Are you ready for a super-competitive Emmy Award season? No, we’re not trying to over-hype yet another awards frame. We don’t have to. The evidence is right in front of us. And while FX may not have a “Shogun”. to dominate the proceedings this time around, HBO, Netflix, and Apple TV+ have a ton – and we mean a ton – of critically acclaimed players looking to take home some trophies in September. 
Let’s ponder some pressing questions, shall we?
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Can “Hacks” pull off a back-to-back?
Last September’s pleasant surprise was “Hacks” upsetting “The Bear” for the Comedy Series Emmy. The Max breakout had lost to “Ted Lasso” twice, before returning for its third season and encountering a dominant awards season run from the FX powerhouse. “The Bear” had won the category just 9 months prior, during the strike-delayed January 2024 ceremony. While the industry grumbled over how it felt less and less “comedic” in its second season, it still racked up 23 nominations and major wins. “Hacks” triumph was seen as a message and this winter, the comedy series won key WGA and PGA Awards over its culinary competition. But at the SAG Awards, “Only Murders in the Building” shocked by taking the Ensemble Comedy category. Was that a hiccup? Or is the playing field that wide open?

Is “Adolescence” really this year’s “Baby Reindeer”?
Netflix was semi-admittedly not prepared for the cultural moment “Baby Reindeer” fostered last spring. Originally, the British-based series was going to be submitted for International Emmy consideration, but after it became a global phenomenon, including in the U.S., that quickly changed (and just in time for the Primetime Emmy submission deadline). This year, the streamer has another critically acclaimed English export on its hands and it’s ready for it. “Adolescence” has already earned rave reviews and, at posting, is still the no. 1 series on the streamer after 10 days of release (including some major internal competition). Like “Reindeer,” Netflix dropped “Adolescence” without a ton of fanfare. It wasn’t heavily marketed like the current no. 2 series, “The Residence,” but they did reach out to key critics beforehand (something Netflix rarely does on the series side). An intentional strategy to foster organic word of mouth. It’s worked and people in the industry are buzzing (including a ton of film people). Will it be big enough to take down “The Penguin” in the Limited or Anthology Series category? That’s the question because…

Is “The Penguin” HBO Max’s secret weapon?
…not only was the HBO and DC Studios series a massive hit, but it performed more impressively during guild award season than anyone could have imagined. Sure, it was expected to do well with the Make-Up and Hairstylists Guild (obviously) and at the VES Awards, but an ADG Award win for Production Design? Colin Farrell winning SAG over “Reindeer’s” Richard Gadd?  A WGA Award win over “Ripley” and “True Detective: Night Country”? Cristin Milioti earning a Spirit Award nomination? Three DGA Award nominations in a category where just five directors were recognized? (Re-read that to comprehend the love from the directors). Momentum may have swung to “Adolescence” for now, but don’t count “The Penguin” out.

Who’s not making the Drama Series cut?
Unlike last season, where the category switch of “Shogun” and the surprise reception for “Fallout” made sure some potentially embarrassing nominees didn’t make the final eight nominees, 2025 is looking substantially more competitive. Previous nominees such as “Andor,” “The Last of Us,” “The White Lotus,” and “Severance,” appear to be a given. How about other former nominees such as “Yellowjackets,” “House of the Dragon,” “The Handmaid’s Tale,” “Squid Game,””The Boys,” and “Slow Horses”? Or newcomers including “The Pitt,” “Black Doves,” “Paradise,” or “The Day of the Jackal”? Will “Your Friends and Neighbors,” “Bad Sisters,” “Landman,” or, finally, “Industry,” or “Dark Winds,” resonate? Most of these series won’t crack the final eight, but which programs will make it onto those annual Snubs and Surprises lists? Oh, and deservedly?

O.K., so like, who is actually winning the Emmy for Best Drama Series?
At the end of March, the money has to be on “Severance.” It’s Apple TV+’s “biggest hit” and has been incredibly well-received. But, “The Last of Us,” is no slouch and hasn’t aired one episode of its second season yet. Neither has “Andor,” which Tony Gilroy says the more timely than ever “Star Wars” series is “the most important thing” he’ll ever do (this from a man who earned two Oscar noms for directing and writing “Michael Clayton”). And, lastly, we’ve got two more episodes of “The White Lotus” on the way. Can Mike White pull out a series Emmy win with its most-watched season to date? If it wasn’t up against the last season of “Succession,” the second frame of “Lotus” likely would have won for 2023. Ponder.

What does “Only Murders in the Building’s” two SAG wins mean for Emmys?
One of the biggest award season surprises in February was “Only Murders in the Building” taking the SAG Ensemble for a Comedy Series Award over not only “The Bear” and “Hacks,” but “Abbott Elementary” which won the category in 2023. The series also saw Martin Short win his first individual SAG for Male Actor in a Comedy Series over two-time winner Jeremy Allen White, who many thought was a shoo-in to win the trifecta. Are the actors, who make up the largest block of Television Academy voters, in love with the last season of “Murders”? Was it a hiccup? Was it a one-moment-in-the-spotlight sort of event? Or will it resonate through Emmy voting over the next five months? Frankly, we’re not even sure Hulu knows where “Murders” stands and we love that there’s a wildcard in the mix.

Will “The Studio” play?
One new Comedy Series looking to crash the party and steal some trophies is Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg’s “The Studio” which begins its run on Apple TV+ Tuesday night. We’re massive fans of a hilarious, cinematic, and realistic look at the movie business. It is often shockingly brilliant. Can it have enough broad appeal to overtake “Hacks,” “Murders” or and residual love for “The Bear”? We’ll know soon enough…

Can social media love land Parker Posey an Emmy?
We’re down for Parker Posey‘s southern-tinged explanations of, “Piper, no!” and “Buddhism” to be part of the pop culture lexicon for 2025. That being said, social media has convinced itself Posey is winning an Emmy for her performance on “The White Lotus” and there’s a problem: it’s not even in the top four “Lotus” performances that qualify in her category. At the moment, it appears all the actresses are going supporting, and that would mean richer work from Carrie Coon, Amiee Lou Wood, Leslie Bibb, and Michelle Monaghan are front and center (we love you Natasha Rockwell, but this isn’t your time). Granted, Emmy voters loved “Lotus” star Jennifer Coolidge enough to award her two trophies, but we’re not sure Posey is at that level (yet). Granted, there are two episodes left. She may still have her “Emmy scene’ moment still to come. Then again, she has fierce competition from other contenders who are not her co-stars too.

More…