Thirty-four performers across diverse backgrounds received Primetime Emmy nominations today which is even with last year when the Television Academy recognized the same number of nominees in the acting and reality hosting categories.
This year’s count remains above the 2019 low of 26 non-Caucasian actors and reality hosts, yet still far from 2021’s record 49 nominees.
The biggest gain this year was with indigenous performers with Under the Bridge‘s Lily Gladstone and True Detective: Night Country‘s Kali Reis both nominated in the category of Supporting Actress Limited Series, Anthology or Movie.
Also breaking through is Reservation Dogs star D’Pharaoh Woon-A-Tai who landed a nom in Comedy Series Lead Actor. The Oji-Cree First Nations and Guyanese actor portrays Bear Smallhill on the FX series, which finally landed a Best Comedy Series nod after three years on the air; the show ultimately ending. The single-camera comedy follows the exploits of rural Oklahoma Native Americans Elora Danan (Devery Jacobs), Bear Smallhill (Woon-A-Tai), Willie Jack (Paulina Alexis) and Cheese (Lane Factor). Woon-A-Tai is of Oji-Crew First Nations and Guyanese descent.
Reis, a professional boxer, is of Cape Verdean ancestry and Native American descent, specifically Wampanoag, Cherokee, and Nipmuc ancestry. On the show she played state trooper Evangeline Navarro who partners with Jodie Foster’s police chief to uncover the fate of research scientists in the fictional town of Ennis, Alaska; one of the series themes being the exploitation of Native Alaskans.
Gladstone, of Piegan Blackfeet and Nez Perce descent, plays Cam Bentland on Hulu’s Under the Bridge, a police officer looking into the murder of a 14-year-old. Gladstone made waves at the Oscars earlier this year as the first Native American Best Actress nominee for her turn in Martin Scorsese’s Killers of the Flower Moon.
FX’s Shōgun which led all Primetime Emmy noms at 25, scored four nominations for performers of Asian heritage (five acting overall), which is the same count as last year’s Beef, and one less than Squid Game‘s five in 2022.
The most diverse Emmy nom acting categories were Lead Actress Comedy Series with a total of four (out of six noms) for Quinta Brunson (Abbot Elementary), Ayo Edebiri (The Bear), Selena Gomez (Murders in the Building), and Maya Rudolph (Loot), as well as Supporting Actress Limited Series, Anthology or Movie which also saw four with Gladstone, Reis, Aja Naomi King (Lessons in Chemistry) and Nava Mau (Baby Reindeer).
Gomez is the fourth Latina nominated in Lead Actress Comedy Series after last year’s Jenna Ortega for Wednesday, Rita Moreno in 1983 for ABC’s 9 to 5 and America Ferrera for Ugly Betty in 2007.
Rudolph is a quadruple nominee this year also being recognized in the Guest Actress Comedy Series slot for guest-hosting SNL, Original Music and Lyrics for that late night sketch show on which she co-wrote the ditty in her monologue, as well as Character Voice-over for Big Mouth.
Brunson was also nominated for Comedy Series Writing for Abbot Elementary.
Two Emmy categories completely devoid of nominees from diverse backgrounds: Lead Actor in Limited Series, Anthology or Movie and Guest Actor Comedy Series.
Other actors recognized across diverse backgrounds at the 76th Primetime Emmy noms are Sofia Vergara (Lead Actress Limited Series, Anthology Movie for Griselda), Maya Erskine (Lead Actress Drama Series, Mr & Mrs. Smith), Anna Sawai (Lead Actress Drama Series, Shōgun), Idris Elba (Lead Actor Drama Series, Hijack), Donald Glover (Lead Actor Drama Series, Mr. & Mrs. Smith. He was also a Drama Writing Series nominee for the Prime Video show as well), Hiroyuki Sanada (Lead Actor Drama Series, Shōgun), Nicole Beharie (Supporting Actress Drama, The Morning Show), Greta Lee (Supporting Actress Drama, The Morning Show), Karen Pittman (Supporting Actress Drama, The Morning Show), Takehiro Hira (Supporting Actor Drama Series, Shōgun), Tadanobu Asano (Supporting Actor Drama Series, Shōgun), Sheryl Lee Ralph (Supporting Actress Comedy Series, Abbot Elementary), Janelle James (Supporting Actress Comedy Series, Abbot Elementary), Liza Colón-Zayas (Supporting Actress Comedy Series, The Bear), Lionel Boyce (Supporting Actor Comedy Series, The Bear), Bowen Yang (Supporting Actor Comedy Series, SNL), Tyler James Williams (Supporting Actor Comedy Series, Abbot Elementary), Lamorne Morris (Supporting Actor, Limited, Anthology Series/Movie, Fargo), RuPaul (Host for Reality or Reality Competition, RuPaul‘s Drag Race), Kristen Kish (Host for Reality or Reality Competition, Top Chef), Daymond John (Host for Reality or Reality Competition, Shark Tank), Da’Vine Joy Randolph (Guest Actress Comedy Series, Murders in the Building), Michaela Coel (Guest Actress, Drama Series, Mr. & Mrs. Smith) and Néstor Carbonell (Guest Actor Drama Series, Shōgun).
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