New Teaser for 'Masters of Sex' Season 4

Looks like the swinging 70's are here in this teaser for the new season of Showtime's Masters of Sex. Or maybe it's the late 60's. Either way, I don't see much Bill and Virginia action in this, which is the driving force of the show, so I hope this separation doesn't last too long. As the show moves into the 1970's, I think we're getting close to the time that Masters and Johnson got married, so it's got to be coming soon. Season 4 premieres on Sunday, September 11th.

Mike Colter Steps Up in Trailer for 'Luke Cage'

This looks amazing. Netflix undoubtedly has another winner in their Marvel superhero series, as critics who have seen the first couple of episodes can confirm. The first season of Luke Cage drops on September 30th. Mark your calendars.

Laura Benanti Spoofs Melania Trump on 'The Late Show'

I normally wouldn't post a clip from the same show two days in a row, but Colbert hit it out of the park again last night by enlisting Tony winner and Melania lookalike Laura Benanti to do this incredible, spot on impersonation of the would-be First Lady as she steals every famous line in history to "apologize" for ripping off Michelle Obama's speech. It's priceless.

See the Gory Red-Band Trailer for 'Ash vs. Evil Dead' Season 2

Yes, there's a lot of blood and oh so many decapitations to see here. I'm sure fans of the show will love it. And Bruce Campbell looks hilariously awesome as always.

Stephen Colbert Brings Back "Stephen Colbert" For the Republican Convention

I'm sure this was probably planned for a while, but coming off the Emmy snubs and increasing whispers that Colbert and James Corden should trade time slots, this can't help but look like both a triumphant and welcome return, and possibly a tacit admission of failure on Colbert's awkward and uneven attempts to be himself with The Late Show. Let's face it, his show has not been good, and seeing the old right-wing pundit come back in a blaze of glory to lay waste to Donald Trump with The Word makes us wish he'd been here this whole time. He was desperately needed. So what now? Does Comedy Central Stephen Colbert return for weekly segments? Eventually a full-time basis? I wouldn't be too surprised if it ultimately happens- politics is what Stephen does best, and is so obviously what he prefers. There's no shame in admitting something isn't working. Embarrassment, yes, but if it involves bringing back the greatness, then hey, I'll take it.

Analysis of This Year's Emmy Nominations

Whew, so much to talk about this year! It was probably the most adventurous group of Emmy nominees I've ever seen, so there's some real evidence that the TV academy is taking the time to seek out the shows that are scattered all over the ever broadening television landscape these days and nominate some quality stuff. But as always, they have a tendency to cling to old faves that are way past their prime as well. I'm just gonna go by category here, so let's dig in, shall we?

COMEDY

Ellie Kemper gets her first Emmy nom for 'Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt' while Titus Burgess gets his second

Woo-hoo! They love Silicon Valley more every year, hence the noms for star Thomas Middleditch (yay!) and all those directing and writing nods. But I'm sorry, where the hell is the TJ Miller nomination?? Come on you guys- you love the show, but not Erlich? That makes no sense to me. On the actress side, here's to Ellie Kemper getting her first nod for Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt! But why did they have to kick out Jane Krakowski in supporting? She was awesome this season, better than she was last year. Hmph.

I quit Veep this year, and apparently it had a fantastic season, but...eh. I don't feel the motivation to catch up. I will say that I'm very happy to see Matt Walsh get nominated after all this time- he was always one of my preferred characters in a cast of people I mostly hated (their characters, not the actors).

'Catastrophe' lands a writing nom for the funniest show on TV

Aaah!! A writing nomination for Catastrophe (my FAVORITE comedy on all of television, yes, even more than Kimmy Schmidt). I had no hope that this show (which is actually an import from the UK) would get any attention paid to it, so that's thrilling. Because the show is hilarious. Seriously, people, watch it.

I really need to catch up on Master of None. So much love for Aziz Ansari, who pulled off a mini-Louis CK in obtaining all those nods for himself in different categories. I promise to watch it before the ceremony airs. But honestly, this looks to me like it's Veep's to lose again. After a stellar season (look at the sheer number of directing nods for the show), I think it's in for a repeat, but I have some real hope that Silicon Valley can certainly win this category eventually, maybe even next season.

DRAMA

'The Americans' finally breaks into the major categories

Welp, for me you know this is all about The Americans. After all these years, we have Emmy nominees Matthew Rhys and Keri Russell, plus writing and the show itself. I'm practically giddy! And no, I don't think it's winning anything this year, but now that's it's finally in (and I'm aware that this is probably due to Mad Men being over and the slot opening up), I think it can certainly win before the end of its run. And that's awesome enough, since shows that haven't been nominated by their fourth seasons never are. This one finally broke the mold.

Maslany continues to rule 'Orphan Black' with new clones

Tatiana Maslany! I will never not be psyched that she's getting nominated for Emmys for such a trippy, sci-fi genre show on BBC America. If they still went by episode submission/committee process, I'd have zero doubt she'd win, but without that I fear she's still essentially an unknown and it won't happen. I'll never lose hope though, especially with next season being Orphan Black's last.

The Mr. Robot love is cool and kind of a surprise I guess, especially in series, but it had been popping up all year at places like critics awards, guild awards and the Golden Globes, so we could kinda see it coming. Rami Malek deserves that win in lead more than any of the other actors, in my opinion.

Game of Thrones got FIVE actors in all of a sudden, adding Kit Harington and Maisie Williams to the Dinklage, Headey and Clarke trifecta. That's pretty cool and the show had a great sixth season, coming off its less than deserving fifth season, where it had finally won. I believe it's going to repeat for that reason, and probably take both Dinklage and Headey with it this time.

'UnREAL' lands noms for writing and supporting actress

Look at that drama supporting actress category- Constance Zimmer got in for UnREAL!!! And Maura Tierney for The Affair! See, those kinds of nominations tell you somebody really is watching stuff, because the shows weren't in overall. Although UnREAL also got a writing nom, so congratulations Lifetime! You've arrived! That is so cool, I can hardly believe it actually happened. These aren't the Emmys that I know.

Then again, we've also got Homeland, Downton Abbey (thank GOD this show won't be there next year), House of Cards...blech. And honestly, when you look at some of this stuff you see that the new blood came in by virtue of old shows finally ending their runs, so voters are still kind of lazy about rubber-stamping things that really shouldn't be there anymore. And they have so many good choices like Outlander for example, which got criminally overlooked except in costumes and production design. Sigh. What are you gonna do, right?

And it's worth noting here, Orange is the New Black got completely skunked for its third season. I really have to wonder if this would have happened had they left the show in comedy like they should have. There's such a thing as dark comedy and it did amazingly well there in the first season, less so in drama last year, and now nothing in drama this time. I always thought its outrageous tone meant it would have a hard time competing with other dramas. I think I was right. Wonder what it means for next year, given that this current season was perhaps its best ever.

TV MOVIE/LIMITED SERIES

'People vs OJ Simpson' dominates the acting slots

I predicted every single actor who got in for the OJ show. Sorry, I just had to toot my own horn for a sec there. But it's true, you can check my twitter feed. I won't say they were all equally deserving (I know some people hated Travolta's Robert Shapiro- I actually didn't, I thought he was entertaining and campy, and the show had a bit of a campy feel to it anyway, so it worked), but I don't mind the noms. It was a great cast. I think Vance and Paulson have their Emmys locked up, but I REALLY want Sterling K. Brown to win as well in supporting.

'Fargo' breakout Bokeem Woodbine gets recognition for his scene-stealing assassin

The Night Manager is severely overrated. 12 nominations is far too many for what was a slick, beautifully shot but kinda routine spy story. Olivia Colman and Hugh Laurie I won't object to, but the series and lead actor noms should have been replaced by David Simon's Show Me a Hero and Oscar Isaac, which got unfairly ignored.

The Fargo love is terrific, and I'd honestly root for any of those actors (especially Bokeem Woodbine), but the People vs OJ cast is going to dominate and I really can't complain about that. It'll be a big night for Ryan Murphy and this is a much better show than the various American Horror Story entries over the years. Although I still don't quite agree with Fargo being labeled a limited series just because the cast is different every year. It all takes place in the same universe and town, just at different times- how is that not a drama series?

REALITY/VARIETY

Sam Bee gets in for writing but is overlooked for lesser shows in variety/talk series

I'm not an expert in the reality shows, so I'll just make my best predictions for those when the time comes. As for variety, well...the snubbing of Full Frontal with Samantha Bee is what hurts the most of all the nominations today. She is fantastic, her show was fire right out of the gate and is getting loads of attention, yet the Emmys continue their longstanding tradition of never nominating a woman in that talk show category. But never fear, she got in for writing, which means she will be there next year in series. Right? She better be.

James Corden's Carpool Karaoke launches him into the Emmy race

Speaking of snubs, there was zero love for Stephen Colbert's Late Show or The Daily Show, now hosted by Trevor Noah, so that's the first time without those two fixtures in many, many years. And it's not really a snub, to be honest. Colbert has severely disappointed with the Late Show and it's got to be a real slap in the face for them to actually nominate James Corden's Late Late Show over his. I mean, that's really gotta sting, right? Should Corden be the one at 11:35pm, leaving Colbert free to actually do what he does well at 12:30? Maybe so. Won't happen, but this will fuel the talk even further that it should.

As for Trevor Noah running The Daily Show into the ground (okay that's probably too harsh), he just hasn't made an impression or crossed into cultural relevance, obviously. Samantha Bee has totally outmaneuvered him in that area. But it looks like they'd rather nominate Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee. Another ouch. Actually, a show that's been overlooked here is Late Night with Seth Meyers, which has really become must-see viewing lately for political junkies. In fact, I'd go so far as to say they should replace Bill Maher's Real Time rubber stamping with Meyers next year. The constant, two decade teasing of Maher with the nomination and NEVER the win is getting cruel. Cut the chord already guys, you know you're never gonna give it to him.

Jerry Seinfeld takes President Obama for a ride in his nominated web series

Last Week Tonight with John Oliver will win variety easily, and I think Key and Peele (since this was their last season) will take the second ever sketch series award from Amy Schumer. Her most recent season was hardly buzzed at all, and K&P are done, so they really ought to be rewarded. I'd hate to see a rubber stamping of a past winner in such a new category.

It'd be funny to see Lemonade win that Variety Special award. Could it beat the Adele live show? Beyonce vs Adele for an Emmy. Huh. Didn't see that one coming.

Final note: there is no need for an "EmmysSoWhite" hashtag. This is what diversity looks like, people, and television is clearly where the opportunities for everyone lie these days. It's quite a change from years past and it's only headed in the right direction. That's real progress if I ever saw it.

Beyonce is nominated for 'Lemonade'

'Game of Thrones' and 'People vs. OJ Simpson' Lead 2016 Emmy Nominations

It was a great day for HBO and FX, as the networks lead the TV Academy nominees, with GoT managing 23 noms against PvOJ's 22. That's an amazing haul and both shows are way out in front in their respective categories of drama and limited series. Veep leads again on the comedy side, although Silicon Valley is catching up with nominations in writing, directing and finally star Thomas Middleditch, and there were very impressive showings for newbies Master of None and Mr. Robot. But my absolute favorite thing this year was the fact that TV's best show The Americans was FINALLY NOMINATED!!! Yup, in a very rare debut that didn't happen until after its fourth season, it landed noms for writing, lead actor, lead actress and drama series! This makes today a great Emmy day, people. I'll be back with more analysis of the overall really good picks this year. For now, here's the full list:

COMEDY:

BEST COMEDY SERIES
“Black-ish”
“Master of None”
“Modern Family”
“Silicon Valley”
“Transparent”
“Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt”
“Veep”

BEST COMEDY ACTOR
Anthony Anderson (“Black-ish”)
Aziz Ansari (“Master of None”)
Will Forte (“The Last Man on Earth”)
William H. Macy (“Shameless”)
Thomas Middleditch (“Silicon Valley”)
Jeffrey Tambor (“Transparent”)

BEST COMEDY ACTRESS
Ellie Kemper (“Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt”)
Julia Louis-Dreyfus (“Veep”)
Laurie Metcalf (“Getting On”)
Tracee Ellis Ross (“Black-ish”)
Amy Schumer (“Inside Amy Schumer”)
Lily Tomlin (“Grace and Frankie”)

BEST COMEDY SUPPORTING ACTOR
Louie Anderson (“Baskets”)
Andre Braugher (“Brooklyn Nine-Nine”)
Tituss Burgess (“Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt”)
Ty Burrell (“Modern Family”)
Tony Hale (“Veep”)
Keegan-Michael Key (“Key and Peele”)
Matt Walsh (“Veep”)

BEST COMEDY SUPPORTING ACTRESS
Anna Chlumsky (“Veep”)
Gaby Hoffmann (“Transparent”)
Allison Janney (“Mom”)
Judith Light (“Transparent”)
Kate McKinnon (“Saturday Night Live”)
Niecy Nash (“Getting On”)

BEST COMEDY GUEST ACTOR
Larry David (“Saturday Night Live”)
Peter MacNicol (“Veep”)
Tracy Morgan (“Saturday Night Live”)
Martin Mull (“Veep”)
Bob Newhart (“The Big Bang Theory”)
Bradley Whitford (“Transparent”)

BEST COMEDY GUEST ACTRESS
Christine Baranski (“The Big Bang Theory”)
Tina Fey and Amy Poehler (“Saturday Night Live”)
Melora Hardin (“Transparent”)
Melissa McCarthy (“Saturday Night Live”)
Laurie Metcalf (“The Big Bang Theory”)
Amy Schumer (“Saturday Night Live”)

BEST COMEDY DIRECTING
“Master Of None,” “Parents”
“Silicon Valley,” “Daily Active Users”
“Silicon Valley,” “Founder Friendly”
“Transparent,” “Man On The Land”
“Veep,” “Kissing Your Sister”
“Veep,” “Morning After”
“Veep,” “Mother”

BEST COMEDY WRITING
“Catastrophe,” “Episode 1”
“Master Of None,” “Parents”
“Silicon Valley,” “Founder Friendly”
“Silicon Valley,” “The Uptick”
“Veep,” “Morning After”
“Veep,” “Mother”

Aziz Ansari breaks through with noms for himself in acting, directing and writing

DRAMA:

BEST DRAMA SERIES
“The Americans”
“Better Call Saul”
“Downton Abbey”
“Game of Thrones”
“Homeland”
“House of Cards”
“Mr. Robot”

BEST DRAMA ACTOR
Kyle Chandler (“Bloodline”)
Rami Malek (“Mr. Robot”)
Bob Odenkirk (“Better Call Saul”)
Matthew Rhys (“The Americans”)
Liev Schreiber (“Ray Donovan”)
Kevin Spacey (“House of Cards”)

BEST DRAMA ACTRESS
Claire Danes (“Homeland”)
Viola Davis (“How to Get Away with Murder”)
Taraji P. Henson (“Empire”)
Tatiana Maslany (“Orphan Black”)
Keri Russell (“The Americans”)
Robin Wright (“House of Cards”)

BEST DRAMA SUPPORTING ACTOR
Jonathan Banks (“Better Call Saul”)
Peter Dinklage (“Game of Thrones”)
Kit Harington (“Game of Thrones”)
Michael Kelly (“House of Cards”)
Ben Mendelsohn (“Bloodline”)
Jon Voight (“Ray Donovan”)

BEST DRAMA SUPPORTING ACTRESS
Emilia Clarke (“Game of Thrones”)
Lena Headey (“Game of Thrones”)
Maggie Smith (“Downton Abbey”)
Maura Tierney (“The Affair”)
Maisie Williams (“Game of Thrones”)
Constance Zimmer (“UnReal”)

BEST DRAMA GUEST ACTOR
Mahershala Ali (“House of Cards”)
Hank Azaria (“Ray Donovan”)
Reg E. Cathey (“House of Cards”)
Michael J. Fox (“The Good Wife”)
Paul Sparks (“House of Cards”)
Max Von Sydow (“Game of Thrones”)

BEST DRAMA GUEST ACTRESS
Ellen Burstyn (“House of Cards”)
Allison Janney (“Masters of Sex”)
Margo Martindale (“The Americans”)
Laurie Metcalf (“Horace and Pete”)
Molly Parker (“House of Cards”)
Carrie Preston (“The Good Wife”)

BEST DRAMA DIRECTING
“Downton Abbey,” “Episode 9”
“Game Of Thrones,” “Battle Of The Bastards”
“Game Of Thrones,” “The Door”
“Homeland,” “The Tradition Of Hospitality”
“The Knick,” “This Is All We Are”
“Ray Donovan,” “Exsuscito”

BEST DRAMA WRITING
“The Americans,” “Persona Non Grata”
“Downton Abbey,” “Episode 8”
“Game Of Thrones,” “Battle Of The Bastards”
“The Good Wife,” “End”
“Mr. Robot,” “eps1.0_hellofriend.mov”
“UnREAL,” “Return”

'The Americans' finally lands deserved noms for stars Mathew Rhys and Keri Russell

TV MOVIE/LIMITED SERIES:

BEST LIMITED SERIES
“American Crime”
“Fargo”
“The Night Manager”
“The People v. O.J. Simpson”
“Roots”

BEST TV MOVIE
“A Very Murray Christmas”
“All the Way”
“Confirmation”
“Luther”
“Sherlock: The Abominable Bride”

BEST MOVIE/MINI ACTOR
Bryan Cranston (“All the Way”)
Benedict Cumberbatch (“Sherlock: The Abominable Bride”)
Idris Elba (“Luther”)
Cuba Gooding Jr. (“The People v. O.J. Simpson”)
Tom Hiddleston (“The Night Manager”)
Courtney B. Vance (“The People v. O.J. Simpson”)

BEST MOVIE/MINI ACTRESS
Kirsten Dunst (“Fargo”)
Felicity Huffman (“American Crime”)
Audra McDonald (“Lady Day at Emerson’s Bar and Grill”)
Sarah Paulson (“The People v. O.J. Simpson”)
Lili Taylor (“American Crime”)
Kerry Washington (“Confirmation”)

BEST MOVIE/MINI SUPPORTING ACTOR
Sterling K. Brown (“The People v. O.J. Simpson”)
Hugh Laurie (“The Night Manager”)
Jesse Plemons (“Fargo”)
David Schwimmer (“The People v. O.J. Simpson”)
John Travolta (“The People v. O.J. Simpson”)
Bokeem Woodbine (“Fargo”)

BEST MOVIE/MINI SUPPORTING ACTRESS
Kathy Bates (“American Horror Story: Hotel”)
Olivia Colman (“The Night Manager”)
Regina King (“American Crime”)
Melissa Leo (“All the Way”)
Sarah Paulson (“American Horror Story: Hotel”)
Jean Smart (“Fargo”)

BEST MOVIE/MINI DIRECTING
“All The Way”
“Fargo,” “Before The Law”
“The Night Manager”
“The People v. O.J. Simpson,” “From The Ashes Of Tragedy”
“The People v. O.J. Simpson,” “Manna From Heaven”
“The People v. O.J. Simpson,” “The Race Card”

BEST MOVIE/MINI WRITING
“Fargo,” “Loplop”
“Fargo,” “Palindrome”
“The Night Manager”
“The People v. O.J. Simpson,” “From The Ashes Of Tragedy”
“The People v. O.J. Simpson,” “Marcia, Marcia, Marcia”
“The People v. O.J. Simpson,” “The Race Card”

'People vs. OJ Simpson's' stellar cast set to take home lots of Emmy gold

REALITY/VARIETY:

BEST REALITY-COMPETITION PROGRAM
“The Amazing Race”
“American Ninja Warrior”
“Dancing with the Stars”
“Project Runway”
“Top Chef”
“The Voice”

BEST REALITY HOST
Tom Bergeron (“Dancing With the Stars”)
RuPaul Charles (“RuPaul’s Drag Race”)
Steve Harvey (“Little Big Shots”)
Heidi Klum and Tim Gunn (“Project Runway”)
Jane Lynch (“Hollywood Game Night”)
Ryan Seacrest (“American Idol”)

BEST STRUCTURED REALITY PROGRAM
“Antiques Roadshow”
“Diners, Drive-Ins, and Dives”
“Lip Sync Battle”
“MythBusters”
“Shark Tank”
“Undercover Boss”

BEST UNSTRUCTURED REALITY PROGRAM
“Born This Way”
“Deadliest Catch”
“Gaycation With Ellen Page”
“Intervention”
“Project Greenlight”
“United Shades Of America”

BEST VARIETY TALK SERIES
“Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee”
“Jimmy Kimmel Live”
“Last Week Tonight with John Oliver”
“Late Late Show with James Corden”
“Real Time with Bill Maher”
“The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon”

BEST VARIETY SKETCH SERIES
“Documentary Now”
“Drunk History”
“Inside Amy Schumer”
“Key and Peele”
“Portlandia”
“Saturday Night Live”

BEST VARIETY SPECIAL
“Adele Live In New York City”
“Amy Schumer: Live At The Apollo”
“The Kennedy Center Honors”
“The Late Late Show Carpool Karaoke Prime Time Special”
“Lemonade”

With no Colbert/Daily Show in the mix, John Oliver is the frontrunner to win his first Emmy

Bruce Campbell Returns in the Bloody Teaser for 'Ash vs. Evil Dead' Season 2

For anyone who liked the first season, get ready for the return of this Starz comedy-horror series, debuting in October, appropriately in time for Halloween. The gory teaser makes it look like a blast, and includes all the gross-out Sam Raimi-esque touches. 

Noel Neill 1920-2016

The original Lois Lane, Noel Neill has passed away at the age of 95. You may not know her name, but Noel Neill was the very first live-action portrayal of the iconic character onscreen. Neill played Lois Lane opposite Kirk Allen's Man of Steel in the 1948 film serial Superman, and its sequel, 1950's Atom Man vs. Superman. In the pre-television era, 15-20 minute film serials basically played as weekly episodes before the full length feature to movie audiences of the day. Then, when the George Reeves starring show Adventures of Superman began airing in 1951, Noel Neill reprised the role of Lois when the actress who played her, Phyllis Coates, left after the first season. She continued to play her through 1958, when the show was canceled, and went on to appear at festivals, conventions and in many Superman related productions ever since, including bit parts in 1978's Superman, Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman, Superboy and 2006's Superman Returns. I'd say that's commitment to the character, wouldn't you?

Riz Ahmed Stars in HBO Miniseries 'The Night Of'

A new miniseries is coming out next week, and it's HBO's big summer programming, premiering on July 10th. Based on the 2008 British television series Criminal Justice, this one is an 8-part crime procedural that takes us through the workings of the New York City justice system after Ahmed's character is arrested for murder. Steven Zaillian, longtime Hollywood screenwriter, who scripted Moneyball and Girl With the Dragon Tattoo, among others, is behind this one and directed several episodes. Early word is strong, so I'll definitely be checking this out.