Monday, February 22, 2021

Golden Globe Winner Predictions: Best Actor in a TV Series – Drama

The competition:

Jason Bateman (Ozark) plays criminal entrepreneur Marty Byrd in the third season of the Netflix series. He’s back after his show took a year off for this third bid for this show. He has two previous nominations for “Arrested Development,” which netted him a win in 2004. His show is up for Best TV Series – Drama, with two costars also nominated.

Josh O’Connor (The Crown) plays Prince Charles in the fourth season of the Netflix historical drama. This is his first Globe nomination. His show is the nominations leader.

Bob Odenkirk (Better Call Saul) plays lawyer Jimmy McGill in the fifth season of the AMC series. He was nominated for the first three seasons of the show, snubbed for season four, and now returns after his show took 2019 off. He is the lone representative from his show.

Al Pacino (Hunters) plays Nazi hunter Meyer Offerman in the first season of the Amazon period drama. Pacino has eighteen previous nominations and four wins, and received the Cecil B. DeMille Award in 2000. He has won two out of his three past TV bids. He is the lone representative from his show.

Matthew Rhys (Perry Mason) plays the private investigator in the first season of the HBO show of the same name. This is his third overall Globe bid, and he has now been nominated every other year, contending previously for seasons four and six of “The Americans.” He is the lone representative from his show.

Additional notes: Last year’s winner, Brian Cox, isn’t nominated because his show has yet to return for season three. Previous winner Sterling K. Brown wasn’t included despite being eligible. Only Bateman received an Emmy nomination this past season even though Odenkirk, Pacino, and O’Connor (for a different season) were all on the ballot. This award has gone to an actor from a freshman series six out of the past fifteen years.
Who should win? This is a very good list. Rhys impressed me quite a bit, and Bateman is really growing on me. I liked O’Connor better in season three but he’s still doing excellent work. Pacino did a superb job. I’d probably choose Odenkirk, however, for some of his finest work to date.
Who will win? This prize often goes to an actor on a show that’s gained popularity even if it’s not new, like Damian Lewis, Bryan Cranston, Kevin Spacey, or Cox last year. I think that means Bateman has the edge over O’Connor, which is also very likely.

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