Image via Netflix
Whether we like it or not, awards lend credibility, and the Primetime Emmy Awards, given out each year to honor the best in primetime television, are some of the most prestigious. From Russian Doll to Game of Thrones to Killing Eve, the 71st Primetime Emmy Awards are stacked with series old and new that have won the hearts (and hopefully, a nomination) of Hollywood and the rest of the country. Between Netflix, Amazon Prime, Hulu, and network television, it's an incredibly exciting time for TV.
If you're a TV fan, chances are there's a star actor or actress who you're hoping to see win this year. Of course, the lead actor and lead actress categories can be exciting, but don't sleep on a supporting actor or actress; a true star can steal the show, even if they're not the lead. The best part of the Emmy Awards, of course, is watching an actor who has never won before win their Emmy. After all, Emmy awards for our favorite TV star feel like our own win—and everyone remembers their first, right?
Here are 10 actors who are up for Emmy awards this year, who have never won before. Tune in on Sept. 22 at 8:00 PM to see if they bring it home.
Don Cheadle
Nomination: Best Leading Actor in a Comedy Series (Black Monday)
Don Cheadle is primarily known as a film actor, earning raves for roles in Ocean’s Eleven, Crash, and Hotel Rwanda, the last of which earned him an Oscar nomination. Over the last decade or so, however, Cheadle has been lighting up the small screen when he isn’t palling around with The Avengers in numerous Marvel movies. His role as Marty Kaan on the Showtime comedy series House of Lies earned him four consecutive nominations for Best Leading Actor in a Comedy; this year, Cheadle is once again nominated for Best Leading Actor in a Comedy, but this time for Black Monday, a darkly comedic look at the infamous day that international stocks crashed in 1987. While Cheadle is already a respected actor with decades of work under his belt, an Emmy win would certainly add to his legacy.
Natasha Lyonne
Nominations: Outstanding Comedy Series, Best Leading Actress in a Comedy Series, Outstanding Writing for a Comedy Series (Russian Doll)
Natasha Lyonne is no stranger to Hollywood, having acted in films consistently since her breakthrough performance in 1996’s Everybody Says I Love You. While she’s been a consistent presence, she hadn’t truly broken into the awards conversation until her supporting role on Orange Is The New Black, and now, Russian Doll. Orange Is The New Black may have scored her a nomination for Outstanding Guest Actress in a Comedy Series in 2014, but she truly blew up this year, earning three nominations for Russian Doll: Outstanding Comedy Series, Outstanding Lead Actress, and Outstanding Writing.
Phoebe Waller-Bridge
Nominations: Outstanding Comedy Series, Best Leading Actress in a Comedy Series, Outstanding Writing For a Comedy Series (Fleabag), Outstanding Drama Series (Killing Eve)
Phoebe Waller-Bridge is new to the world of television, having only written three shows (Crashing, Fleabag, and Killing Eve), only one of which (Killing Eve) was simulcast in the U.S. (Crashing and Fleabag aired on Netflix and Amazon Prime, respectively, some time after their UK premieres). Waller-Bridge earned an Emmy nomination for writing the smash hit drama Killing Eve in 2018, and followed that up with an astounding four nominations in major categories this year. She’s once again nominated for Killing Eve, this time for Outstanding Drama Series, but the bulk of her nominations come from her show Fleabag, which earned critical raves with the premiere of its second season. Nominated for Best Lead Actress in a Comedy, Outstanding Writing in a Comedy, and Outstanding Comedy Series, Waller-Bridge could become the first person since veteran TV producer David E. Kelley (who won for both The Practice and Ally MacBeal) to win both the Outstanding Drama and Outstanding Comedy Series awards in the same year. An Emmy win in any of these categories would cement her meteoric rise.
Jason Bateman
Nominations: Outstanding Drama Series, Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series, Outstanding Directing for a Drama Series (Ozark)
Jason Bateman is familiar at the Emmys, but not in this particular genre. While still woefully underrated at the time, Bateman managed to snag a nomination for Arrested Development in 2006 and again in 2013 for the revival season. Since then, Bateman has moved on to Netflix favorite Ozark, a dark family drama about a father forced to move to the Ozarks and launder money for a drug boss. While it was a hit during the first season and snagged Bateman a nomination for Best Actor, the show truly broke into the race with its second season, earning five nominations, three of which went to Bateman. Nominated for Best Actor, Best Drama Series, and Best Directing, Bateman has become a triple threat in acting, producing, and directing, and it should be no surprise if the Emmys reward him for it.
Billy Porter
Nomination: Best Actor in a Drama Series (Pose)
Primarily a stage actor, Billy Porter made a name for himself in the Broadway musical Kinky Boots, for which he won a Tony as well as a Grammy. This has put him halfway toward EGOT, and his Emmy nomination could put him even closer. Porter is nominated for FX’s Pose, in which he plays fan favorite character Pray Tell, the emcee of the balls of New York in the show. Pose has steadily built up buzz during its first two seasons, no easy feat for an underrated show in a crowded TV landscape. Billy Porter could be just the person to put Pose on the awards map.
Kit Harington
Nomination: Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series (Game of Thrones)
Game of Thrones has famously been hugely successful at the Emmys, so far earning 47 awards, and breaking the record for most nominations received by a show in the same year with 32. While this may seem like a lot, many of their wins are technical awards and Outstanding Drama Series wins. Even more surprising, the only actor who’s ever won for the show is Peter Dinklage, who has won three times. While Dinklage is great, it’s surprising that Kit Harington has only been nominated twice for the important character of Jon Snow, in 2016 for Best Supporting Actor and now in 2019 for Outstanding Lead Actor. Harington might not be amongst the strongest actors on the show, but he more than proved himself with the fantasy drama’s last season, possibly just enough to have Emmy voters awarding someone other than Dinklage.
Milo Ventimiglia
Nomination: Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series (This Is Us)
Milo Ventimiglia is more than a little popular around TV fans. He first gained recognition for his role as Jess Mariano in Gilmore Girls, later leaving to play Peter Petrelli on the short lived hit Heroes. Now he’s best known for his role as Big Three patriarch Jack Pearson on NBC’s critical and audience darling This Is Us. His role, alongside TV wife Mandy Moore (also Emmy-nominated this year) is considered one of the best and most emotional parts of the show; their storyline taking place in the ‘70s, and exploring the circumstances involving his tragic death. In many ways, Ventimiglia is the beating heart of the This Is Us, and the source of many of the tears cried during every episode, hence his three consecutive nominations for Outstanding Lead Actor and possible win this year for his most emotional season yet. Fun fact: if Emmy voters give the award to Ventimiglia this year, he’ll be the first person to star in a Fergie video to win an Emmy.
Sandra Oh
Nomination: Outstanding Guest Actress in a Comedy Series (Saturday Night Live), Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series (Killing Eve)
Sandra Oh is no stranger to the Emmys, having been nominated a whopping five consecutive times for her role as Dr. Christina Yang on Grey’s Anatomy. The actress left Grey’s soon after her last nomination in 2009, and didn’t return to television until critical hit Killing Eve. As she earned raves for her performance as harried British intelligence agent Eve Polastri, the Emmys responded in kind, rewarding her with a nomination for Outstanding Lead Actress in 2018 and again this year. She also received a Guest Actress in a Comedy Series nomination this year for her episode of Saturday Night Live, a more hilarious than usual episode thanks to her solid comedic chops. Oh has shown that she has the range, and just might have the momentum to win her very first Emmy.
Jonathan Banks
Nomination: Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series (Better Call Saul)
Earning his first Outstanding Supporting Actor nomination way back in 1989 for the underseen Wiseguy, Jonathan Banks is something of an Emmy veteran. He became truly popular in the TV landscape until his role as former cop turned hitman Mike Ehrmentraut in Breaking Bad, and managed to snag a nomination in 2013. He’s gone on to be nominated four consecutive times for reprising the role in Breaking Bad prequel Better Call Saul, where he gets even more time to shine. The latest season of Better Call Saul gave Banks great material to work with that he naturally knocked out of the park, and it could just earn him his first Emmy.
Lena Headey
Nomination: Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series (Game of Thrones)
Like we’ve said before, Game of Thrones’ Emmy reputation is clearly lauded: it’s earned many awards and nominations, and has broken records. But alongside its success, there’s a shocking absence amongst its wins: Lena Headey. While people have many different favorite Game of Thrones characters, it’s undeniable that one of the most iconic and entertaining roles on the show has to be that of the vindictive Cersei Lannister, the closest thing the show ever had to a main human villain. Cersei was the role of a lifetime for Lena Headey, who relished every single moment of the performance to the delight of critics and fans throughout every season of the show. Yet, surprisingly, she’s never won an Emmy for the performance. Of all the awards that Game of Thrones has been nominated for its final season, this might be the most deserving. Like Steve Carell before her, Lena Headey could become the latest actor to be entirely snubbed for playing a now classic television character; let’s hope the Emmys don’t make the same mistake twice.