Just call them double trouble: Showrunners Issa López, Christopher Storer, Lucia Aniello, Noah Hawley and Steve Zaillian landed nominations in writing and directing categories for the 76th annual Emmy Awards, unveiled Wednesday with FX’s “Shōgun” and “The Bear” dominating the overall race.
Notable directing nominees this year include helmers Gus Van Sant (FX’s “Feud: Capote Vs. the Swans”), Guy Ritchie (Netflix’s “The Gentlemen”), Rob Reiner (HBO’s “Albert Brooks: Defending My Life”), Ron Howard (Disney+ “Jim Henson Idea Man”), Millicent Shelton (Apple TV+’s “Lessons in Chemistry”) and Mimi Leder (Apple TV+’s “The Morning Show”).
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“Shōgun” showrunner/executive producer Rachel Kondo is also a double nominee for drama series writing.
“True Detective: Night Country” showrunner and exec producer López landed a limited series writing nomination for the “Part 6” final episode of the HBO drama anthology. She’s also up for directing all six episodes of the series, blazing a trail for Latino writers and directors in limited series categories.
“The Bear” creator/executive producer Storer is the reigning champ for comedy series writing and directing — not to mention “The Bear” being the 2023 winner for comedy series — and Storer is once again nommed in both heats. Storer landed a directing nom for the “Fishes” episode of the show’s sophomore season and a writing nom for the same episode that is shared with Joanna Calo. In directing, Storer will compete against Ramy Youssef who is nommed for helming the “Honeydew” episode of “The Bear.”
Aniello was a double-trouble comedy series writing and directing winner in 2021 for her work on Max’s much-loved comedy series “Hacks.” This time around, she’s up for helming the “Bulletproof” episode of the show’s third season. Aniello and her fellow showrunners/creators Paul W. Downs and Jen Statsky are nommed for writing for the same installment.
Hawley continued his long Emmy streak with FX’s “Fargo,” landing a limited series writing nom and directing nom for “The Tragedy of the Commons” episode of the anthology series. Zaillian, an Oscar winner for 1993’s “Schindler’s List,” grabbed limited series bids for writing and directing all of Netflix’s “Ripley.”
“Abbott Elementary” creator/star/executive producer Quinta Brunson landed her third consecutive nom for comedy series writing, for the “Career Day” episode; Brunson won the trophy in 2022.
In the comedy series directing race, “Abbott Elementary” is repped by Randall Einhorn with a nom for the “Party” episode. Ritchie is in the hunt for the “Refined Aggression” installment of his action-comedy series. And Mary Lou Belli landed her third mention for her work on BET+’s “The Ms. Pat Show.”
For comedy series writing, the field includes Chris Kelly and Sarah Schneider for Max’s “The Other Two” and Jake Bender and Zach Dunn for FX’s “What We Do in the Shadows.”
“Shōgun” landed two drama series writing bids, one for Kondo and her fellow showrunner Justin Marks for the “Anjin” first installment. Kondo and Caillin Puente are up for the “Crimson Sky” episode. Apple TV+’s “Slow Horses,” a sleeper entry in the drama series race, is represented in drama series writing with a nom for Will Smith for the “Negotiating With Tigers” episode.
For limited series writing, López’s competitors are all men. Richard Gadd, star of Netflix’s “Baby Reindeer” is recognized along with Charlie Brooker for Netflix’s “Black Mirror,” Ron Nyswaner of Showtime’s “Fellow Travelers,” Zaillian for “Ripley” and Hawley for “Fargo.”
By contrast, the limited series directing field has a 50-50 gender balance. Female helmers joining López in the hunt are Weronkia Tofilska for “Baby Reindeer” (Episode 4) and Shelton for “Lessons in Chemistry” (“Poirot”). In addition to Hawley and Zaillian, Van Sant is a contender in the category for the pilot of FX’s “Feud: Capote vs. the Swans.”
(Pictured: Issa López, Gus Van Sant, Guy Ritchie)
