Keri Russell (“The Americans”)
“Oh, Matthew Rhys, for sure. For sure! I mean, he’s so fucking good! I always say, and it’s so true, that there’s that term in cycling when you draft someone. Like, I’m just drafting, man. You get out there and I’m like, ‘Thank God I get to work with him today.’ He just elevates everything… And he’s also not a tortured person that’s tough to work with. He’s just easy. It’s fun.”
Jussie Smollett (“Empire”)
“If I couldn’t vote for anybody [on my show], if I couldn’t vote for Taraji [P. Henson], if I couldn’t vote for “Empire,” if I couldn’t vote Terrence [Howard]… Viola Davis and Robin Wright. I think that they’re so phenomenal.”
Gillian Jacobs (“Girls”)
“The obvious answer is I would vote for Alex Karpovsky as Ray [Ploshansky], who is perhaps my favorite character on the show. Then, I would say Becky Ann Baker as Hannah’s mother. I would also have to give a nod to Zach Quinto as Ace.”
Jesse Lee Soffer (“Chicago P.D.”)
“Elias Koteas has done some phenomenal stuff and is definitely deserving of an award. Sophia Bush has done some great stuff at the end of the season with her character dealing with Nadia’s death. And obviously Jason Beghe, our fearless leader. And he is truly a fearless leader. He’s always so strong that he deserves an Emmy, absolutely.”
Anna Faris (“Mom”)
“Chuck Lorre is my answer. He is so brilliant. He’s truly a genius. I’ve never worked with somebody whose instincts are so incredible. He sees the macro and the micro. It’s really thrilling to watch. Chuck Lorre deserves a gazillion Emmys. And Mimi Kennedy [Marjorie], too.”
Mike O’Malley (“Survivor’s Remorse”)
“Tichina Arnold is portraying a very unique mother on this show. She has to be firm, yet affectionate. Very tender and maternal, yet forceful. Balancing those things constantly, while also tackling certain material fearlessly, has been pretty amazing to watch. She’s a fearless actress.”
Sophia Bush (“Chicago P.D.”)
“I think everyone is doing such great work. Brian Geraghty, Jesse Soffer, Jason Beghe, all of the guys, really… I feel the same way about Elias. I think Elias Koteas is one of the great gifts to our group of actors. He’s so talented, and I really have so much fun in big scenes just watching him work.”
Matt Czuchry (“The Good Wife”)
“Robert and Michelle King are the creators of the show and everything begins and ends with them. They won the Writer’s Guild Award last season, and I would love for them to get recognition for writing Season 6.”
Téa Leoni (“Madam Secretary”)
“I would really have to push for Tim [Daly] in that one. It’s a bit of a groundbreaking role, but he’s managed to make it work. I wonder if people would be willing, in a way, to accept and be able to rally behind this character, the man alongside a very powerful woman. This is the most modern man we’ve seen. In the wrong hands, it could be rejected and that would be tragic. Tim has made Henry [McCord] graceful and hot.”
Murray Bartlett (“Looking”)
“That’s a tough one because I love everybody. But I just adore Lauren Weedman and the character of Doris and I feel that in Season 2, she really had a chance to shine and I think she absolutely did. Her performance was stellar. I’d go for her.”
Sam Richardson (“Veep”)
“Kevin Dunn was really brilliant this season as Ben Caffrey. He plays with so many levels. He’s a mess. He’s a pill-popping, drunkard mess who’s also in charge of the key staff of a president… And he has some of the best insult deliveries on the show.”
Abigail Spencer (“Rectify”)
“I think the show, in general, because it’s such a collaboration and Ray McKinnon deserves an Emmy. He writes, he directs, he edits, he does everything so I would love to see him win an Emmy. I know that’s not an actor-focused answer, but he is an actor and I feel like he’s the third scene partner in every scene.”
Finn Wittrock (“American Horror Story”)
“There’s a lot of talent all over the cast, but I think Sarah Paulson‘s challenge was greater than anybody’s, having to be two people at once [the conjoined Bette and Dot]. It’s a very hard, laborious, technical, tedious process… and she was a real pro throughout all of it. It literally takes three times as long to film those scenes than any other scenes, and to be able to do that and maintain two separate characters is pretty extraordinary.”
Joe Morton (“Scandal”)
“Kerry Washington, first of all. I think her work is spectacular. She brings a lot to that character. I think Jeff Perry [Cyrus Beene] deserves an Emmy for his work on the show. He was one of the reasons I wanted to be on that show. And Bellamy Young, who really broadened and deepened the role of Mellie [Grant].”
Kristen Schaal (“Last Man on Earth”)
“Forte, Forte, Forte. It’s definitely [Will] Forte — it’s his show. Everybody’s talented, but definitely Mel Rodriguez. There’s some moments on that show that really caught me off guard. Like, physically when he finds out that Phil is going to kill him, and Melissa [January Jones] knocks on the door and he has potato chips all over his shirt. That moment is so good. That guy is just brimming with so much emotion, and he’s just effortlessly able to convey it. He’s just a great actor — we’re really lucky that we have him.”
Chris Geere (“You’re The Worst”)
“They all do. They are all fantastic, everyone from the writing staff to the production team. I think a couple of the production team were nominated last year, for different shows that they’ve done. All of us are very grateful to be considered in any light, really. The main one would be the show itself, or [creator] Stephen [Falk]. Because he’s done this whole thing. That would be an incredible achievement for him. Stephen or the show itself.”
Kyra Sedgwick (“Brooklyn Nine-Nine”)
“Well, I think Andre [Braugher] deserves an Emmy. But honestly, the truth is that the whole cast deserves an Emmy. They’re a really great ensemble.”
Jeremy Piven (“Mr. Selfridge”)
“Tom Goodman-Hill plays Mr. Grove and Amanda Abbington plays Ms. Mardle, and their relationship is heartbreaking and they both deserve Emmys. I think anyone could take the lead at any moment and do it beautifully. I’m just very blown away by the talent pool over here. It’s really impressive and inspiring.”
Gillian Anderson (“The Fall”)
“Definitely Jamie Dornan, I would say, who plays Spector. Definitely in the last scene that we have together, there’s an interrogation scene, and it’s the first time that the characters have been face to face. I would say we definitely see Jamie’s acting talent in that exchange.”
Rupert Friend (“Homeland”)
“Mandy Patinkin. Mandy has extraordinary commitment to his work and working with him raises my game. I think he sets the bar impossibly high and I think he attains it. To me that makes him a champion and it makes him absolutely deserving of all the awards that there are.”
Zooey Deschanel (“New Girl”)
“I think Season 4 was the season of Winston [Morris]. I think it took just a little while for them to figure out exactly how to write for him. And I think Hannah’s [Simone] had a bunch of really amazing stuff this season too — everybody has really had their moment.”
Jack Falahee (“How to Get Away With Murder”)
“Viola [Davis], of course. But oh man, everyone. All of them. They’re all so beautiful and amazing. It would be really tough for me to–is there an Emmy for writing? Is that a thing? I mean, Pete should probably get an Emmy. I feel like he deserves one.”
Tatiana Maslany (“Orphan Black”)
“I think Kathryn Alexandre, my clone double, deserves an award for her incredible, diligent, generous work. She does all the character work, physical, dialect, emotional and yet is never seen on screen. Jordan Gavaris, the physicality and elegance he brings to Felix is so far from himself, it’s astounding. Our amazing writers room deserves an Emmy. John [Fawcett] and Graeme [Manson], our creators. Stephen Lynch and Debra Hansen, who have created the looks for the characters. Our incredible special effects guys at Intelligent Creatures. The list is endless.”
Jonathan Groff (“Looking”)
“I can think of so many people. But I feel like the unsung hero of “Looking” — who doesn’t get a lot of credit but is so essential to our creative process — is Danny Glicker, our costume designer. Even though we wear contemporary modern-day clothes, he is meticulous about picking out every piece of everybody’s costumes based on the emotional arc of the season and the emotional arc of the character. I’ve sat in Danny Glicker’s costume fittings and wept or laughed and learned so much about my character.”
Sutton Foster (“Younger”)
“First of all, this whole thing is crazy to me. I think that everybody on the show deserves to be recognized. All the characters are nuanced and complicated when they could be one dimensional characters. They are incredibly nuanced and layered and earnest and deep. I feel like everybody on the show is kicking major ass, it would be amazing if everyone was recognized in that way. I can’t pick — you can’t make me pick!”
Jane Krakowski (“Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt”)
“I really do hope that Ellie and Tituss [Burgess] will be recognized. And I’m going to say [songwriter/composer and Tina Fey’s husband] Jeff Richmond, because I think he has given everyone such musical joy — not only in ‘Kimmy’ with ‘Pinot Noir’ as the theme song — but also everything from ‘Muffin Top’ and ‘Werewolf Bar Mitzvah’ at ’30 Rock.’ It’s long-deserved that he be recognized for the musical joys he has given us. I hope the show gets recognized because that means we all get to go!”
Robin Lord Taylor (“Gotham”)
“I would say, first of all, Jada Pinkett Smith. She brought so much vivacity and she created this character, which I think should live on in the comics. I think it left such a lasting impression on everybody… I would also say Ben [McKenzie] because he had the hardest job of any of us. He carries the show, he brings us down to a place of reality… Finally, I have to give a huge shout-out to my very good friend, Cory Michael Smith… the stuff that he did this season was just so perfect.”
Anna Chlumsky (“Veep”)
“Definitely Julia and Tony [Hale]. But, oh gosh, I think Tim Simons’ job is always very award-worthy. ‘Cause they give him some really difficult things to tackle, and he plays it as such a real human being, yet a completely despicable human being. But it’s hard to single people out, because then I could go to Matt [Walsh], who is just brilliant. He’s funny because you believe him. And then there’s Kevin Dunn, the most relaxed and effortless performance. It’s a nice problem to have, that I can’t single anybody out.”
Sam Heughan (“Outlander”)
“I think everybody does. Caitriona [Balfe] is terrific. She has so much stamina and she carries the show. She has to show up everyday and just give her best. Tobias, equally, he’s an amazing actor. Those last couple of episodes where I really sort of got to go to some interesting places, he was there and we really supported each other and trusted each other. I think trust is the most important thing. If the actors and the director and the crew trust each other and you set up perimeters and boundaries, you give everyone space to do great work. I think we’ve got an amazing costume department, amazing writers, directors — just give us an Emmy for everything.”
Gina Rodriguez (“Jane the Virgin”)
“Oooh, all of them! Every single one of them. I’ve seen them transform and stretch and thrive this entire season. It was a joy and an honor to be a part of that. To have this relationship with each and every one of them, I couldn’t even pick one, I think they all really worked their buns off and I’m very lucky.”
Michael Kelly (“House of Cards”)
“Rachel Brosnahan, I mean, that girl… what she did on that show — I just think that she’s such an amazing actress. And so young, she’s so good. Rachel Brosnahan is just a real talent.”
Wendi McLendon-Covey (“The Goldbergs”)
“George Segal deserves a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Emmys, the SAG Awards, the Golden Globes, etc.”
Jon Hamm (“Mad Men”)
“For my money, I think the one person who has been really criminally overlooked through the years has been Vincent Kartheiser [Pete Campbell]. His work on the show from the beginning has been really spectacular. He’s created this character that is so easy to dislike but if you really look at the character of Pete, he’s on the right side of a lot of the arguments and you can see the frustration in that character.”
