Emmy Nominations 2016: What to Expect

The networks officially have some competition. Television’s big night belong to laptops and tablets now, some experts say.

The landscape for television isn’t just changing, it’s changed. And some television critics predict that the nominations for this year’s Emmy Awards will make that abundantly clear.

Premium cable and online streaming platforms are expected to sweep this year’s nominations, which will be announced by Anthony Anderson and Lauren Graham Thursday at 11:30 a.m. E.T. The 68th annual Primetime Emmy Awards will be held on Sunday, Sept. 18 on ABC and late-night talk show host Jimmy Kimmel will host the event.

“Netflix has a permanent seat the table now,” said Lynette Rice, television editor for Entertainment Weekly. “It’s happening.”

“I think that streaming shows now almost have the upper hand over the networks," Ken Tucker, Yahoo! TV critic, agreed. "They’ve gotten such positive reviews and they get so much buzz. For a while, online streaming was the wave of the future, but the future is now.”

But, as Daniel Feinberg, television critic for The Hollywood Reporter, points out, part of their success has to do with the sheer volume of content. “The Emmys is not the networks’ show anymore,” he said.

With so much in flux, it seems like the wheelbarrows "House of Cards" and "Game of Thrones" will have to bring to carry home all their statues might be the only thing we can count on this year.

The Incumbents

There are, of course, the shows that will almost certainly pull in a lot of nominations.

“I really think this is going to be a big year for 'Game of Thrones,' and 'House of Cards,' and 'Orange is the New Black.' Those are kind of the big shows that have been nominated in the past and will continue to be,” Tucker predicts.

This season of "Game of Thrones" has been a huge critical success, and the awards are expected to follow suit.

Rice predicts "Thrones" will make “more than just a simple appearance,” with regards to its nominations and Feinberg notes that even last year, after a season that was not nearly as well received, Game of Thrones managed to do very well at the awards.

Feinberg also expects Julia Louis-Dreyfus’s show "Veep" to continue to be a powerhouse in the comedy arena this year. "Blackish" was also mentioned as a shoe in for a comedy nomination.

Both Feinberg and Rice concurred that though the last season of "Downton Abbey" may not have been its best, it will likely receive a nomination because there is a lot of sentiment for its final season.

Dark Horses

With the abundance of new material, there are certainly some new and less buzzed about shows that will bring in a few nominations.

Every critic was quick to point out "Mr. Robot," which has garnered a lot of attention after its first season and is expected to make a break through at the awards this year, with Rice referring to it as the “bona fide underdog.”

According to Tucker, Aziz Ansari’s new show on Netflix "Master of None" has potential to bring in a nomination as well.

Rice mentioned shows like "Billions" and "Outlander" and Feinberg said he will be paying extra attention to Louis C.K.’s self-distributed series "Horace and Pete," which he described as “a piece of spectacularly good programming that came out of nowhere.”

“If something from that show were able to get nominated, that would be such a cool recognition to me of just how many different things ‘TV’ means in 2016,” he added.

Limited Series is the New Drama

The Drama category has always been the big hurrah of the evening. But not this year, critics say. Instead, Limited Series could be the cutthroat category with the most anticipation.

“The drama series category is always the big thing, what the show leads up to, the big gorilla, and this year, to me the comedy field is much deeper and the movie mini-series field is not just deeper, but its got the stars. That’s where the big names are going to be this year,” Feinberg said.

All three critics agreed that, despite the great deal of talent expected to receive nominations in the Limited Series category this year, none stand a chance against the F/X hit "The People Vs. O.J. Simpson." Fargo is also expected to receive a nomination.

Of course, the Drama Category is still something viewers will keep their eyes on. In addition to the expected nominations for "House of Cards" and "Game of Thrones," critics mentioned shows like "The Good Wife," "Better Call Saul," and "Mr. Robot."

Critics’ Picks

Unfortunately, the Emmys aren’t always an indication of the highest quality television, some of the critics pointed out. Instead, it is often an indication of popularity and familiarity.

That said, Tucker, Rice and Feinberg all had personal favorites that, if they don't pull in the nominations, will certainly not be for lack of quality.

“Every year, like every other critic out there, I wonder if this is the year that 'The Americans' will get the recognition it deserves,” Feinberg said. “It is obviously and totally one of the six best shows on television.”

Tucker, too, said he’d like to see "The Americans" get nominated after being ignored for a few seasons and also mentioned "Silicon Valley" as a personal favorite.

Meanwhile, Rice is rooting for "Outlander," she says, especially as far as the acting is concerned.

The Big Screen vs. The Little Screen

The discussion at this year’s Oscars largely revolved around the topic of diversity -- or the lack there of – of its nominees. But critics seem to agree that television has been far more progressive in this regard, and that the nominations are likely to reflect that.

“I think that TV has been so much more forward thinking and ahead of the movies in its awareness in increasing diversity,” Tucker said.

Rice agreed, saying that she doesn’t think “it’s as egregious in television; TV has been a lot better.” She said we can expect to see the most diversity in the comedy categories.