Tuesday, December 6, 2011

Golden Globe Musings: Best Actress in a TV Series – Comedy/Musical

Golden Globe nominations for this year will be soon, so here’s a survey of the contenders and the most likely predictions at this time. Weigh in with your thoughts, and let me know if I’ve left off anyone important. A reminder that last year’s nominees mean zilch at the Globes and that the race is almost entirely unpredictable.

Last year’s nominees:
Toni Collette (The United States of Tara)
Edie Falco (Nurse Jackie)
Tina Fey (30 Rock)
Laura Linney (The Big C
Lea Michele (Glee)

New contenders:
Christina Applegate (Up All Night)
Kat Dennings (2 Broke Girls)
Laura Dern (Enlightened)
Zooey Deschanel (New Girl)

Potential first-time nominees:
Melissa McCarthy (Mike & Molly)
Martha Plimpton (Raising Hope)
Amy Poehler (Parks and Recreation)

This category is ripe for the infusion of new blood, and that means certain former nominees will need to go, and likely that there will be more than five honorees. Toni Collette is vulnerable because her show has been cancelled, and Lea Michele should hardly be categorized as a lead anymore. That opens up the door for three freshman series contenders and three Emmy nominees from this past year, all fighting for two spots. I think that Zooey Deschanel is the most likely to succeed thanks to her charming and successful show, whereas Martha Plimpton and Amy Poehler may have a harder time having their shows’ senses of humor embraced. Kat Dennings and Melissa McCarthy are in punchline-heavy CBS shows that rarely fare as well with Globe voters as they do with the Emmy folks, and I think the simpler choice is Laura Dern for her HBO dramedy. Edie Falco may be left off the list due to the presence of too many new faces, but I think Tina Fey and Laura Linney are safe.

Current predictions:
Laura Dern
Zooey Deschanel
Edie Falco
Tina Fey
Laura Linney

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