From pandemic shutdown making way for newcomers, to streaming giants taking over traditional networks, here are five things to look out for as the nominations are unveiled.
Television shows binge-watched — and even filmed — during the pandemic will vie for coveted Emmy nominations Tuesday, with Netflix's The Crown tipped to reign over a unique year for the small screen.
Like the rest of us, the Television Academy's 25,000 voters spent several months stuck at home, leaving them ample time to sift through a stripped-down selection of series from their sofas.
Nominees for TV's equivalent of the Oscars will be announced on Tuesday. in a live-streamed ceremony starting at 3.30 pm GMT (9 pm IST), after which final-round voting begins for the 73rd Emmy Awards, set for 19 September.
Ron Cephas Jones (This is Us) and his daughter Jasmine Cephas Jones (Blindspotting, Hamilton) will be the hosts of the announcement event.
Pandemic shutdown on filming makes way for newcomers
The arrival of early last year shut down filming and upended TV production schedules, meaning the overall number of Emmy contenders has fallen.
Heavyweights like Netflix's royal drama The Crown managed to wrap just before lockdown, while others including Hulu's dystopian saga The Handmaid's Tale rushed back to set as soon as restrictions eased.
Emma Corrin as Princess Diana in The Crown. Netflix
But the enforced hiatus meant popular shows like Succession, last year's best drama winner, failed to produce a season in time for this year's awards.
That has created room for newcomers — especially in comedy, where Michael Douglas's The Kominsky Method is the sole nominee from last year running again.
The race for best comedy series "is going to have so much fresh blood in it," said IndieWire's TV awards editor Libby Hill. "When your job is to have an idea of what's going to happen, a year like this is just pandemonium."
Netflix eyes top prize
In recent years, Netflix has unseated HBO in the battle for the most nominations.
Given the streaming giant's prodigious output, that is unlikely to change this year, according to Hill, who describes premium cable channel HBO as the "niche arthouse to Netflix's megaplex."
A still from Queen's Gambit. Netflix
But nominations don't necessarily translate into wins, and Netflix has somehow never won the Emmys for best drama, best comedy or best-limited series.
Could that change come September?
"This is most likely The Crown's year," said Hill, with previous drama winners Succession and Game of Thrones absent, and the British royals saga delivering "a spectacular fourth season."
Rotten Tomatoes also has also listed The Crown as the show that will bag the most nominations this time.
Netflix's cultural phenomenon The Queen's Gambit, which sent chessboard sales soaring, is tipped to dominate the limited series awards.
Limited series category
The Emmys' limited series category — for shows stopping after one season — has become ever more competitive in recent years, drawing Hollywood's top A-listers to the small screen's most prestigious projects.
A still from The Underground Railroad. Facebook/TheUGRailroadTV
This year, The Queen's Gambit faces formidable competition from Kate Winslet's small-town murder mystery Mare of Easttown, and the Barry Jenkins-directed slavery tale The Underground Railroad.
Also competing are two series delving into London's Black communities — HBO's critically-adored I May Destroy You, which follows the aftermath of a rape, and Steve McQueen's Small Axe immigrant anthology.
The Marvel phenomenon
All those limited series must fend off a new foe — the superheroes of Marvel's WandaVision.
The show starring popular characters from Marvel's record-breaking films, including Elizabeth Olsen's magical witch Wanda Maximoff, won legions of fans and critical praise for its quirky send-up of classic TV sitcoms.
Elizabeth Olsen as Wanda Maximoff. Marvel Studios.
It is not the only "genre" show gatecrashing the Emmys — fellow Marvel series The Falcon and the Winter Soldier is running for best drama, alongside Star Wars spin-off The Mandalorian, which earned 15 nods and seven wins last year.
"I don't think there's that inborn bias like you find in film, that divide between what's 'popular' and what's 'high art,'" said Hill.
"I think there's plenty of room for Marvel at the Emmys."
Streaming giants take over traditional networks
Traditional US television networks are rapidly vanishing from the Emmys conversation, but the number of streamers in play continues to multiply.
Jason Sudekis in and as Ted Lasso. Apple TV+
Looking to build on their launches last year, Apple TV+ is campaigning hard for Ted Lasso — the hot favourite in comedy, about a hapless American football coach thrust into English soccer — while Disney+ has Hamilton in addition to its superhero offerings.
Making their debuts, HBO's new sister streaming platform HBO Max has original comedies The Flight Attendant and Hacks, and NBC's Peacock streamer boasts the Tina Fey-produced Girls5eva.
Lead actors and actresses
Rotten Tomatoes is rooting for Olivia Colman and Emma Corrin (The Crown), Elisabeth Moss (The Handmaid's Tale), Uzo Aduba (In Treatment), Phoebe Dynevor (Bridgerton), Jurnee Smollett (Lovecraft Country). In addition to this list, Vanity Fair is vying for Sarah Paulson (Ratched) and Mj Rodriguez (Pose).
Meanwhile for the Outstanding Actor category, Rotten Tomatoes names Josh O'Connor (The Crown), Regé-Jean Page (Bridgerton), Matthew Rhys (Perry Mason), Billy Porter (Pose), Anthony Mackie (The Falcon and the Winter Soldier), and Sterling K Brown (This is Us). Meanwhile, Vanity Fair has omitted Mackie and added Jonathan Majors (Lovecraft Country) to their list.
“Since I was a little boy huddled up next to my grandmother, television has always been my reliable friend, so it is an enormous honour for me to host this year’s Emmy Awards,” Cedric the Entertainer said in a statement.
“Throughout the roller-coaster of a year that we have all lived through, television has helped us stay connected as a society like never before,” said the actor and comedian, who stars in and produces CBS’ sitcom The Neighborhood.
(With inputs from agencies)