Emmy Race: Best Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series

The Emmy Award nominations are still a few weeks away, but this year looks to be even more competitive in all the major categories than last year when the switch was made from five to six nominees in the regular acting categories and series categories. At this point, I’d like to offer a rundown of the potential nominees, revisiting my predictions in early July. I’ve placed contenders in specific groupings that speak to their history and chances.

Last year’s nominees:

KRISTIN CHENOWETH as OLIVE SNOOK, PUSHING DAISIES (2 nominations/1 win)
Sad as it is, “Pushing Daisies” is no longer on the air. Look for Chenoweth in the Guest Actress category this year for “Glee.”

JANE KRAKOWSKI as JENNA MORONEY, 30 ROCK (1 nomination)
After two seasons of unconscionable snubs, Krakowski finally made it in last year. She really is criminally underused on the show, and when she does have something to do these days, it’s not nearly as good as what she used to do in the show’s first two seasons. This is a volatile category that often dismisses nominees year-to-year, but I think that Krakowski will probably stick around due to the popularity of her show and having only just received her first nod last year.

ELIZABETH PERKINS as CELIA HODES, WEEDS (3 nominations)
Perkins returned to the fold last year after missing out two years ago. Celia didn’t really have much to do on this season, but that hasn’t really been a problem before. She did have a few key scenes that would be enough to, based on past history, net her another nomination. It will really depend on how voters are feeling about her show, which I suspect won’t be entirely optimistic.

AMY POEHLER as VARIOUS CHARACTERS, SNL (2 nominations)
Poehler is no longer a cast member on SNL. Look for her (fingers crossed) in the Best Actress category this year for “Parks and Recreation.”

KRISTIN WIIG as VARIOUS CHARACTERS, SNL (1 nomination)
I’m not a regular SNL watcher, so I can’t say whether Wiig has been good or bad this year, but my gut feeling is that her film role in “MacGruber” (even if it wasn’t a hit) as well as movies like “Whip It” and “Extract” in the fall, should cement her popularity and enable her to return here with this bizarre recent rule that mixes variety performers with actors in scripted sitcoms.

VANESSA WILLIAMS as WILHELMINA SLATER, UGLY BETTY (3 nominations)
When star America Ferrera was snubbed last year, Williams still carried on the torch. For the show’s final year, I imagine that the inimitable Wilhelmina will be back again, especially considering she’s never won and really crafted quite a memorable character during her four years on the show. She could just as easily be snubbed to make room for new contenders, but I think she’ll be safe. If Jane Lynch wasn’t in the running, she’d probably even win (and still might).

Past nominees, primed for a comeback?

JENNA FISCHER as PAM BEESLY, THE OFFICE (1 nomination)
Fischer has only been nominated once, for the show’s third season, but it’s more than likely that she’ll be back at least once more before the show’s run is over (not currently in sight). This seems like the year, considering her two terrific hour-long episodes, “Niagara” and “The Delivery.” As past years have shown, it’s not a sure thing, but it is a pretty good bet.

CHERYL HINES as CHERYL DAVID, CURB YOUR ENTHUSIASM (2 nominations)
Hines was nominated for the show’s second and fifth seasons, and now she’s back in contention for its seventh, in this category and not submitted as lead as originally reported by Tom O’Neill (he has since posted an update). Hines shared scenes with Jason Alexander this year in addition to reconnecting to Larry, and that certainly can’t hurt, but her chances are really a crapshoot since she was hardly the strongest part of her show, as opposed to some of the other people here.

CONCHETA FERRELL as BERTA and HOLLAND TAYLOR as EVELYN HARPER, TWO AND A HALF MEN (2 & 3 nominations)
These ladies first made a shocking appearance for their recurring roles back in 2005, and have both been back since. The once-good CBS comedy is definitely on its way out, especially in terms of the Emmys, where it was snubbed for Best Comedy Series last year. That hasn’t stopped these two in the past, but I think there’s just too much competition and Emmy voters may have stopped paying attention to this show.

New blood:

JANE LYNCH as SUE SYLVESTER and AMBER RILEY as MERCEDES JONES, GLEE
The biggest lock in this category is Lynch, whose insult-spouting cheerleading coach was hands-down the funniest part of the musical show. She’ll probably win, and there’s nothing more to say about her chances, since they’re excellent. Riley, on the other hand, is much more of a longshot. She’s one of the standouts on the show both musically and dramatically, but she’ll have to be part of an massive sweep that I’m not confident the show will manage.

JULIE BOWEN as CLARIE DUNPHY and SOFIA VERGARA as GLORIA DELGADO-PRITCHETT, MODERN FAMILY
These ladies face much less internal competition than their male costars, and hopefully they’ll both be able to score a nomination. Bowen is the subtler of the two, often playing straight man to her buffoonish husband, whereas Vergara steals most of her scenes as the very Colombian younger wife of the family patriarch. Vergara has the better shot, but I think they’ll both make it.

JANE ADAMS as TANYA SKAGLE, HUNG
While I think she more than deserves a nomination, I wouldn’t have placed Adams here if she hadn’t picked up a somewhat unexpected Golden Globe nod for her performance as Ray’s pimp on HBO’s great summer series. Adams faces the challenge of playing a more dramatic role compared to some of her competition, but I think a bigger hurdle will be the fact that few people have seen her show.

The roundup:
This category could see a massive makeover thanks to the addition of “Modern Family” and “Glee.” Krakowski, Wiig, and Williams should be back, and so should Fischer. Add in both Lynch, Bowen, and Vergara, and you have seven nominees. I don’t think that this category will be expanded, so that means that one person has to go. I’ll make a bold prediction and suggest that Krakowski won’t be back (probably unwisely).

Current predictions:
JULIE BOWEN, MODERN FAMILY
JENNA FISCHER, THE OFFICE
JANE LYNCH, GLEE
SOFIA VERGARA, MODERN FAMILY
KRISTIN WIIG, SNL
VANESSA WILLIAMS, UGLY BETTY

Who could win? Call me crazy, but I think Lynch won’t win this year, and I’d currently bet on Williams, provided she gets nominated.

Next up: Best Guest Actor in a Drama Series