Not surprisingly, the final season of “Succession” got lots of love from the Television Academy when Emmy Award nominations were announced Wednesday. The HBO series took 27 nominations, and you can bet that it will get plenty of statues when the awards are presented. The Emmy broadcast is scheduled for Sept. 18 on Fox, but the writers’ strike and a possible actors’ strike may force the academy to postpone its big night.
Lest you think HBO is losing its mojo, take note of this. The outlet is responsible for four shows in the best drama category: Along with “Succession” are “The White Lotus,” “The Last of Us,” and “House of the Dragon.” Not bad, especially since many of those show’s actors were also nominated. A number of other popular series also fared well, including Apple TV+’s “Ted Lasso” with 21 nominations. But of course there were surprises and snubs aplenty. Here are some of them.
BEYOND SNUB: If there was one thing I was sure of this year, it was that Harrison Ford would be nominated as best supporting actor in a comedy. His work in Apple TV+’s “Shrinking” — which got nods for lead Jason Segal and supporting actress Jessica Williams — was extraordinary. It’s hard to believe voters watched the show and didn’t come away with unified support for his dry, wry work. I can understand how they missed him, as well as Helen Mirren, for their dramatic work in “1923,” but really. He’s a gem in “Shrinking.” Maybe voters can’t stop thinking of him as a movie star.
BAD SNUB: OK, so voters were onto “Bad Sisters,” the delightful Apple TV+ series about the mysterious death of a toxic family member (played humorously and creepily by Claes Bang, another snub). They managed to give Sharon Horgan a nomination for best actress, which is as it should be. She’s excellent on the show, which she co-created. And yet they failed to honor the series with a nod for best drama. Forgive me, “Yellowjacket”-heads and “Andor”-iacs, but yeah, “Bad Sisters” ought to be in your spot.
SURPRISE: Money can’t buy you love, but it can buy you big-budget series that awards shows like to nominate. So I was assuming Amazon’s super-duper-pricey “Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power” would get a few of the big nominations, as well as some in the behind-the-scenes categories. But it was not to be: The show got a total of zero high-profile nods. From my point of view, the snubbing is justified: “LOR” is a “SNORE.” I’m much happier seeing “House of the Dragon” grab the fantasy-series kudos instead.
SNUB: One of the reasons for the success of “House of the Dragon” (and “Game of Thrones” before it) is its emphasis on character and performance. Yes, the fantasy aspects and spectacle are part of the success of both shows, but fully dimensional characters help them transcend the genre. So I’m surprised voters didn’t recognize some of the remarkable performances in “House of the Dragon,” specifically Emma D’Arcy for their commanding turn as Rhaenyra Targaryen and Paddy Considine as King Viserys, Rhaenyra’s father.
SURPRISE: “Jury Duty” as best comedy, with a supporting actor nod for James Marsden? That’s a hard one for me. Yes, the comedy-reality hybrid is a kick, and Marsden is all in on it, but I feel that those slots belong to others. Which others? I’d give Marsden’s nomination to Harrison Ford, and I’d give the show’s nomination to Peacock’s “Poker Face.” The comedy starring Natasha Lyonne, who was most deservedly nominated for best actress, was a thoroughly enjoyable and smart, light crime series.
SNUB: The voters were right on to nominate the trio of prominent actors in Apple TV+’s miniseries “Black Bird,” especially Paul Walter Hauser for his riveting performance as a serial killer. But I can’t understand why they didn’t give the show a nod for best limited series. I’m glad to see that “Beef” got the love it deserves, but “Black Bird” really ought to be on the list before some of the other nominees, most notably Disney+’s “Obi-Wan Kenobi.”
SNUB: I hoped against hope that National Geographic’s “A Small Light” (available on Hulu and Disney+) would get some footing in the limited-series categories, particular lead actress Bel Powley. With Liev Schreiber in a gentle supporting turn as Otto Frank, I thought maybe the voters would pay attention. Alas, the drama, about the Frank family’s protectors during the Holocaust, was completely ignored. Sigh.
SURPRISES: I did like Hulu’s “The Patient,” although I was aware of its flaws. But I fully expected to see it featured among the nominations, for best limited series, best actor, and best supporting actor. It struck me as an obvious Emmy magnet, particularly since it has Steve Carell doing a dramatic performance and Domhnall Gleeson as a killer. Likewise, I fully expected that Max’s “The Other Two” would get a nod somewhere — likely for Molly Shannon. The show won a lot of buzz for its third and final season. But yeah, voter crickets.
SNUBS: There are a few actors I’d hoped to see get some recognition, and Gary Oldman was at the top of the list for his stellar work on Apple TV+’s “Slow Horses.” It’s beyond me how voters keep missing him and his comic-dramatic work as Jackson Lamb. Brian Cox has been amazing in “Succession,” but he belongs in the supporting category since he was in only three episodes before his character, Logan Roy, died. Oldman deserves that best actor slot. I’m probably in the minority here, but I didn’t warm to Jenna Ortega in “Wednesday.” I did, however, warm to Bridget Everett in HBO’s “Somebody Somewhere,” and she deserves Ortega’s slot. And finally, two other favorites are missing: Elle Fanning and Nicholas Hoult for Hulu’s “The Great.” Really not great, Bob.
Matthew Gilbert can be reached at matthew.gilbert@globe.com. Follow him @MatthewGilbert.