‘Succession’ breaks decades-old Emmy record for most acting nominations in a single year

It was never a question of whether “Succession” would earn multiple acting nominations for its stellar third season that aired in late 2021. Rather, it was simply a matter of how many it would receive. It turns out, the answer is “enough to set a new Emmy record.” Created by Jesse Armstrong, the HBO drama about the complex relationships between the members of a wealthy and dysfunctional family who own a major media conglomerate snagged a history-making 14 acting nominations this year. Most were expected, some were not, but all were exciting.

Let’s start with the expected: Jeremy Strong, who took home the award for Best Drama Actor in 2020, received his second nomination in the category for portraying troubled middle son Kendall Roy. Following a season that pitted Kendall against his family and saw him finally confess to his siblings what happened at the end of Season 1, Strong’s nomination was all but guaranteed. But he’ll again be competing against co-star Brian Cox, the Shakespearan actor who portrays aging family patriarch Logan Roy. He too earned his second bid for his performance on the show, and he gave an equally strong performance.

Also expected were the show’s multiple nominations in Best Drama Supporting Actor. Kieran Culkin, who earlier this year took home the Critics Choice Award for his performance on the show, earned his second straight nomination for portraying youngest son Roman Roy. A fan favorite, Culkin showed off his range in Season 3, as Roman proved his worth and finally did more than just deliver the laughs (though he did that too). He is an early favorite, but he’ll have to compete against co-star Matthew Macfadyen, whose Tom Wambsgans had the meatiest and most emotionally affecting storyline of the season as Tom soberly prepared to take the fall for the company’s misdeeds and potentially go to prison. Macfadyen, who was also nominated for his performance in 2020, already won the BAFTA for his performance. Rounding out the show’s nominations in the category is Nicholas Braun, who portrays Tom’s punching bag-slash-confidant and one-time outsider Cousin Greg (unfortunately, Alan Ruck, who portrays eldest son Connor Roy, was snubbed).

SEE Full list of Emmy nominations

In the supporting actress category, Sarah Snook was joined by J. Smith-Cameron. While this is Snook’s second nomination for portraying Shiv, the only daughter of the Roy family, this is the first nomination for Smith-Cameron. That she made it into the field is not surprising and actually well deserved — her performance as Gerri Kellman is sharp, and the character’s relationship with Roman has given Smith-Cameron plenty of excellent material and given us many memes.

Where the show’s nominations start to become more surprising are the guest acting categories, and they’re really only surprising because of the sheer number of them. Predictably, James Cromwell is back again for portraying Logan’s brother and Greg’s grandfather Ewan. This is Cromwell’s sixth Emmy nomination overall and second for his work on the show. He’s joined in the guest drama actor category by three others: Adrien Brody, who already has two Emmy noms to his name, has been recognized for his portrayal of smug Waystar Royco shareholder Josh Aaronson; Arian Moayed, who portrays recurring character Stewy Hosseini, snagged his first Emmy nomination this year; and Alexander Skarsgard, who won an Emmy in 2017 for his supporting work on HBO’s “Big Little Lies,” is up for his turn as Lukas Matsson, the owner of GoJo, the tech company Waystar wants to acquire. Joining the men in the guest categories are three talented actresses: Hope Davis, who portrays Sandi Furness; Sanaa Lathan, who portrays Lisa Arthur, a high-profile attorney hired by Kendall; and Harriet Walter as Lady Caroline Collingwood, the mother of Kendall, Shiv and Roman.

SEE Emmy Experts slugfest: Snap judgments on those wild nominations, snubs (no ‘Maid’) and surprises (double Sydney Sweeney)

Even if you predicted that “Succession,” which has only grown in popularity since its debut in 2018, would do well at this year’s Emmys, the show’s 14 acting nominations are still impressive. Reminder that it got zero acting nominations for its first season. They represent how ingrained the show has become in pop culture, yes, but also the show’s unique ability to improve season after season. They have also allowed the HBO show to finally overtake “The West Wing” as the drama series with the most acting bids in a single year (12, set in 2002). But that’s not all. The show has also surpassed the iconic miniseries 1977 “Roots” for the most acting nominations for any program in a single year (13).

So, now the question becomes: Who has what it takes to overcome potential vote-splitting in order to walk away a winner come September? Only time will tell. 

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