Fantasy saga Game of Thrones received a leading 24 Emmy Awards nominations yesterday, its stature apparently untouched by backlash over a female character’s rape scene.
The series is a contender again for top drama honours, an award that has eluded it since it debuted in 2011.
Competing for Outstanding Drama Series this year are Better Call Saul, Downton Abbey, Game Of Thrones, Homeland, House Of Cards, and Orange Is The New Black.
Uzo and Cat made the announcement at the SilverScreen Theatre in LA’s Pacific Design Centre. Deeley is best known for her reality show So You Think You Can Dance and Aduba is a star on Orange Is The New Black.
Both women were announced as nominees – Uzo for OITNB and Deeley for So You Think You Can Dance – at the press conference. The TV academy took a step toward recognizing television’s increasing embrace of diverse talent, giving best actress nods to black stars Taraji P. Henson for Empire and Viola Davis for How To Get Away With Murder.
That sets up a possibility of a history-making win: An African-American actress has never won the top drama acting award. However, two-time nominee Kerry Washington of Scandal was left out this year.
“I gotta win! I gotta win for history!” an exuberant Henson said in May when asked about the prospect during an Empire panel.
THE 67TH ANNUAL EMMY AWARD NOMINEES
Outstanding Drama Series
Better Call Saul
Downton Abbey
Game Of Thrones
Homeland
House Of Cards
Mad Men
Orange Is The New Black
Outstanding Comedy Series
Louis
Modern Family
Parks And Recreation
Silicon Valley
Transparent
Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt
Veep
Outstanding Lead Actor In A Drama Series
Kyle Chandler, Bloodline
Jeff Daniels, The Newsroom
Jon Hamm, Mad Men
Bob Odenkirk, Better Call
Saul
Liev Schreiber, Ray Donovan
Kevin Spacey, House of Cards
Outstanding Lead Actress In A Drama Series
Claire Danes, Homeland
Viola Davis, How to Get Away with Murder Taraji P Henson, Empire #
Tatiana Maslany, Orphan Black
Elisabeth Moss, Mad Men
Robin Wright, House of Cards
Outstanding Supporting Actress In A Drama
Joanne Froggatt, Downton Abbey
Lena Headey, Game of Thrones
Emilia Clarke, Game of Thrones
Christina Hendricks, Mad Men
Uzo Aduba, Orange Is the New Black
Christine Baranski, The Good Wife
Outstanding Supporting Actor In A Drama
Jonathan Banks, Better Call Saul
Ben Mendelsohn, Bloodline
Jim Carter, Downton Abbey
Peter Dinklage, Game of Thrones
Michael Kelly, House of Cards
Alan Cumming, The Good Wife
Outstanding Lead Actor In A Comedy
Anthony Anderson, Blackish
Louis CK, Louis
Don Cheadle, House of Lies
Will Forte, The Last Man on Earth
Matt LeBlanc, Episodes
William H Macy, Shameless
Jeffrey Tambour, Transparent
Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy
Edie Falco, Nurse Jackie
Lisa Kudrow, The Comeback
Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Veep
Amy Poehler, Parks and Recreation
Amy Schumer, Inside Amy Schumer
Lily Tomlin, Grace and Frankie
Outstanding Supporting Actress In A Comedy
Niecy Nash, Getting On
Julie Bowen, Modern Family
Allison Janney, Mom
Kate McKinnon, Saturday Night Live
Mayim Bialik, The Big Bang Theory
Gaby Hoffmann, Transparent
Jane Krakowski, Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt
Anna Chlumsky, Veep
Outstanding Supporting Actor In A Comedy
Andre Braugher, Brooklyn Nine-Nine
Adam Driver, Girls
Keegan-Michael Key, Key & Peele
Ty Burrell, Modern Family
Tituss Burgess, Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt
Tony Hale, Veep
Outstanding Actress In A Mini-series Or Movie
Maggie Gyllenhaal, The Honorable Woman
Jessica Lange, American Horror Story: Freak Show
Felicity Huffman, American Crime
Queen Latifah, Bessie
Frances McDormand, Olive Kitteridge
Emma Thompson, Sweeney Todd, The Demon Barber of Fleet Street Live from Lincoln Center
Outstanding Actor in a Mini-series or Movie
Richard Jenkins, Olive Kitteridge
David Oyelowo, Nightingale
Adrien Brody, Houdini
Mark Rylance, Wolf Hall
Ricky Gervias, Derek
Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Limited Series or a Movie
Richard Cabral, American Crime
Denise O’Hare, American Horror Story: Freak Show
Finn Wittrock, American Horror Story: Freak Show
Michael Kenneth Williams, Bessie
Bill Murray, Olive Kitteridge
Damian Lewis, Wolf Hall
Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Limited Series or a Movie
Regina King, American Crime
Sarah Paulson, American Horror Story: Freak Show
Angela Bassett, American Horror Story: Freak Show
Mo’Nique, Bessie
Kathy Bates, American Horror Story: Freak Show
Zoe Kazan, Olive Kitteridge
Outstanding Reality Program
Amazing Race
Dancing With The Stars
Project Runway
So You Think You Can Dance?
Top Chef
The Voice
Outstanding Television Movie
Agatha Christie’s Poirot Curtain: Poirot’s Last Case, Acorn
Bessie, HBO
Grace of Monaco, Lifetime
Hello Ladies: The Movie, HBO
Killing Jesus, National Geographic Nightingale, HBO
Outstanding Variety Series
The Colbert Report
The Daily Show
Jimmy Kimmel Live
Last Week Tonight
Late Show with David Letterman
The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon
Outstanding Limited Series
American Crime American Horror Story: Freak Show
The Honorable Woman
Olive Kitteridge
Wolf Hall
Outstanding Variety Sketch Series
Drunk History, Comedy Central
Inside Amy Schumer, Comedy Central
Key & Peele, Comedy Central
Portlandia, IFC
Saturday Night Live, NBC
Outstanding Structured Reality Program
Antiques Roadshow, PBS
Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives, Food Network
MythBusters, Discovery
Property Brothers, HGTV
Shark Tank, ABC
Undercover Boss, CBS
Outstanding Unstructured Reality Program
Alaska: The Last Frontier, Discovery
Deadliest Catch, Discovery
Intervention, A&E
Million Dollar Listing New York, Bravo
Naked & Afraid, Discovery Channel
Wahlburgers, A&E
Outstanding Reality Host
Jane Lynch, Hollywood Game Night
Tom Bergeron, Dancing With the Stars
Heidi Klum and Tim Gunn, Project Runway
Cat Deeley, So You Think You Can Dance
Anthony Bourdain, The Taste