If you somehow weren’t aware of all the buzz around “Ted Lasso” already, you will be when the Emmys air Sunday night.
The sweet, simple Apple TV+ sitcom about a college football coach who moves to England to lead a soccer team broke through the mainstream like few TV shows have done since streaming services flooded the marketplace, holding its place in the pop culture conversation like “The Sopranos” and “Mad Men” did in their day.
The show earned a whopping 20 Emmy nominations in its freshman season, but that still leaves plenty of categories and chances for everyone else at the TV awards ceremony, airing Sunday on CBS.
Here are our best bets on how the awards show — hosted by comedian and actor Cedric the Entertainer — will go.
Drama series
Will win: “The Crown”
“The Crown” didn’t earn 24 nominations this year just to walk away without the top award (which would mark the first top series win for Netflix). Sure, the characters are almost all insufferable, but that’s mostly just because some of their real-life counterparts are too.
Should win: “Lovecraft Country”
Not all of Misha Green’s horror-filled nightmare story worked, but man did she swing big. And when it did work, it was at once terrifying and thought-provoking and beautiful and haunting. HBO already canceled the series, despite Green’s public pleas, but the Television Academy should be celebrating her originality.
Comedy series
Will win: “Ted Lasso”
Let’s just get this out of the way here: “Ted Lasso” is, barring a scandal that even Hollywood couldn’t make up, going to sweep the Emmys. You’re going to get sick of seeing Jason Sudeikis’ face on the stage (or on Zoom in another tie-dye hoodie). They’re going to be chanting for Roy Kent from the rafters. “Ted Lasso “will be everywhere.
Should win: “Ted Lasso”
None of the above is to say that “Ted Lasso” is undeserving. This sweet, silly Apple TV+ sitcom deserves the world. Give it every award you have to give. Beyond the pop culture references, beyond the puns, beyond Roy Kent’s grunts and Rebecca’s karaoke, “Ted Lasso” is about being nice. There’s no better message than that.
Limited series
Will win: “Mare of Easttown”
Honestly, any of the five nominees in this category could take home a win and nobody would complain — well, someone would, but someone always complains. HBO’s small-town murder mystery “Mare of Easttown” has recency bias and also Kate Winslet’s southeastern Pennsylvania accent, giving it the slight edge.
Should win: “I May Destroy You”
Michaela Coel’s “I May Destroy You,” produced for both HBO and Britain’s BBC One, simultaneously represented the best and the worst of humanity: our cruelty and violence directed at those who don’t warrant respect, and the righteous indignation that fuels change. Viewers watched Arabella fall apart and put herself back together time and time again, each time a little stronger than before.
Actor in a drama series
Will win: Billy Porter, “Pose”
Jonathan Majors was a breakout star in “Lovecraft Country” and he’ll likely be reminding us of that fact for several decades. But Porter’s Pray Tell in this FX series about drag-ball culture in 1980s New York City was just so breathtaking, making us laugh one second, cry the next and reconsider every outfit we’ve ever worn in the third.
Should win: Billy Porter, “Pose”
“Pose” showed a lot of wonderful things that we never thought we’d see on television and introduced us to a lot of wonderful characters that we never thought we’d see on television.Several of those were things were brought to life by Porter, who played Pray Tell with immeasurable sass and courage and heart. The category is … one last win for the road.
Actress in a drama series
Will win: Emma Corrin, “The Crown”
Princess Diana was what F. Scott Fitzgerald would call a “beautiful little fool.” Corrin, who played the people’s princess with a heartbreaking innocence and naivety, deserves a trophy before Kristen Stewart’s movie version takes over the crown.
Should win: Jurnee Smollett, “Lovecraft Country”
If Jurnee Smollett’s only contribution to “Lovecraft Country” had been that scene where she took a baseball bat to a bunch of cars, she still deserves this award. Luckily for us, Letitia Lewis was so, so much more than that: a Black woman with a fire that kept burning when everyone was dousing her with water to shut her up.
Actor in a comedy series
Will win: Jason Sudeikis, “Ted Lasso”
I warned you, this is the year of “Ted Lasso.”
Should win: Jason Sudeikis, “Ted Lasso”
Do you think Sudeikis knows he’s going to be referred to as “‘Ted Lasso’ star Jason Sudeikis” for the rest of his life? “Ted Lasso’ star Jason Sudeikis sweeps 2021 Emmy awards.” “Ted Lasso’ star Jason Sudeikis hosts rom-com convention.” “Ted Lasso’ star Jason Sudeikis teaches the world that being kind isn’t weak or cowardly. It’s the best of what we have to offer.”
Actress in a comedy series
Will win: Jean Smart, “Hacks”
The Jean Smartaissance is here to stay. Between “Watchmen” and “Mare of Easttown,” Smart was finally getting the credit she deserved. Then came “Hacks” on HBO Max and a role of a queen, built for a queen and knocked out of the ballpark by a queen. A washed-up performer fighting to keep her career? Simply couldn’t be Jean Smart.
Should win: Jean Smart, “Hacks”
Kaley Cuoco deserves a lot of credit here for her mid-meltdown character in “The Flight Attendant” and any other year she’d have a much better chance, but Smart’s Deborah Vance is unforgettable and unavoidable in the best way. Forget an Emmy; the true award of the season is an insult from Deborah herself.
