American Horror Story racks up the Emmy nods; Bates Motel, Hannibal shut out

JoBloJoBlo
Last Updated on August 5, 2021

The Emmy nominations were handed down today, and while most of the shows gifted with nods don’t fall into our wheelhouse, the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences sure went to town with one notable title: “American Horror Story: Coven”.

The FX series received a stunning 17 nominations, good for the third most nominated show in television, right behind “Game of Thrones” and “Fargo”. Among the highlights: Outstanding Miniseries; Jessica Lange and Sarah Paulson both grabbed Best Actress in a Miniseries noms; Kathy Bates, Frances Conroy and Angela Bassett all received Best Supporting Actress in a Miniseries noms; Outstanding Writing for a Miniseries (“Bitchcraft”) and Outstanding Directing for a Miniseries (“Bitchcraft”). Then a slew of technical nominations.

Meanwhile, the rest of TV horror was all but shut out. “The Walking Dead”, the most popular show on cable (and perhaps television) was once again denied any significant Emmy love, nabbing two technical noms. (I was expecting at least a nomination for Melissa McBride.) Ditto for “True Blood”, now in its final season.

“Hannibal” and “Bates Motel” were left out in the dark completely. The former is one of TV’s most compelling shows – not to mention the best looking – while the latter features two outstanding performances week in and week out from Vera Farmiga and Freddie Highmore. Farmiga was nominated in the Best Actress category last year, yes, but I’d argue her performance this season was even stronger (while the show itself was weaker).

What do you think of “American Horror Story’s” amazing Emmy success? Furthermore, what else was egregiously snubbed?

Source: Emmys

About the Author

Film Critic

Favorite Movies: Jaws, Star Wars Trilogy, Aliens, Citizen Kane, The Third Man, Dawn read more of the Dead ('78), The Texas Chainsaw Massacre ('74), Fargo, Miller's Crossing, Reservoir Dogs, The Manchurian Candidate ('62), Taxi Driver, Back to the Future, Stand by Me, Shaun of the Dead, Boogie Nights, La Dolce Vita, 12 Angry Men, The Birds, Touch of Evil

Likes: Film, Beer (who the hell DOESN'T around here?!), writing, NY Mets, read more The Jets, Girls who love film AND beer (at the same time), Jazz, Deadwood, The Wire, The Office, The Twilight Zone, Cormac McCarthy, Graham Greene, Stephen King, F. Scott Fitzgerald, Scorsese, Spielberg, Halloween season, Marvel movies, Breaking Bad, The Walking Dead, Ash vs Evil Dead, Game of Thrones, Edgar Allen Poe, Mother Nature

The comment section exists to allow readers to discuss the article constructively and respectfully, focused on the topic at hand.

What’s Not Allowed

  • Abusive language, insults, or harassment toward other users or staff.
  • Hate speech of any kind is strictly prohibited.
  • Bickering, bullying, personal attacks, or baiting others to argue
  • Extended off-topic debates, especially those centered on politics or religion rather than the article topic
  • No AI content or SPAM