‘Gilded Age’ Season 2 Emmy Entries: Carrie Coon, Morgan Spector

Will “The Gilded Age” strike Emmy gold?

After its second season, HBO’s historical drama ‘The Gilded Age’ has entered the Emmy race with a whopping 37 nominations, Variety can exclusively reveal. This includes excellent drama series, 15 leading actors and the season finale ‘In Terms of Winning and Losing’, which will feature director Michael Engler and writer Julian Fellowes in their entries.

The central couple, Bertha and George Russell, played by Carrie Coon and Morgan Spector, are contenders in the lead actor categories. Coon, an Emmy nominee for the third season of the anthology crime series “Fargo” in 2017, has a strong shot at earning her second nomination and competing with contenders Anna Sawai, Jennifer Aniston and Emma Stone. While already proving to be a big year for the actress, she could find herself in the Oscar race later this year for her standout performance in Azazel Jacobs’ family drama “His Three Daughters,” alongside Natasha Lyonne and Elizabeth Olsen.

Spector, best known for his role as Dante Allen in the seventh season of “Homeland,” is hoping to land his first major acting recognition. He will compete against candidates such as Gary Oldman, Dominic West and Walton Goggins.

A slew of supporting players, both from series regulars and returning actors, will compete against each other in the eight available slots, each for a supporting actor and actress. Emmy darlings Christine Baranski and Cynthia Nixon are in prime position to add another nomination to their stunning resumes. Baranski plays the stubborn old socialite Agnes van Rhijn; she has received a whopping 15 Emmy nominations, winning her first and only one in 1995 for her supporting role as a comedic actress in “Cybill.” She is also recognized for her memorable roles in ‘Frasier’, ‘The Big Bang Theory’ and ‘The Good Wife’.

Nixon plays Agnes’ spinster sister, Ada, and has been praised in many reviews. Nixon, a five-time nominee, has taken home two Emmy statuettes: guest drama actress for “Law & Order: Special Victims Unit” in 2008 and supporting comedy actress for “Sex and the City” in 2004. The pair will also compete against their co-stars Louisa Jacobson, Denée Benton, Audra McDonald, Taissa Farmiga, Donna Murphy and Kelli O’Hara.

The supporting drama actor candidates will be led by Emmy winner Nathan Lane, who plays the scene-stealing Ward McAllister, an arbiter of social rules and style.

“The Gilded Age” received its first nomination at the SAG Awards for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series, with all 34 actors recognized. This broke a record previously held by ‘Game of Thrones’, which had 32 nominated actors.

Oscar winner Julian Fellowes, known for the original screenplay “Gosford Park” (2001), is a 10-time Emmy nominee with two wins for PBS’s “Downton Abbey” for writing and outstanding miniseries or movie (before the show was categorized as a drama). for subsequent seasons). Engler has been nominated three times for directing episodes of “Sex and the City,” “30 Rock” and “Downton Abbey.”

Production designer Bob Shaw, who won for Season 1, will likely be in the running for a new statuette. In contrast, the costumes for this second season are hoping for redemption from costume designer Kasia Walicka Maimone and her crew after being left out of the first season.

The eight-episode second season, which premiered in October 2023, received high praise from critics. Variety chief TV critic Alison Herman wrote, “‘The Gilded Age’ puts its budget where its heart really lies: with the extravagant trappings of its characters’ dynastic fortunes.”

Fellowes will write and executive produce the series with Bob Greenblatt, Gareth Neame, David Crockett and Michael Engler, who also directs. Sonja Warfield and Salli Richardson-Whitfield also serve as executive producers. The show was renewed for a third season, which is expected to premiere this fall.

Read: All Primetime Emmy predictions in every category at Variety Awards circuit.

The full list of Emmy submissions can be found below. Voting for the nominations begins on June 13.