David Harbour, “Stranger Things”
Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series
Talk to “Stranger Things” executive producer Shawn Levy and he’ll tell you the secret weapon of the Netflix hit series isn’t a specific teenage actor or movie icon Winona Ryder, but veteran actor Harbour. As Sheriff Jim Hopper, Harbour is the grounded soul of the series providing the viewers with a flawed character who recognizes how bizarre everything is going on around him, but is brave enough to take it on in order to find out the truth. He’s so appreciated by his fellow actors and the show’s producers it’s why he was chosen to accept the SAG Ensemble award when the cast won it this past January.
Kathryn Hahn, “I Love Dick”
Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series
Hahn is having a period of her career she’ll never forget. Not only did she have a massive blockbuster last summer with “Bad Moms,” but she’s been Emmy nomination worthy for her work in the first three seasons of “Transparent” (as has most of the cast). Now, “Transparent” creator Jill Soloway has collaborated with Hahn on the incredibly complex and unique “I Love Dick.” It’s Hahn at her absolute best and, in a perfect world, it’s a series the Television Academy would embrace with open arms.
Matt Smith, “The Crown”
Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series
Make no mistake, Claire Foy rules as Queen Elizabeth II in Peter Morgan‘s epic tale of the early days of the British monarch, but Smith, who is best known for his time on “Doctor Who,” gives new life to her husband Phillip, the Duke of Edinburgh. Smith helps viewers — especially American ones — understand the difficult adjustment Phillip went through both in private and on the world stage. He couldn’t have been better.
Frank Langella, “The Americans”
Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series
After three seasons the 79-year-old Oscar nominee finally gets a great arc from series creator Joe Weisberg and the writing staff of, arguably, the best drama on television. This season Gabriel tries to retire and return to his homeland and Langella plays him as a man who is simply tired of having the weight of the world on his shoulders. He’s exemplary.
Timothy Hutton, “American Crime”
Outstanding Lead Actor in a Limited Series or Movie
Hutton was nominated in this category for the first season of “American Crime,” but bypassed a year ago. In its final season, Hutton plays a North Carolina businessman whose frustration over his failing furniture making business and marriage intensifies as his wife (Lily Taylor) retreats further and further away from him and the options to save the relationship begin to dwindle. Hutton is very impressive in an ensemble that features top of their game turns from Taylor, Felicity Huffman, Regina King, Ana Mulvoy Ten and Mickaëlle X. Bizet.
Jackie Hoffman, “Feud: Bette and Joan”
Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Limited Series or Movie
As Mamacita, Joan Crawford‘s longtime housekeeper/assistant, Hoffman stole almost every scene she was in letting her character be the comic relief without overshadowing the real life story around her. The veteran stand-up and improv artist is probably too under the radar to get enough Emmy love, but without her contributions, Jessica Lange‘s Crawford would fall completely flat (and that’s the truth).
The men of “Big Little Lies”
The women of “Big Little Lies” deserve all the praise they have garnered (and more), but how about some of the men in the acting ensemble? Adam Scott and Alexander Skarsgard, in particular, deserve kudos in the Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Limited Series or Movie category. Both actors will probably be snubbed, but that’s a shame. They both deliver nuanced turns that let their co-stars, Reese Witherspoon and Nicole Kidman, bask in the spotlight.
Emmy voting ends on June 26.
