The 2018 Emmy nominations were announced Thursday morning, and while Netflix garnered more nods than any other outlet with 112, diversity was the big winner among the acting talent.
Sandra Oh, who plays a spy on the BBC America drama Killing Eve, made history as the first actress of Asian descent to receive a nomination for lead actress in a drama series.
Oh — who is Korean-Canadian — was previously nominated five times in the supporting actress category for her role on ABC’s Grey’s Anatomy.
Guy Aoki, founding president of the Media Action Network for Asian Americans applauded Oh’s nomination.
“Her Emmy nomination for starring in Killing Eve marks a terrific comeback and a proud moment for people of Asian descent,” Aoki said. “Hopefully this will serve as a reminder to Hollywood of the untapped potential we have amongst Asian actors, who can bring prestige and strong ratings to their projects.”
The Good Wife actress Archie Panjabi, who is British-Indian, became the first woman of Asian descent to win an acting Emmy in 2010 in the supporting actress category.
Elsewhere Thursday, John Legend received a nomination in the lead actor in a limited series or movie category for his role as Jesus Christ in NBC’s Jesus Christ Superstar Live In Concert.
He’ll compete against Spanish actor Antonio Banderas for his portrayal of Pablo Picasso in National Geographic’s Genius: Picasso.
Regina King received a nomination in the lead actress in a limited series or movie category for her role in the now-canceled Netflix drama, Seven Seconds.
In the comedy categories, Donald Glover — who won Emmys last year for acting in and directing Atlanta — was nominated again Thursday for his work on the FX series. He’ll compete against Anthony Anderson from ABC’s Black-ish.
Glover also picked up a nomination in the outstanding guest actor in a comedy series category for hosting Saturday Night Live. He’ll compete against Katt Williams who guested on Atlanta, Sterling K. Brown for a guest spot on Brooklyn Nine-Nine and Lin-Manuel Miranda who played himself on HBO’s Curb Your Enthusiasm.
The National Hispanic Media Coalition congratulated Lin-Manuel Miranda and other Latino nominees, but called on Hollywood to provide more opportunities for Hispanic actors.
“Since Latinos are so obviously talented, why aren’t more Latinos hired by the networks, cable, and streaming companies?” the group’s President & CEO, Alex Nogales said in a statement in response to the nominations. “We are 18% of the nation’s populations yet Latino actors have not risen beyond 6% on the television screens in the last seventeen years. We demand better representation.”
Thursday’s nominations also saw Black-ish Tracee Ellis Ross recognized in the lead actress in a comedy series category. She’ll face first-time nominee Issa Rae of HBO’s Insecure.
On the drama series side, Sterling K. Brown of NBC’s This Is Us and Jeffrey Wright of HBO’s Westworld picked up nods.
The outstanding supporting actress in a limited series or a movie category additionally brought attention to actors of color.
Spanish star Penélope Cruz received a nomination for her role in FX’s The Assassination of Gianni Versace. Adina Porter picked up a nod for her role in FX’s American Horror Story: Cult, and Black Panther actress Letitia Wright was nominated for her work on Netflix’s Black Mirror: Black Museum.
Also nominated for their roles on Ryan Murphy’s The Assassination of Gianni Versace, were Venezuelan star Edgar Ramírez and Puerto Rican singer-actor Ricky Martin.
The Handmaid’s Tale actress Samira Wiley, who picked up a nomination for her work on the Hulu series, and Ryan Eggold of NBC’s upcoming New Amsterdam announced the nominations from the Television Academy’s Saban Media Center in North Hollywood, Calif.
The 70th Emmy Awards will be broadcast live from the Microsoft Theater in Los Angeles on Monday, Sept. 17, at 8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. PT.
For a full list of the 2018 Emmy nominees, go to Emmys.com.
