Emmy Predictions for Best Comedy Performances 2024 l Awards Circuit

Variety

In Variety Awards Circuit, TV Editor Michael Schneider and Senior TV Editor Emily Longeretta discuss the Emmy contenders for Best Comedy Performances including Jeremy Allen White, Martin Short, Ayo Edebiri, Quinta Brunson, and more.   Variety Awards Circuit presented by Paramount+.

Transcript

00:00Hi everyone, I'm Michael Schneider.

00:09And I'm Emily Longoretta.

00:10Welcome to Variety's Awards Circuit, where we're looking at some of the key television

00:14categories in this year's Primetime Emmy race.

00:17This time we're looking at the performers in the comedy field.

00:19Why don't we start with actresses.

00:21Of course, we've got the incumbent winner from last year, Quinta Brunson from Abbott

00:24Elementary.

00:25I didn't get in this position by shying away from bold choices.

00:29You went down for the Waldorf salad.

00:31Extra grapes.

00:32Damn it, Janine.

00:34You've done it again.

00:35Among the other frontrunners, we've got Jean Smart from Hacks, who of course is a previous

00:39winner.

00:40Ayo Edebiri from The Bear, who has won at the Globes, and she also won at SAG, so she's

00:45a definite contender.

00:46Of course, you've got Kristen Wiig from Palme Royale.

00:49Kristen Wiig.

00:50Everyone loves Kristen Wiig.

00:51Selena Gomez, who has not been nominated yet for Only Murders in the Building, but I feel

00:55like maybe this is the year they finally rectify that.

00:57There are a lot of other great names out there as well.

01:00One that I do want to highlight just because who doesn't love Maya Rudolph?

01:03I don't have a partner.

01:08Place your hand on each other's hearts.

01:11Oh boy.

01:13TV show called Loot that I don't think as many people have seen on Apple TV+, but Maya

01:17Rudolph kind of transcends titles.

01:19Yeah, 100%.

01:20I hope that Selena Gomez gets in this.

01:22I have to say, obviously like you said, she's never been nominated before, but it would

01:25be really nice to see her at least get a nomination.

01:27I can just girl talk.

01:28Can you?

01:29Yeah.

01:30You guys okay out here?

01:31Hey, mama.

01:32Yeah, we're like, yes, at work and slay over here.

01:38This is an interesting category because, of course, Jean Smart has won constantly for

01:42the first two seasons of Hacks, but there's a little more competition now in a little

01:46show called The Bear.

01:48And this is a big deal for Ayo Edibiri because she was in the supporting actress category.

01:54She's upgrading now to lead actress, but that immediately makes her a huge contender.

01:58That also puts her up against Quinta Brunson, of course, for Abbott Elementary, who won

02:02last year and had an incredible season.

02:03So this is a really, really tough category.

02:06A lot of winners in this category, so that's one to keep an eye on.

02:09But then the actor category is also a little interesting.

02:12It's a heavy one.

02:13Of course, Jeremy Ellen White for The Bear, who basically won everything last year for

02:17season one.

02:18Right.

02:19Emmys, Globes, SAG, the triple threat.

02:22Exactly.

02:24And then last year for Only Murders of the Building, it's Martin Short.

02:26Steve Martin, also Only Murders, wasn't nominated last year.

02:29Not nominated last year, so does he make a return appearance this year?

02:32Right.

02:33It's Steve Martin.

02:34And, of course, Larry David for the last season of Curb Your Enthusiasm.

02:37Have you noticed that when you take a picture, you don't look nearly as good as you do when

02:41you look in the mirror?

02:42Because the mirror is how you see yourself and the photo is how you're seen.

02:47It's the last season and it's Larry David.

02:49Kelsey Grammer for Frasier, he could be sneaking back into the conversation.

02:53He was once an Emmy person that we were talking about all the time.

02:56Emmy voters, they loved Frasier back in the day and they could very much love it again.

03:00Absolutely.

03:01And the last one I want to mention is Jharrel Jerome for I'm a Virgo, because what a performance.

03:05And that's a show that a lot of people maybe haven't watched a ton of, but he's really

03:09great.

03:10So, again, this is such an incredible category and it's hard to think of Jeremy Ellen White

03:14being beat out here.

03:15Still, I love the name.

03:16You don't remember the name?

03:19Of course I remember the name.

03:20We didn't even tell anybody the name.

03:21You 100% told me the name.

03:23How could you remember the name?

03:24There's a lot of strong contenders.

03:26Let's head into another unstoppable race.

03:28Supporting actress.

03:29Now, I mentioned that Ayo Edebiri was previously in the supporting category.

03:32She's now moving to lead.

03:34She won last year.

03:35So that means that this category is wide open for a new winner.

03:38Now we've got heavy hitters like Meryl Streep from Only Murders in the Building.

03:42Please, please don't give up on me.

03:44I'm not good at table reads.

03:46Storm's coming.

03:47Don't test the dot for the rubble and the rocks.

03:52Meryl Streep is Meryl Streep.

03:53It's undoubted that she'll at least be nominated.

03:56But again, these are shows with a lot of great supporting talent.

03:59You've got Hannah Einbinder from Hacks, who wasn't eligible last year but who's now back

04:03in the running.

04:04Arguably for her best season.

04:05And then you've got the Abbott Elementary cast and they're all killer.

04:10Janelle James was nominated last year.

04:12I expect her to be back.

04:13Shirley Ralph, previous winner in this category, I expect her to be back.

04:17Now, someone who hasn't been nominated from Abbott but who is incredible and deserves

04:21to be nominated alongside her co-stars is Lisa Ann Walter.

04:24Would love to see her in the mix.

04:26Now, I'm going to tell you about someone named Carol Burnett.

04:28I've heard a few things about her.

04:31Robert, shake me another martini and then let's play doctor.

04:35She's in Palme Royale and she's a superstar and I would not be surprised to see her nominated.

04:41But that's also a killer category because Allison Chaney is also in Palme Royale and

04:45she's another person who Emmy voters have loved through the years.

04:48Maybe the most A-listers, you just listed some huge heavy hitters, could be all nominated

04:52for the same category.

04:53I mean, that is quite the race and that's not even the end of it.

04:56Because we talk about the bear, just how the bear is steamrolling through everything.

05:00And there's a good chance that the bear could just kill it this year with nominations.

05:03And if that's the fact, then maybe some of their supporting actors and actresses may

05:07also be nominated.

05:08That includes Abby Elliott, Liza Colon-Zayas from The Bear.

05:12We'll see.

05:13Now, the last name that I do want to mention because it is, again, Curb's final season,

05:17Susie Essman, who has never been nominated, but who really is the secret weapon behind

05:23Curb Your Enthusiasm.

05:24She kills it every time she's in every scene screaming at Larry David and would love to

05:28see her nominated one last time.

05:30Honestly, most of the Curb cast I would love to see nominated and I assume we're going

05:33to kind of get into that with this next one because supporting actor, also quite a stacked

05:39race.

05:40And, of course, we have to start with The Bear's Eben Moss-Bacharach because he won

05:42last year.

05:43And, again, The Bear is Abbey Catnip at this moment, as you would say.

05:47The shirt says original birth.

05:48It's a printing mistake.

05:49Collector's item.

05:50But there's also a lot of people from Abbott Elementary.

05:53I mean, we have Tyler James Williams and Chris Perfetti who could really both get nominated.

05:58Tyler was nominated last year.

06:00Chris hasn't been yet, but I do think it's time to show some love for him as well because

06:04he's been standout on that.

06:05Definitely.

06:06And then there's also, of course, the rest of the supporting cast of The Bear.

06:10Oliver Platt, Lionel Boyce, Matty Matheson.

06:12The list goes on and on.

06:14There's no bad performances on The Bear, so really you could nominate any of them.

06:17And then, of course, a few others we need to mention.

06:19Paul Rudd.

06:20He's Paul Rudd in Only Murders in the Building.

06:23And Paul W. Downs, who's also co-creator of Hacks, has a bigger role this year.

06:27Debra's here.

06:28You're here?

06:29She hired new writers?

06:30You know what?

06:32She hired two, which is actually a compliment, isn't it?

06:35She had to replace you with two people.

06:36Wow.

06:37He could definitely be nominated, as could Carl Clemens Hopkins.

06:40These are shows that are at the top of their game, and we could definitely see many, many

06:44more nominations.

06:45Yeah.

06:46And that's it for now.

06:47Join us again, please, next time for another edition of Awards Circuit.

06:49Thanks for watching.

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