'Veep's' Peter MacNicol Disqualified From Emmys Guest Actor Race

Peter MacNicol 2015 Winter TCA Tour - Day 6

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“Veep’s” Peter MacNicol has been disqualified from the guest actor race at this year’s Emmys, less than a week after receiving a nomination.

MacNicol appeared in five episodes of the HBO comedy’s 10-episode fifth season, ultimately disqualifying him from competing as a guest star under the Television Academy’s new rules. Per a rule-change instituted last year, actors must appear in “less than 50 percent” of the eligible season to be entered in the guest race.

MacNicol did initially qualify as a guest performer at the time of submission, while the show was still in production, but by the end of the season last month, the actor had appeared in too many episodes.

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“Upon review of the Guest Actor in a Comedy Series category, the Television Academy has determined that Peter MacNicol unfortunately exceeds the number of episodes permissible for inclusion in that category,” the TV academy said in a statement Wednesday. “HBO’s guest actor entry for Peter MacNicol was accurate at the time of the submission deadline, but he was subsequently included in an additional Veep episode. Unfortunately, that additional appearance places him in 50 percent of the season’s episodes and makes him no longer eligible to compete in the guest actor category.”

“This decision is in no way a diminishment of Mr. MacNicol’s stellar performance on this season of Veep. A new nominee for Guest Actor in a Comedy Series will be announced shortly,” the statement continued.

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MacNicol had previously received three Emmy nominations for his supporting role as John Cage on Fox’s “Ally McBeal,” taking home the statue in 2001.

The four other actors nominated in the category are Larry David (“Saturday Night Live”), Tracy Morgan (“Saturday Night Live”), Martin Mull (“Veep”), Bob Newhart (“The Big Bang Theory”) and Bradley Whitford (“Transparent”).

THR first reported the news.

Emmy Nominations 2016: Biggest Snubs and Surprises (Photos)

The 2016 Emmy nominations were announced Thursday morning, and as always, there were snubs and surprises aplenty. From "Master of None" and "The Americans" picking up their first nominations, to "The Good Wife" and "Girls" being left out, here are some of the day's biggest shockers.

Also Read: Emmy Nominations 2016: The Complete List
Surprise: "The Americans"

After three seasons as a critical and cult darling, "The Americans" finally broke through the Emmy barrier with three major nominations, for Best Drama Series, Best Actor for Matthew Rhys and Best Actress for Keri Russell.

Also Read: Emmy Nominations 2016: ‘The Americans’ Finally Breaks Through After 4 Seasons
FX
Snub: "The Good Wife"

Perennial Emmy favorite "The Good Wife" went out with a whimper as it got no nominations in major categories, including for Julianna Margulies, who was shut out of the Best Drama Actress race after winning twice before for her role as Alicia Florrick.

Also Read: Emmys’ Diverse Noms Prevent #OscarsSoWhite-Type Catastrophe (Analysis)
CBS
Surprise: "Master of None"

Aziz Ansari's understated Netflix dramedy was beloved by critics and fans, but it seemed to fly under the radar, especially compared to Netflix's other splashier marquee shows, like "House of Cards" and "Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt." But on Emmy nomination morning, it scored four nods, including Best Comedy Series and Best Comedy Actor for Ansari.

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Netflix
Snub: "Key & Peele"

The Academy apparently played favorites with the very funny comedy duo, and nominated Keegan-Michael Key for Best Supporting Comedy Actor -- but not his partner-in-crime, Jordan Peele.

Also Read: Emmy Nominations By the Numbers: ‘Game of Thrones’ and ‘OJ Simpson’ Lead
Getty Images
Surprises: "Game of Thrones" actors

"Game of Thrones" leading the way with the most nominations (23 this year) is certainly no surprise, but this year, they really cleaned up in the acting categories, with usual suspects Peter Dinklage and Lena Headey joined by newcomers Kit Harington and Maisie Williams. Emilia Clarke, who was nominated for the first time last year, picked up her second nomination as the Mother of Dragons.

Also Read: Emmy Nominations 2016: The Complete List
HBO
Snubs: Emmy veterans

Despite winning Best Supporting Actress two years in a row, "Orange Is the New Black" star Uzo Aduba was not even nominated in 2016. Ditto for "Modern Family" star Julie Bowen, a perennial nominee and 2-time winner for Best Comedy Actress, who was shut out this year. And in "Downton Abbey's" final year on the air, it managed only one nomination, for Maggie Smith.

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TheWrap
Surprise: Laurie Metcalf's Hat Trick

The "Getting On" actress was not satisfied with just getting nominated for HBO's departing comedy, and picked up nominations in two more acting categories, for guest-star work on "The Big Bang Theory" and "Horace & Pete," respectively.

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Getty Images
Snubs & Surprises: Late Night Edition

James Corden picked up his first Emmy nomination for "The Late Late Show," but his fellow CBS newcomer Stephen Colbert, who took over "The Late Show" from David Letterman, was shut out of the Outstanding Variety Talk Show category. Snubbed also were Jon Stewart proteges Trevor Noah and Samantha Bee, whose "Daily Show" and "Full Frontal" were shut out, respectively.

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CBS
Snub: "Crazy Ex-Girlfriend"

Just like predecessor "Jane The Virgin," The CW's newest Golden Globe-winning dramey was shut out in the major categories at the Emmys, picking up neither Best Comedy Series nor Best Comedy Actress, the category star Rachel Bloom won at the Golden Globes. "Crazy Ex-Girlfriend" did pick up four Emmy nominations -- for choreography, music and its main titles.

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The CW
Surprise: "black-ish"

This probably wasn't much of a surprise to fans and critics alike, who have embraced ABC's family sitcom, but Anthony Anderson, who was nominated for his first Emmy last year for the show and was nominated again this morning, certainly acted surprised when the show picked up two additional nominations this year, for Best Comedy Series and Best Comedy Actress for Tracee Ellis-Ross.

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ABC
Snub: "Girls"

A very strong Season 5 of Lena Dunham's HBO dramedy was shut out completely at the Emmys in 2016. Previously, "Girls" had been nominated every single season it was on the air. Allison Williams' snub for the Marnie-centric "Panic in Central Park" episode seems especially egregious.

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HBO
Surprise: Beyonce

"Lemonade" was a full-blown phenomenon the day it premiered on HBO, but did anyone expect it would become an Emmy darling as well? "Lemonade" was nominated for Outstanding Variety Special and three other nominations, including Beyonce herself for Directing.

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HBO
Snub: "UnREAL"

Constance Zimmer deservedly got a Best Supporting Actress for her work on Lifetime's dark parody of "The Bachelor," but where was Best Drama or Best Actress for Shiri Appleby, the dysfunctional, decidedly unmoral center of the show?

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Lifetime

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“The Americans” finally broke through, but “The Good Wife” went out with a whimper

The 2016 Emmy nominations were announced Thursday morning, and as always, there were snubs and surprises aplenty. From "Master of None" and "The Americans" picking up their first nominations, to "The Good Wife" and "Girls" being left out, here are some of the day's biggest shockers.

Also Read: Emmy Nominations 2016: The Complete List

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