Harrison Ford (‘Shrinking’) or Henry Winkler (‘Barry’) can set new Emmy age record
When 72-year-old Henry Winkler won his first career Emmy for “Barry” in 2018, he supplanted Jonathan Winters (65, “Davis Rules,” 1991) as the oldest champion in the history of the Best Comedy Supporting Actor category. Five years later, he still holds the Emmy age record and could soon set a new one by earning a bookend trophy for the HBO series. He does, however, face a serious challenge from Harrison Ford, who is three years his senior and thus, by winning for Apple TV Plus’ “Shrinking,” could raise the category’s age bar even higher.
Winkler, who turned 77 last October, has already picked up three Emmy nominations for “Barry,” the last two of which came in 2019 and 2022. He was beaten in those respective cases by Tony Shalhoub (“The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel”) and Brett Goldstein (“Ted Lasso”). He is now seeking recognition for his show’s fourth and final season, in which his character, acting teacher Gene Cousineau, makes an even greater enemy of his former student, Barry Berkman (Bill Hader), after publicly disclosing too much information about his relationship with the imprisoned hitman.
Winkler’s history with the Emmys dates back to 1976, when, at age 30, he received his first of three consecutive lead notices for the sitcom “Happy Days.” He was bested on his first outing by Jack Albertson (“Chico and the Man”) and on his next two by Carroll O’Connor (“All in the Family”). In 2000, he earned his only drama nomination for his guest stint on “The Practice,” ultimately losing to James Whitmore from the same series.
Ford, who will turn 81 one day after the upcoming Emmy nominations announcement, had never played a regular television role until last year. He appears on “Shrinking” as Dr. Paul Rhoades, a cognitive behavioral therapist dealing with Parkinson’s disease. As the star of Paramount Plus’ “1923,” he could simultaneously land in this year’s drama actor lineup and surpass Anthony Hopkins (79, “Westworld,” 2017) as the oldest man to ever compete there. He would also be the first male to net two concurrent Emmy bids for regular parts on continuing series since Sterling K. Brown (lead drama for “This Is Us,” supporting comedy for “The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel”) in 2020.
If either of them wins this supporting prize, Ford or Winkler would, in terms of age, also outpace every Best Comedy Actor recipient. That category’s record belongs to Eugene Levy, who was 73 when he won for “Schitt’s Creek” in 2020. At this point, the only actor older than Ford and Winkler who has ever contended for the comedy supporting award is Alan Arkin (85-86, “The Kominsky Method,” 2019-2020), while the only other nominees over 70 have been William Frawley (70-71, “I Love Lucy,” 1957-1958) and William Demarest (76, “My Three Sons,” 1968).
Winkler could also make Emmys history this year as the first man to collect four comedic acting bids after turning 70. Those who have also earned three apiece are leads Jeffrey Tambor (“Transparent,” 2015-2017), Ted Danson (“The Good Place,” 2018-2020) and Michael Douglas (“The Kominsky Method,” 2019-2021). The three septuagenarian (or older) dramatic actors who will have each preceded Winkler in amassing at least four nominations for a single series are supporting players Will Geer (“The Waltons,” 1973-1978) and William Shatner (“Boston Legal,” 2005-2009) and guest Robert Morse (“Mad Men,” 2008; 2010-2011; 2013-2014).
According to Gold Derby’s racetrack odds, Winkler and Ford are respectively in third and fourth place behind frontrunner Tyler James Williams (“Abbott Elementary”) and reigning champ Goldstein. With these four and several other contenders having their own distinct advantages, the race will undoubtedly be one of the closest of the year.
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