Birmingham actor Walton Goggins is having quite a moment, earning back-to-back Emmy nominations. Last year it was for playing a ghoul on “Fallout” and this year it is for his “White Lotus” portrayal of the troubled Rick Hatchett. The Alabama-born, Georgia-raised actor has been around for over three decades, with memorable turns in blockbusters like “Django Unchained” and “Lincoln,” playing a spray-tanned, silver-streaked televangelist in “The Righteous Gemstones” and a hosting stint on NBC’s “Saturday Night Live.” “Thank you God for all this Goggins,” said a headline in Vulture.
The Emmy nominations are in, and familiar favorites like “Hacks,” “The Bear,” and “Abbott Elementary” dominate the comedy categories. However, there were some differences, too. Kathy Bates became the oldest lead drama actress nominee at 77 for “Matlock.” Apple TV+’s “Shrinking” gained traction with seven nominations, including Harrison Ford’s first Emmy nod. Netflix’s “Adolescence” scored 13 nominations, while “The Handmaid’s Tale” earned just one as it concluded its six-season run. Meanwhile, “The Voice” missed a reality competition nod for the first time since 2012, and Kristen Bell received her first-ever Emmy nomination for “Nobody Wants This.”
Emmy voters are creatures of habit but there were some happy differences this time around, like “Matlock” star Kathy Bates becoming the oldest performer ever nominated in the lead drama actress category at age 77. And “Severance,” which last year only won for dramatic score and title design, looks in better shape for its second season.
Here are other talking points, “snubs” and surprises from the Emmy nominations:
“Shrinking” the Apple TV+ comedy about a group of funny, complicated therapists, didn't get much Emmy attention last year during its debut season, with only two nominations for stars Jason Segel, a co-creator, and Jessica Williams. This time, “Shrinking,” well, expanded — with seven nods, including best comedy, and nods for Segel, Williams, Michael Urie and Harrison Ford’s first Emmy nomination.
“Adolescence,” the Netflix four-part series that traces the emotional fallout after a U.K. teen stabbing, became a sensation, a sort of 2025 version of “Baby Reindeer” and has earned a boatload of Emmy nominations, with 13. Owen Cooper, who plays the young attacker, became the youngest nominee in the history of his category — best supporting actor in a limited/anthology series or TV movie. The series was co-created and co-written by Stephen Graham, who also stars as the accused attacker’s father and earned a nomination for his work.
“The Daily Show,” “Jimmy Kimmel Live” and “The Late Show With Stephen Colbert” filled up the outstanding talk series category, dashing hopes that newcomers might crash the party. Like John Mulaney’s “Everybody’s Live With John Mulaney” on Netflix, which features a quirky mix of guests, the host doing odd things like fighting three 14-year-old-boys and an episode when Mulaney was completely in a blindfold. There's also the spicy wing YouTube interview series “Hot Ones” hosted by Sean Evans, which has attracted A-list talent and often pulls in an audience higher than the established network late-night boys.
The first season of “Squid Game” became an international phenomenon after its release in 2021 and was embraced by the Television Academy the next year, racking up 14 Emmy nominations and winning six, including best actor for Lee Jung-jae. Three years later, the second season continued to captivate audiences, logging over 192 million views on Netflix. But not a single Emmy nomination went to its cutthroat look at life.
After six harrowing, powerful seasons, Hulu's “The Handmaid’s Tale” ended its exploration of an alternative America taken over by a totalitarian theocracy with a meek showing. The dystopian drama had garnered 76 nominations and 15 wins over its lifetime going into Tuesday's announcement — including a historic outstanding drama series win in its first season, the first ever for a streaming platform. But the series got a sole nomination Tuesday, for guest actress. It's a hard way to say goodbye to a series that was ranked as the 25th and 38th best TV series of the 21st century by The Guardian and BBC, respectively.
