Emmy Predictions: Best Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series

The 69th Primetime Emmy Awards nominations will be announced on Thursday, July 13th. As always, chime in below in the comments with any thoughts of your own.

Last year’s nominees: Louie Anderson, Andre Braugher, Tituss Burgess, Ty Burrell, Tony Hale, Keegan Michael-Key, Matt Walsh

The competition: Only one of the seven nominees from last year, Michael-Key, whose show ended, is no longer eligible, and therefore we could be looking at the exact same list this year. Half of these nominees are on their own - last year’s winner Louie Anderson (Baskets), Andre Braugher (Brooklyn Nine-Nine), and Tituss Burgess (Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt) - meaning that there is minimal enthusiasm for their shows elsewhere and they could easily fall off the list. Past winner Tony Hale (Veep) is a lock, but I’m thinking that two of his costars, Timothy Simons (Veep) and Sam Richardson (Veep), are likelier to earn a nomination than last year’s nominee Matt Walsh (Veep). This could be the year that past winner Ty Burrell (Modern Family) finally misses the cut, though fresh blood isn’t all that strong. The only surefire inclusion is Alec Baldwin (Saturday Night Live), whose Donald Trump impression is sure to win over Emmy voters. T.J. Miller (Silicon Valley), Matt Ross (Silicon Valley), or Laurence Fishburne (Black-ish) could benefit from their shows’ continued popularity to reap a first-time nomination, and Brian Tyree Henry (Atlanta) is the only serious contender from a freshman series. Neither of their shows are all that Emmy-friendly, but past Emmy nominees Walton Goggins (Vice Principals) and John Lithgow (Trial and Error) are sure to garner a few votes based on their reputations alone (though their performances were also excellent).

The predicted nominees: Anderson, Baldwin, Braugher, Burgess, Hale, Simons

The predicted winner: Anderson

Next up: Best Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series