By Ryan C. Showers 

The 72nd Primetime Emmy Awards was unlike any other award show in history. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic that rendered the production of the entertainment immobile for months, there was no red carpet, nor was there was a massive audience filled with nominees waiting for their names to be called to the stage. The Television Academy went to great lengths to accommodate these safety restrictions while maintaining the integrity and entertainment value of the show. There was an ample amount of social distancing among the presenters and an elaborate virtual set-up for the nominees watching and literally accepting trophies from their homes.

By Matt Neglia 
​
"Welcome to the Pandemmys" said host Jimmy Kimmel as he welcomed us to the most interesting award show we have ever seen. The 72nd Primetime Emmy Awards are behind us and as expected the top three big shows, "Succession," "Schitt's Creek" and "Watchmen" all walked away with the top prizes on the night. But there were still surprises to be had. There were still memorable moments. Stats were broken. Technical glitches were had. Here to join me to talk about everything that went down, capping off an unforgettable year of television I have Amanda Spears, Michael Schwartz & Tom O'Brien.

Thank you so much for listening. You can subscribe to the Next Best Picture Podcast on SoundCloud, Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, GooglePlay, Tunein, Player FM, Acast & Castbox or you can listen down below. Please take a moment to review us on Apple Podcasts here. And if you're feeling generous, you enjoy what you hear and want to hear more, please help support us on Patreon for as little as $1 a month and you'll receive some exclusive podcast content.

By Matt Neglia 

The winners for the 72nd Primetime Emmy Awards have been announced. "Schitt's Creek" won 7 awards, "Succession" won 4 and "Watchmen" walked away with 4 as well.

Click below to see the winners.

By Amanda Spears ​

Now the end is near and so we face our final curtain. The Creative Arts Emmys have been awarded and now, it’s time to predict the big ones: Outstanding Comedy, Drama and Limited Series Winners, and any last-minute changes. 
 
In the cage match for the most Emmys, HBO and Netflix enter the evening tied for 19 Emmy wins each. But HBO only needed three series to Netflix’s five. Not to be outdone is Disney+ debut with an impressive eight wins so far.
 
While we’ve seen in the past three years a dominance by the Series nominees, the Creative Arts broadened their winners to include more than the Series nominees. It was the second win for Ron Cephas Jones in Outstanding Drama Guest Actor for “This Is Us” that gave hope to all actors trying on the main telecast to buck this trend. However, “This Is Us” has won that category three out of the past four years. And with the dominance established by the leading contenders for Outstanding Comedy, Drama and Limited Series, I don't expect any major surprises in the top 3 categories tonight.

By Tom O'Brien ​

​​Well, that was a one-of-a-kind Emmys.

As one would expect during the pandemic, the 2020 Creative Arts Emmys were awarded virtually this year, with host Nicole Byer, an Emmy nominee herself for hosting the reality show "Nailed It!," introducing presenters from outside the Television Academy building in North Hollywood, CA.

By Michael Schwartz

​The other day, we revealed our final predictions for the 2020 Emmy Awards on the Next Best Series Podcast. For those who have not already listened to our predictions and our reasoning behind them, we have a list of them down below for you to read.

Please take a look, hold us accountable for our choices and enjoy the show this Sunday night!

By Amanda Spears ​

I’m taking you television fans through how to methodically make your Emmy predictions and win your pool. Previously we looked at Outstanding Comedy, Drama, Limited Series/TV Movie Writing and Directing, Casting, Drama & Comedy Guest Actor and Actress & Supporting Actor & Actress. Next up are the Outstanding Lead Actor & Actress categories for Drama, Comedy & Limited Series/TV Movie.
 
Five years ago, the Emmys moved to a plurality vote replacing the more level playing field of 80-100 person panels. Since we spend more time watching television than a film, it’s easier to let our personal preferences affect our predictions as we try to manifest a win for our favorites.

By Amanda Spears ​

I’m taking you television fans through how to methodically make your Emmy predictions and win your pool. Previously we looked at Outstanding Comedy, Drama, Limited Series/TV Movie Writing and Directing, Casting, Drama & Comedy Guest Actor and Actress. Next up are the Outstanding Supporting Actor and Actress categories for Drama, Comedy & Limited Series/TV Movie.
 
Five years ago, the Emmys moved to a plurality vote replacing the more level playing field of 80-100 person panels. Since we spend more time watching television than a film, it’s easier to let our personal preferences affect our predictions as we try to manifest a win for our favorites.

Trends can only take you so far when predicting the acting winners—instinct and buzz is also necessary. But patterns can help you narrow the field of possibilities. Let’s take a look at how to predict the winners for Outstanding Drama, Comedy & Limited Series/TV Movie Supporting Actor and Actress based on recent trends.

By Amanda Spears ​

I’m taking you television fans through how to methodically make your Emmy predictions and win your pool. Previously we looked at Outstanding Comedy, Drama, Limited Series/TV Movie Writing and Directing, Casting & Drama Guest Actor and Actress. Next up is Outstanding Comedy Guest Actor and Actress.

Five years ago, the Emmys moved to a plurality vote replacing the more level playing field of 80-100 person panels. Since we spend more time watching television than a film, it’s easier to let our personal preferences affect our predictions as we try to manifest a win for our favorites.

The acting categories are where stats can only take you so far – instinct and buzz also matter. If there are two categories on the comedy side where anything can happen, it’s the Outstanding Comedy Guest Actor and Actress races. Hollywood A-listers and a posthumous nominee make these difficult to predict. Let’s take a look at how to predict the winners for Outstanding Comedy Guest Actor and Actress based on recent trends.

By Tom O'Brien ​

​One of the most interesting TV events of the fall will be just how ABC pulls off its primetime presentation of the 72nd Emmy Awards on September 20. As the show was originally scheduled to take place at the Microsoft Theater in Los Angeles, the COVID-19 pandemic has forced Emmy producers to rethink just how to televise the awards – still hosted by Jimmy Kimmel – and capture the magic moments of nominees winning that coveted trophy. With cameras at the homes of over 140 nominees, you figure out the logistics.
 
Now that the Emmy voters have submitted their ballots (as an Emmy voter, I got my ballot in one day early – a new record for me), there's not much that viewers can do until the ceremony but catch up on the nominees. With a wide range of contenders this year, one of the most frequent questions I get is: "What channel is this show on?"

By Amanda Spears ​

I’m taking you television fans through how to methodically make your Emmy predictions and win your pool. Previously we looked at Outstanding Comedy, Drama, Limited Series/TV Movie Writing and Directing & Casting. Next up is Outstanding Drama Guest Actor and Actress.

Five years ago, the Emmys moved to a plurality vote replacing the more level playing field of 80-100 person panels. Since we spend more time watching television than a film, it’s easier to let our personal preferences affect our predictions as we try to manifest a win for our favorites.

The acting categories are where stats can only take you so far – instinct and buzz also matter. Let’s take a look at how to predict the winners for Outstanding Drama Guest Actor and Actress based on recent trends.

By Amanda Spears ​

​I’m going to take you television fans through how to methodically make your Emmy predictions and win your pool. Previously we looked at Outstanding Comedy, Drama & Limited Series/TV Movie Writing and Directing. Next up, the most important category not on the main telecast: casting.

Five years ago, the Emmys moved to a plurality vote replacing the more level playing field of 80-100 person panels. No category has had more of a transformation than the casting categories. The winners used to typically come from first-year shows, which makes sense since they’re casting a series that could potentially go multiple seasons and the voters were casting directors. But then the television academy changed the rules allowing directors and producers as well as casting directors to vote. If you win, your series chances of winning increase; lose, and you better hope it’s an anomaly.

By Rebecca Daniel 
​
This year has turned everything upside down, including some of the most significant award shows in Hollywood. The Emmys are going to be wildly different: television’s biggest night will be broadcast via Zoom (even celebrities have to use it!). When the nominees were announced on July 28th, two particular categories stuck out to me: Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama and Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama. The field is stacked with incredible talent from some of the best drama series currently airing. There are eight actors and actresses nominated each. Let’s take a look at these nominees!

By Amanda Spears ​

​I’m going to take you television fans through how to methodically make your Emmy predictions and win your pool. Previously we looked at Outstanding Comedy & Drama Writing and Directing. Next up, the hard to predict Outstanding Limited Series/TV Movie Writing and Directing categories.

Five years ago, the Emmys moved to a plurality vote replacing the more level playing field of 80-100 person panels. Since we spend more time watching television than a film, it’s easier to let our personal preferences affect our predictions as we try to manifest a win for our favorites.

By Amanda Spears 

​I’m taking you television fans through how to methodically make your Emmy predictions and win your pool. Previously we looked at Outstanding Comedy Writing and Directing. Next up is Drama Writing and Directing.

Five years ago, the Emmys moved to a plurality vote replacing the more level playing field of 80-100 person panels. Since we spend more time watching television than a film, it’s easier to let our personal preferences affect our predictions as we try to manifest a win for our favorites.

By Amanda Spears 

​I’m going to take you television fans through how to methodically make your Emmy predictions and win your pool. First up in this series of articles is Outstanding Comedy Writing and Directing.

Five years ago, the Emmys moved to a plurality vote replacing the more level playing field of 80-100 person panels ranking the nominees. Since we spend more time watching television than a film, it’s easier to let our personal preferences affect our predictions as we try to manifest a win for our favorites.

By Amanda Spears 

​​At the top of the 2020 Primetime Emmy nominations was HBO’s “Succession” with 18 nominations. The series tied with Netflix’s “Ozark” for most nominations for a Drama Series. As we turn our attention from predicting nominees to winners, “Succession” looks to keep the Drama Series crown at HBO. But should “Succession” win, it would be for the earliest season of all of HBO’s previous series winners.

By Casey Lee Clark 

​On July 28, 2020, the nominations were announced for the 72nd Emmy Awards to great fanfare. With the pandemic going on and lockdowns, restrictions, and self-isolation in place, many have been watching and catching up on more TV than ever. With most people unable to go to a movie theater and very few big films being released, television has been the one entertainment constant over the past few months, so many eyes were on what would be awarded a nomination this year amongst a plethora of worthy, quality shows. It has been quite the opposite of a weak year in terms of TV. Many are also wondering if this old and "stuck-in-their-ways" television academy will make this the year of embracing new and exciting shows and talent in a post-"Game of Thrones" world. 

There is a lot to cover in terms of the surprises and snubs with this year’s nominees so I’m going to be separating them into the three main categories: Comedy Series, Drama Series, and Limited Series/TV Movies. There was nothing too exciting or shocking in the categories for Reality Series, Documentary, or Variety this year. However, one interesting note in the Variety Talk Series category is the lack of nominations for ratings favorites James Corden, Jimmy Fallon, and Seth Meyers. Additionally, we will only be focusing on surprises in categories devoted to series, acting, writing, and directing, but definitely look into the MANY Creative Arts Emmy categories if your favorite show is not mentioned here (it’s more than likely a nominee elsewhere).

By Matt Neglia 
​
The 2020 Emmy Nominations were announced this morning and as always, they invoked an emotional response from all of us. Some of our favorites got in and some of our favorites were snubbed. There were surprises, head-scratchers and everything else in between. Moments after the nominees were finished being announced, myself, Michael Schwartz, Ryan C. Showers & Amanda Spears took some time during our lunch breaks to deliver our instant reactions to the nominations. We weren't originally going to record one of these but we figured we'd do something fun for the Patreon subscribers. We will be back in a few weeks with a full winner predictions podcast for all of our listeners before the 72nd Emmy Awards on September 20th.

This is a preview of the podcast, the full version of which is only available to those who subscribe to us on Patreon. For the small price of $1 a month, you can receive this review along with other exclusive podcast content, so be sure to subscribe here.

Thank you so much for listening. You can subscribe to the Next Best Picture Podcast on SoundCloud, Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, GooglePlay, Tunein, Player FM, Acast & Castbox or you can listen down below. Please take a moment to review us on Apple Podcasts here.

By Matt Neglia 

​The nominations for the 72nd Emmy Awards have been announced and as always, there were a ton of surprises and snubs.

Click below to see the nominations and be on the lookout for our podcast discussing the nominations and predicting the winners.

By Michael Schwartz 

As we approach the first major awards show of the COVID-19 era, Next Best Series regulars Matt Neglia, Tom O'Brien, Ryan C. Showers and I have been busy catching up with Emmy contenders in order to predict the nominees for the upcoming telecast. While the 72nd Primetime Emmy Awards promise to be anything but typical, one thing we do know now is that there is more television to go around than the categories can handle. With that being the case, your experts have made their best predictions based on a combination of knowledge, insight, and pure gut feelings (you can listen to them on our recently recorded podcast here). It’s all part of the fun of predicting and brings back a sense of semi-normalcy in these most unusual times. Take a look below and see who scores the highest when nominations are revealed on July 28th.

By Matt Neglia 
​
The 2020 Emmy Nominations are a week away and myself, Michael Schwartz, Ryan C. Showers, Tom O'Brien & special guest Megan McLachlan from Awards Daily TV are all here to deliver our final predictions for what we think will be nominated. It's been quite a year for television with people watching more than usual due to being stuck at home in quarantine during the coronavirus pandemic. Will that reflect in the nominations? Tune in below to find out and be sure to check back after the nominations for our predicted winners!

Thank you so much for listening. You can subscribe to the Next Best Picture Podcast on SoundCloud, Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, GooglePlay, Tunein, Player FM, Acast & Castbox or you can listen down below. Please take a moment to review us on Apple Podcasts here. And if you're feeling generous, you enjoy what you hear and want to hear more, please help support us on Patreon for as little as $1 a month and you'll receive some exclusive podcast content.

By Ryan C. Showers 
​ 
Now that Emmy voting is officially over, we can look back and see that this year in television was epic. Nothing proves that statement more correct than the sprawling, painful competition at the Emmys. In categories such as Drama Series, Drama Actress, Drama Supporting Actress, and Limited Actress, to name a few highlights, highly competent, very much worthy shows and performances are going to be left off the eventful final list in a few days. One could fill each category twice over and still have excess.

By Tom O'Brien 

The Emmy for the Outstanding Competition category has proven to contain some of the most varied nominees of any Emmy category. There are singing competitions, craft competitions, and fashion competitions, as well as contests of wit and of strength. The big news in this year's race is that CBS' "The Amazing Race," which has won this category a record 10 times, did not air any episodes in the eligibility period and is out, which leaves open at least one slot for a newcomer.

As we come down to the end of the voting period, let's count down how I see this hot race shaping up at this moment...

​By Michael Schwartz 

​As we dig through a plethora of unpredictable Emmy races, one category seems all but sewn up: Outstanding Variety Talk Series. By all estimations, it will likely go its third consecutive year with the same six nominees. While it may not be as exciting a contest to predict, it’s still worth breaking down why these six informative yet entertaining series seem to stand out amongst the crowd.