By Lisa Richwine
LOS ANGELES, Sept 10 (Reuters) – “Hacks” star Jean Smart could become the first performer to win the Emmy for best comedy actress in every season of a TV show’s run while Harrison Ford could claim his first Emmy at age 84 for “Shrinking” at Monday’s Primetime Emmy Awards.
The Emmys offer a rare night of celebration as Hollywood grapples with production cutbacks, anxiety over artificial intelligence and the proposed Paramount Skydance purchase of HBO owner Warner Bros Discovery, a deal that has divided the industry and faces challenges in court.
HBO Max’s “The Pitt,” set in a Pittsburgh trauma center, is favored to win best drama for a second straight year, while star Noah Wyle, a veteran of 1990s medical drama “ER,” is a leading contender for a second straight best actor Emmy.
Mariska Hargitay, star of NBC’s drama “Law & Order: Special Victims Unit,” will host the ceremony, breaking with a tradition of having a comedian serve as emcee. The red-carpet event will be broadcast live at 8 p.m. ET (0000 GMT on Tuesday) from downtown Los Angeles on NBC and stream on Peacock.
Michael J. Fox will be recognized with the Bob Hope Humanitarian Award for his advocacy for people with Parkinson’s disease.
Outside of “The Pitt,” several races that once looked predictable now are hard to call, say Hollywood experts. Best comedy is a “nail-biter,” said Debra Birnbaum, editor-in-chief of awards website Gold Derby.
“Hacks,” about a septuagenarian stand-up comic fighting to stay relevant, looked like the clear frontrunner two months ago. It earned best comedy once in its previous four seasons.
‘WIDOW’S BAY’ POSES A THREAT TO ‘HACKS’
The show must fend off surging support, however, for Apple TV’s “Widow’s Bay,” a new horror comedy about an isolated New England town that appears to be cursed.
“It suddenly feels like we have a competition here,” Birnbaum said. “When you go around town and talk to people at events, there’s just a lot of excitement behind ‘Widow’s Bay.’ It just feels like something new and surprising and different.”
Matthew Rhys, who plays the small-town mayor on “Widow’s Bay,” is a contender for two acting honors. He was nominated for that role and for best actor in a limited series for “The Beast in Me” on Netflix.
Smart appears to be a lock to win best comedy actress for her role as comedy legend Deborah Vance in “Hacks,” having won the award four times. If she takes a fifth, she will be the first actor to sweep the category for a show’s entire run. Julia Louis-Dreyfus claimed the award for six of the seven seasons of “Veep.”
Ford, competing for supporting comedy actor, would be the oldest winner in the category if he takes the trophy, which would be his first Emmy, for his role as a gruff psychologist on “Shrinking.”
Another Hollywood legend, 79-year-old Oscar winner Sally Field, was nominated for playing a grieving mother in the Netflix movie “Remarkably Bright Creatures.”
Other nominees include Sterling K. Brown for “Paradise,” Gary Oldman for “Slow Horses” and Zendaya for “Euphoria.”
(Reporting by Lisa Richwine; Editing by Howard Goller)
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