Emmys 2022 Snubs and Surprises: Selena Gomez and ‘Yellowstone’ Shut Out, Sydney Sweeney Nabs Two Noms

If you, like me, logged on to the official Emmy nominations livestream on YouTube in the half hour before the presentation even started, you would have seen a lot of people in the chat typing out “Lee Min-Ho” in between the names of “ZENDAYA” (in all caps) and “Jodie Comer!!!” While Zendaya and Comer did receive nominations today, Lee did not. Nor did his show, Pachinko, save for a nomination for Outstanding Main Title Design.

The lack of love given to Pachinko suggests that, uh, maybe not enough Academy members took the time to watch this utterly gorgeous trilingual series. It’s truly one of the most beautiful shows I’ve seen not just this year, but in my career as a TV critic. The cinematography, the direction, the writing, and the acting are all top notch. It’s a truly soulful show that definitely deserved more awards love for it’s brilliant first season.

That said, Pachinko‘s snubs aren’t wholly shocking as it was clear that Severance was the Apple TV+ drama that got all the hype leading into Emmy season. But they still hurt.

For years, NBC’s This is Us was one of the few broadcast dramas to wiggle in nominations and wins in the streaming and premium cable-dominated Outstanding Drama Series and Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama categories. For the show’s final season, This is Us pulled out all the dramatic stops. In fact, Mandy Moore was almost universally praised for her work in the penultimate episode, “The Train.”

So it was kind of shocking to see the show snubbed in several main categories for its sixth and final season. It’s weird that Emmy voters wouldn’t want to honor the series one last time and even weirder that they shut out former winner Sterling K. Brown from the lead actor category. (And don’t get me started on how irate fans are on behalf of Moore.)

So if Pachinko‘s snubs made sense due to a lack of exposure, what could explain the chilly reception a mega hit like This is Us got? Intriguingly, This is Us isn’t the only popular TV hit the Academy turned its back on…

There were two buzzy dramas that started with the word “Yellow” last year, and only Yellowjackets managed to ride that hype to multiple major nominations. Paramount’s monster hit Yellowstone was once again shut out of the Emmys’ drama categories, to shock of fans and quite a few prognosticators. Furthermore, creator Tyler Sheridan’s critically-acclaimed limited series 1883 was also snubbed.

So what gives? Did Paramount botch its campaign? Did Tyler Sheridan say something to offend voters? Is the Academy a bunch of snobs who can’t embrace the preferred succession saga drama of the people? Did voters take 1883 star Sam Elliott’s mockery of Yellowstone to heart?

Or maybe voters just prefer tales of teen girls devouring each other in the woods over a Montana soap opera? (I mean, I like the cannibalism more, too, but I thought that was just me.)

We at Decider collectively weren’t all that impressed with Netflix’s Inventing Anna or Julia Garner’s choice of an accent. So it was surprising that Garner not only nabbed a second Emmy nomination (after her richly deserved one for Ozark) for Inventing Anna, but that the show also edged out Under the Banner of Heaven, Station Eleven, and the aforementioned 1883 for a best limited series nod. The Academy thought Inventing Anna was…good? Okay!

On the one hand, Garner’s nomination makes sense because she already has a lot of goodwill with voters thanks to her fantastic run on Ozark. On the other, did these people watch Inventing Anna? With an Olivia Pope-sized glass of wine, I guess?

This is one Emmy surprise I’m personally going to need time to get over…

Perhaps the sweetest surprise amongst this year’s nominees (outside of Himesh Patel getting honored for his work in Station Eleven) was the official arrival of Ms. Sydney Sweeney.

Sweeney gave TV viewers two radically different monsters in the last year. First, as a terrifyingly manipulative college girl on vacation with her family in HBO’s The White Lotus and then as the tightly wound Cassie in Euphoria. In The White Lotus, Sweeney perfectly affected the cruelty of unchecked privilege, playing Olivia Mossbacher as a girl with the power to crush a soul with one glance. However, in Euphoria, she turned up everything to 11. Cassie’s self-destructive spiral walked the line between tragic and hilarious.

Bravo, Sydney Sweeney. You deserve this!

Not every young starlet got their proper dues from today’s Emmy nominations. Once again, the awards shows have it out for Only Murders in the Building star Selena Gomez.  Gomez has already been snubbed this year by the Golden Globes — but you know, they’re just the Globes — and now the Emmys have turned their back on what she brings to the Hulu hit.

Only Murders in the Building is a delightful mix of mystery, comedy, and good old fashioned NYC porn. It also only works because of the magical chemistry of its three leads: Selena Gomez, Steve Martin, and Martin Short. While Martin and Short were once again honored for their work in the series, the third person in their comedic triumvirate was not.

To ignore Gomez’s work is to ignore how much she gives to her co-stars in this show. It’s to ignore the secret sauce that makes this beloved series a hit.

Say it with me now: Rhea Seehorn is finally an Emmy nominee!!

For years, Seehorn has been delivering one of the most powerfully beautiful and deliciously understated performances on TV with her turn as Kim Wexler on Better Call Saul. While her (male) cast mates often rake in the Emmy nominations, for some reason, Seehorn has been repeatedly overlooked.

Not anymore.

Rhea Seehorn is officially now and forever an Emmy nominee.

Next step: Making sure Kim doesn’t die in Better Call Saul‘s final season, airing now.