‘Ray Donovan’ Star Liev Schreiber on His Toughest Emmy Competition and 5 Other Nominee Questions

“All these people that I work with every day, I know how good their work is, and I kind of expected them, certainly before me,” the actor tells TheWrap

Ray Donovan showtime
Showtime

Liev Schreiber received his first Emmy nomination for Lead Actor in a Drama Series for his role as the titular fixer on the third season of Showtime’s “Ray Donovan” last month.

The nominee is in good company, being in the same category as eight-time nominee Jon Hamm, three-time nominee Kevin Spacey, previous winners Kyle Chandler and Jeff Daniels, and Bob Odenkirk of AMC’s “Breaking Bad” prequel “Better Call Saul.” But to Schreiber, being nominated is a strange one.

“I struggle with the idea of comparing people’s work and art,” Schreiber told TheWrap. “The notion of giving awards or putting a competitive spin on something that is a relative art form is sort of odd to me. But I totally appreciate the acknowledgement.”

Read TheWrap’s full interview below.

Who do you see as your stiffest competition in your category?
Jon Hamm and Bob Odenkirk are the two most likely to win. But I think it would make a lot of sense if Jon won. He’s done a lot of great work on [AMC’s “Mad Men”], he’s been on it for a while. Even Bob Odenkirk and Jeff Daniels are possible, frankly. It was kind of a shock that I was even nominated.

Were there any people or shows you were surprised to see didn’t get nominated?
I was surprised Jon [Voight] didn’t get a nomination. I was surprised Paula [Malcolmson] didn’t get a nomination. I was surprised Eddie [Marsan] didn’t get a nomination. All these people that I work with every day, I know how good their work is, and I kind of expected them, certainly before me.

Have you been doing much campaigning?
Well I do interviews like this, does that count as campaigning? This is as good as it gets for me.

What do you think is your secret weapon?
I don’t know that I have one. I’m proud of the work I’ve done on the show, it’s solid. I struggle with the idea of comparing people’s work and art. The notion of giving awards or putting a competitive spin on something that is a relative art form is sort of odd to me. But I totally appreciate the acknowledgement.

Did you have any naysayers when you originally wanted to pursue acting?
I had a really remarkable, really lucky trip. I had great teachers, great ensembles and great companies to work with, who supported my career.

If you could choose a victory song to play while you walk up to the podium to accept your Emmy, what would it be?
I think “What I Did for Love” [from the musical “A Chorus Line”] would be really appropriate for Ray.

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