Do You Like Apples 2011 Emmy Nominations: Lead Actor

We are now down to our final acting category as we tackle the lead acting races.  There were some great performances on both the comedy and drama side this year and I have to say that I feel very strongly about my picks.  Sure there were a few actors I felt bad that I left out but overall I thought that the six guys I selected in each category were very solid picks.  This years lead acting categories will definitely have an interesting flare as there are some actors who won’t be involved in this race  next year because either their shows are ending or the actors are leaving the shows on their own.

No matter what the case, this was definitely one of the strongest categories this year (and that’s without “Breaking Bad’s” Bryan Cranston not even being eligible!) so it was quite fin for me to break down.  I know that I may cause some uproar with my nominations but remember this is just one guys opinion, the real Emmy nominations come out Thursday July 14th.

Okay so here are my picks for the leading actor categories:  As always my winners will be in bold.

Life After a Classic Television Character (It’s Not Always Sunshine and Rainbows)

As a huge TV nerd I found myself getting very attached to certain shows and as a result the characters on them.  Over time on some of these shows some of their characters reach this cult status and become somewhat legendary in the eyes of the critics and mostly the fans.  Nothing saddens me more then when someone who played one of these timeless characters moves on to a new project on TV after their very successful show ends.  I don’t really know what I should expect, I guess I want to see them retire to some “classic TV character” town in central Florida and let us fans only remember them when they were awesome.  In a few very rare cases some of these actors have come back to find success on a new TV show, however it’s usually in a very different role entirely.  Overall, this is usually not the case and I find myself cringing when I see someone who played a character I loved with every bit of my TV nerd heart trying to make it on a new and FAR LESS superior show that isn’t very good at all.

Now let me set the record straight.  I don’t mean memorable characters who were on successful TV shows and try to find work after.  That’s different. A lot of those actors need the work so they will jump at the chance to do another project (and rightfully so).  The dude who played Urkel needed to find work after “Family Matters” ended so seeing him in a different role (while awkward) isn’t what I am trying to explain here.  I am talking about characters that made their marks on the audience either because they were hysterical and carried comedies or because they were so well played and dark that that you couldn’t take you eyes off of them in a drama.