John P. Johnson/HBO
Ed Harris is hoping to contend at the Emmys one last time for the HBO sci-fi series “Westworld,” which signed off last year after four seasons. Based on Michael Crichton‘s 1973 movie of the same name, the show comes from Lisa Joy and Jonathan Nolan and follows a collection of people indulging themselves at a highly-sophisticated theme park that depicts the wild west and is populated by advanced AI.
The show continued to build on its theme with each season and features some wonderful actors, not least including Harris. Harris plays the Man in Black, a sadistic and brutal man who is determined to find out the secrets of the theme park. In the final seasons, Harris also plays William, who is a host who replaces the original Man in Black. In his viciousness and snarling performance, Harris is clearly having a great time on screen and critics have noted him as one of the best things about the show.
James Dyer (Empire) proclaimed: “It is a truth universally acknowledged that you can rarely have enough Ed Harris,” while he praised the show for returning to what it does best in season four and featuring more of Harris’ Man in Black, which season three did not do so much. “The vastly reduced presence of Harris’ scowling killer was a heavy blow [in season three]. Lisa Joy and Jonathan Nolan lay their psycho stall out early in this latest instalment, though, which opens with Harris centre stage in a ‘negotiation’ that makes Don Corleone look like a contestant on ‘Dragons’ Den.’”
Similarly, Brian Tallerico (The Playlist) explained: “The fourth season has some wonderful reminders of this show’s potential. Most of them are embedded in the arc of William (Ed Harris), returned to his vicious Man in Black state from the physical and mental prisoner he was stuck portraying in season three… Watching Harris chew the scenery as a true villain is wickedly enjoyable.”
And Brad Newsome (The Sydney Morning Herald) wrote: “Westworld has returned in assured and brilliant style. The Man in Black (Ed Harris) is pure, distilled malevolence in a straw fedora, while the second episode reveals that he has seriously chilling back-up in the form of an old, familiar face.”
Despite the critical acclaim and the return to Harris’ former glory in this show, however, the iconic actor is outside of our predicted eight nominees for Best Drama Supporitng Actor: John Lithgow (“The Old Man”), Alexander Skarsgård (“Succession”), Nicholaus Braun (“Succession”), Matt Smith (“House of the Dragon”), Alan Ruck (“Succession”), F. Murray Abraham (“The White Lotus”), Giancarlo Esposito (“Better Call Saul”), and Matthew Macfadyen (“Succession”). However, there is precedence here for a surprise Harris nomination.
Firstly, he’s a veteran. We know Emmy voters like nominating veteran actors of the same status as Harris in this category. O Yeong-su (“Squid Game”), John Turturro, and Christopher Walken (both “Severance”) were all nominated last year, while Lithgow (“Perry Mason”) and Bradley Whitford (“The West Wing”) were nominated the year before. Harris is also a four-time Oscar nominee and Oscar nominees often find some success at the Emmys. The aforementioned Walken is a previous Oscar-winner, while Jon Voight, another Oscar-winner, was previously nominated in this category, too — for “Ray Donovan” in 2016. Harris fits into both of these trends.
Not to mention, we know that Harris’ performance in this show is liked by Emmy voters. He was nominated for Best Drama Actor in 2018 (losing to Matthew Rhys for “The American”), demonstrating that voters like Harris in this role. He was also nominated in 2005 for Best TV Movie/Limited Series Actor for “Empire Falls” (losing to Geoffrey Rush for “The Life and Death of Peter Sellers”) and for Best TV Movie/Limited Series Supporting Actor in 2012 for “Game Change” (losing to Tom Berenger for “Hatfields & McCoys”). So, we know Emmy voters like him as a performer in general. He’ll be competing this year in supporting, of course, but that’s no problem. His co-star, Jeffrey Wright, was nominated for Best Drama Actor in 2018 and then was nominated for Best Drama Supporting Actor in 2020. If Wright can pull off the category switch, so can Harris.
Meanwhile, nominations for actors in fantasy/sci-fi TV shows in this category are becoming more frequent in the last decade or so. In five out of the last six years, there has been an actor from a sci-fi or fantasy show nominated in this category. In 2017, David Harbour was nominated for “Stranger Things” and Wright was nominated for “Westworld.” In 2018, Peter Dinklage won for “Game of Thrones” while his co-star, Nikolaj Coster-Waldau, was also nominated, as was Harbour, again for “Stranger Things.” Dinklage won again in 2019, wherein co-stars Coster-Waldau and Alfie Allen were also nominated. In 2020, Wright was nominated once more for “Westworld,” while Giancarlo Esposito was nominated in 2021 for “The Mandalorian.” The only year in the last six when no actors from these type of shows were nominated in this category was last year. However, we expect there to be some fantasy/sci-fi love this year — we predict Smith (for “House of the Dragon”) will be nominated, at least. Harris could theoretically join him in that list.
Plus, we are currently predicting that four actors from the same show (“Succession”) will be nominated, but this hasn’t happened in this category since 2002 when four actors were nominated for “The West Wing” — Dulé Hill, Bradley Whitford, Richard Schiff, and, the winner, John Spencer. It’s unlikely, then, that this will happen again — so if one of the “Succession” boys drops out, Harris could be one of the ones waiting in the wings looking to pounce on such an opportunity.
And here’s another kicker — this is the last chance voters will get to nominate Harris. That may play into Harris’ hands. Michael K. Williams earned nomination for the final season of “Lovecraft Country” in 2021, Michael Kelly was nominated for the final season of “House of Cards” in 2019, while, in the same year, Dinklage won for “Game of Thrones.” All these actors — and more — were given nominations in this particular category for the final seasons of their shows. and Harris will be hoping to join them.
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