Hugh Laurie has never won an Emmy. That seems like an egregious oversight on behalf of TV academy voters, considering the British actor starred as one of the best TV characters of this century in “House.” Still, 10 nominations (we’ll get to those later) and zero wins.
He could finally break that losing streak with Netflix‘s “All the Light We Cannot See.” Adapted from Anthony Doerr‘s 2014 novel of the same name, written by Steven Knight, and directed by Shawn Levy, this miniseries depicts the lives of two teenagers during WWII — one a blind French girl and the other a German boy forced to fight for the Nazi regime. Laurie features as Uncle Étienne, a reclusive, agoraphobic WWI veteran suffering from PTSD. Laurie has always been a classy performer and he again brings a lot of heart, warmth, and intelligence here to this role, as noted by several critics.
Ben Travers (Indie Wire) observed: “It’s clear from Laurie’s stuttered movements that Etienne was caught off-guard by the approaching soldiers… Hugh Laurie remains a treasure, excavating considerable pathos without giving up Etienne’s backbone.”
Mark Meszoros (The News-Herald) explained: “In the supporting role, former ‘House’ star Laurie stands out with an understated performance as a man still scarred by the horrors of an earlier war.”
Tatat Bunnag (Bangkok Post) stated: “The chemistry between Sutton and the seasoned actors Mark Ruffalo and Hugh Laurie further elevates the series… The stellar performances of Laurie, Ruffalo, Hofmann, and the breakout star Aria Mia Loberti carry the series.”
Our current predicted nominees for this category are Robert Downey Jr. (“The Sympathizer”), Lewis Pullman (“Lessons in Chemistry”), Jonathan Bailey (“Fellow Travelers”), John Hawkes (“True Detective: Night Country”), Joe Keery (“Fargo”), Treat Williams (“Feud: Capote vs the Swans”), and Hugh Grant (“The Regime”). However, Laurie has a healthy Emmys record that could help him sneak into this lineup.
Six of those aforementioned 10 nominations came for Best Drama Actor for “House” in 2005, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, and 2011 while he was also nominated for Best Drama Series as a producer on “House” in 2009. In 2016, he was cited for both Best TV Movie/Limited Series Supporting Actor and Best Limited Series (as a producer) for “The Night Manager.” He then picked up Best Comedy Guest Actor bid in 2017 for “Veep.”
Laurie is a respected thespian and voters clearly admire this man. However, he hasn’t received a nomination in seven years — the longest time he’s gone without a bid since he secured his first citation in 2005. But this category has been a good one for actors looking for an Emmy comeback.
Ray Liotta was nominated in this category in 2023 for “Black Bird” after he was last cited in 2005. Richard Jenkins was nominated here as well as Best Limited Series in 2023 for “Dahmer – Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story.” He was last nominated in 2015 before those bids. Dylan McDermott was nominated here in 200 for “Hollywood” after his previous bid came all the way back in 1999. His “Hollywood” co-star, Jim Parsons, was nominated several times for “The Big Bang Theory” as well as for “The Normal Heart,” with his last bid coming in 2014. He then returned to the Emmys thanks to this category in 2020 for “Hollywood.”
Laurie, curiously, seems to have a lot in common with Parsons here. They both earned multiple nominations for playing beloved characters in long-running series (Doctor House in “House” and Sheldon Cooper in “The Big Bang Theory”) while they also earned plaudits for other shows before going on a barren Emmy run. Parsons completed that narrative by returning to the Emmys in this category with a fictionalized show set in a specific era of history. Laurie could follow in Parsons’ footsteps.
Laurie is also a veteran actor and Emmy voters love nominating veterans in this category, with the likes of Liotta (“Black Bird”), Jenkins (“Dahmer – Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story”), McDermott (“Hollywood”), Louis Gossett Jr. (“Watchmen”), Jeff Daniels (“Godless”), Alfred Molina (“Feud: Bette and Joan”), Stanley Tucci (“Feud: Bette and Joan”), and David Thewlis (“Fargo”) all receiving bids in recent years.
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