of Don Draper, I'm holding out 'til the end. If there would be one actor to win an Emmy for that show during the whole course of its run, it'd have to be him. But just so you know, there's every chance that it could be someone else, most likely either Spacey or Odenkirk.
- Winner: Jon Hamm
- Alternate: Kevin Spacey (popular vote helps the movie star?)
- Dark Horse: Bob Odenkirk (Breaking Bad was beloved, so some of the shine may be rubbed off on the prequel series)
LEAD ACTRESS IN A DRAMA
- Taraji P. Henson, Empire
- Claire Danes, Homeland
- Robin Wright, House of Cards
- Viola Davis, How to Get Away With Murder
- Elisabeth Moss, Mad Men
- Tatiana Maslany, Orphan Black
As much as my heart breaks for Tatiana Maslany being nominated in the one year where the old voting system can no longer help her, most people think this is Viola Davis's to lose. She won the SAG earlier this year, so I guess she's the frontrunner. But I could see Taraji P. Henson winning too, since Empire is such a phenomenon right now (she was the show's only nod, but How to Get Away With Murder isn't loved by the TV Academy either). If it's between those two, either of them will make history as the first black woman to win this category, so that's a good thing.
- Winner: Taraji P. Henson- I'm going with the most watched show for this one
- Alternate: Viola Davis
SUPPORTING ACTOR IN A DRAMA
- Jonathan Banks, Better Call Saul
- Ben Mendelsohn, Bloodline
- Jim Carter, Downton Abbey
- Peter Dinklage, Game of Thrones
- Alan Cumming, The Good Wife
- Michael Kelly, House of Cards
I'm guessing Jonathan Banks here. None of these guys are movie actor names, so in a popular vote I'm not sure who'd prevail (it could be Dinklage actually, based on GoT's popularity). Mendelsohn was actually great on Bloodline, but I just don't know how many people watched that show. Banks was nominated for Breaking Bad and didn't win there, so this time he will take it.
- Winner: Jonathan Banks
- Alternate: Peter Dinklage
- Dark Horse: Ben Mendelsohn (if any of the voters actually watched his series)
SUPPORTING ACTRESS IN A DRAMA
- Joanne Froggatt, Downton Abbey
- Lena Headey, Game of Thrones
- Emilia Clarke, Game of Thrones
- Christine Baranski, The Good Wife
- Christina Hendricks, Mad Men
- Uzo Aduba, Orange is the New Black
I'm going to say Lena Headey will become the first actor besides Peter Dinklage to win an Emmy for Game of Thrones. Part of that is because I think Game of Thrones is winning Drama series this year and they will need some support to go along with it, which usually means at least one actor, and Headey had a very dramatic, powerful episode late in the season (not that episodes matter this year of course, but everyone watches GoT, so everyone will have seen and remembered hers anyway). Other chances for the win would be Hendricks, since she's never won and it was Mad Men's last season, and Aduba, who stands out on another show a lot of people watch, Orange is the New Black. But Headey is my pick this year.
- Winner: Lena Headey
- Alternate: Uzo Aduba
- Dark Horse: Christina Hendricks
So tomorrow I'll be back with my final series predictions for the Drama, Comedy, Limited, TV Movie, Variety and Reality categories. Whew. Then we'll get to see how badly I fall on my face with these on Sunday. See you then!
