It has been a particularly good year for Canadians in television, as the nominations were this year’s Emmy Awards were announced last week, and there are some big names nominated in big categories, in addition to a number of Canadians up for awards in technical categories, and there is even a major star named for producing a documentary on a Canadian comedy legend.
The Canadian with the most significant nominations at this year’s premier award show in television is R. Scott Gemmill, a veteran writer who has worked on TV classics such as JAG and ER, but his most significant work to date has been as a writer and showrunner on the acclaimed medical drama The Pitt, which is the reigning winner of the coveted award Outstanding Drama Series, standing as Gemmill’s sole Emmy Award to date. This year, The Pitt is the most nominated show in the entire ceremony, landing 25 nominations, 12 of which are in the so-called “major categories,” including Outstanding Drama Series, standing as one of the favourites to win the award, while Gemmill is also nominated for Outstanding Writing for a Drama Series.
Gemmill is not the only veteran Canadian creative nominated for Emmy Awards either. Graham Yost, best known for his work as a writer and showrunner on Justified – one of the best TV shows of the 2010s – and the ongoing show Silo, which is a proven hit with audiences and critics alike, but major Emmy nominations have eluded the show since its debut. Instead, Yost is also nominated in the Outstanding Drama Series for serving as a producer on Slow Horses. The other titan of the industry that has landed a nomination is none other than Lorne Michaels, whose ongoing work as a producer and showrunner on the timeless Saturday Night Live has landed him yet another nomination in the Outstanding Variety Series category.
The final nominee for a Primetime Emmy Award, then, is Martin Short, who has once again been recognized for his standout work on Only Murders in the Building with a nomination for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series. While Short is certainly in with a chance to finally earn a statue for his consistently hilarious performance as Oliver Putnam, the competition is stiff in his category, and I would wager that Matthew Rhys of Widow’s Bay is the favourite. However, this is not Short’s sole nomination either, as he has also earned a nod in the Creative Arts section of the Emmys for Outstanding Host for a Game Show, having presented Match Game.
Martin Short is not the only member of Canadian acting royalty nominated in the Creative Arts portion of the show, as Michael J. Fox has been recognized in the Outstanding Guest Actor in a Comedy Series category for his unsurprisingly impressive work in Shrinking. This marked a welcome return for the 5-time Emmy winner, who had not performed in a live action production since appearing in two episodes of The Good Fight in 2020, undoubtedly due to his ongoing struggle with Parkinson’s, which his role in Shrinking embraces in order to shed life on the devastating disease.
These legends are not the only Canadian actors nominated for Creative Arts Emmys, as Brittany Allen has been named in the Outstanding Guest Actress in a Drama Series category for her performance as a terminally ill patient in The Pitt. There is also one other Canadian actor nominated for a statue in this section of the awards show, and he happens to be one of the most famous Canuck actors on earth: Ryan Reynolds. Yet, despite earning two nominations, neither are for acting, but rather his work as a producer, as Welcome to Wrexham and John Candy: I Like Me have been nominated for Outstanding Unstructured Reality Program and Outstanding Documentary or Nonfiction Special, respectively.
Rounding off the Canadian nominees for Creative Arts Emmys, then, we have Tyler Whitman, Danielle McBride, Ève Corrêa-Guedes, Craig MacLellan, each of whom have been nominated for Outstanding Sound Editing for a Comedy or Drama Series (Half-Hour) and Animation for their work on Murderbot, while Chris MacLean has been nominated for Outstanding Special Visual Effects in a Season or a Movie in recognition of his contributions to the effects on Foundation.
The Creative Arts Awards will take place on September 5th and 6th, while the main ceremony is slated for September 14th, and will be hosted by Mariska Hargitay.