73rd Golden Globe Awards: Our TV Predictions

‘Tis the season — award season, that is. Tonight, the 73rd Annual Golden Globe Awards will air on NBC, and it’s one of the most important awards show for both TV and film, second only to the Emmy Awards and the Oscars.

This year more then ever the winners promise to be both satisfying and surprising, because the deck is stacked all the way around.

This less rehearsed award show will have one of the most informal atmospheres of the entire season, one where artists may either celebrate or end up drowning their sorrows. Much like this year’s host Ricky Gervais, the Golden Globes are sometimes controversial, always entertaining and bound to surprise with wildcard winners, as opposed to the other more predictable award shows. In fact, what happens tonight will most likely set the tone for what we can expect in the next few weeks.

As any decent prognosticators know, it’s always beneficial to notice patterns in the categories, such as how many times a certain film is nominated, and these patterns often pave the road to the Oscars. However, the Globes have also been a haven for the redheaded stepchildren of Hollywood, the actors who aren’t typically ‘Oscar-worthy.’ The Globes are more open to up-and-comers and the HFPA readily acknowledges equally talented yet less acknowledged actors like — pulling this out of thin air — Leonardo DiCaprio, who has won three Globes and become one of the few to receive multiple awards in the same categories. Another slight oddity of the show is its propensity to award newer actresses and older, more established actors.

When it comes to TV, it get’s a little trickier. The Globes are usually the first to spot new talent and reward it, a failure of the Emmys — Modern Family anyone? And sentiment often plays a part in both film and show decisions, with shows like Breaking Bad sweeping the competition in 2014 because of its end the previous year. But with so many tremendous shows in 2015, our golden age of TV might make for a frustrating and unfulfilling award season.

So without further ado, we give you our predictions for what promises to be an intriguing (and at times questionable) list of nominees and winners.

Click here for our Film Predictions

Best Television Series – Drama

Nominees: Empire; Mr. Robot; Game of Thrones; Narcos; Outlander

Prediction: Mr. Robot

Rival: Empire

Probably the biggest downside to this category is the absence of Better Call Saul. Now that that’s out of the way, there’s another issue present in this category. We’re in a golden age of TV, but does this selection reflect the best shows we’re watching? Not really. With the addition of Game of Thrones especially, the list seems almost dated and insufficient. Either way, this really is a toss up, but Mr. Robot is a new show that’s been gaining an audience quickly. It would be a bold move by the HFPA.

Best Performance by an Actor in a Television Series – Drama

Nominees: Jon Hamm (Mad Men); Rami Malek (Mr. Robot); Wagner Moura (Narcos); Bob Odenkirk (Better Call Saul); Liev Schreiber (Ray Donovan)

Prediction: Bob Odenkirk

Rival: Jon Hamm

To be fair, we appreciate Jon Hamm’s contribution to TV in the form of Don Draper, and we’re happy he received an Emmy after the show ended, however unsurprising it was. But this will be yet another showdown between Mad Men and Breaking Bad, since Bob Odenkirk reprises his role on the latter show in Better Call Saul. Set years before he meets Walter White, we see a different side of the character, and Odenkirk transforms him into a true antagonist.

Best Performance by an Actress in a Television Series – Drama

Nominees: Caitriona Balfe (Outlander); Taraji P. Henson (Empire); Viola Davis (How To Get Away With Murder); Eva Green (Penny Dreadful); Robin Wright (House of Cards)

Prediction: Taraji P. Henson

Rival: Caitriona Balfe

It’s a possibility that Viola Davis could snag the Globe after receiving an Emmy, but the contest more likely comes down to Henson and Balfe. The one key difference between the two is the shows in which they are nominated. While Empire enjoys a spot on primetime cable, Outlander is only available through the premium channel Starz. Both actresses embody their characters so well that the award will be a coin toss.

Best Television Series – Musical or Comedy

Nominees: Casual; Tranparent; Silicon Valley; Mozart in the Jungle; Veep; Orange Is The New Black

Predictions: Transparent

Rivals: Mozart in the Jungle/Orange Is The New Black

This is another frustrating category, simply because this is the kind of unsurprising line up we’d expect from the Emmy Awards — only, Modern Family is absent. Oh well. Although Transparent won big last year, its second season was better than the first, so it has an excellent chance at a two-peat.

Best Performance by an Actor in a Television Series – Musical or Comedy

Nominees: Aziz Ansari (Master of None); Patrick Stewart (Blunt Talk); Rob Lowe (The Grinder); Jeffrey Tambor (Transparent); Gael Garcia Bernal (Mozart in the Jungle)

Prediction: Rob Lowe

Rival: Aziz Ansari

Here we meet the new talent versus older hurdle; on the one hand, Lowe is hilarious in The Grinder, which doesn’t get very much attention. On the other, Ansari is an up-and-comer at the forefront of a brand new but extremely funny Netflix show. We think the award might go to Lowe simply because actors experience the reverse effect that actresses experience – the one where newer talent is rewarded more often.

Best Performance by an Actress in a Television Series – Musical or Comedy

Nominees: Rachel Bloom (My Crazy Ex-Girlfriend); Jamie Lee Curtis (Scream Queens); Julia Louis-Dreyfus (Veep); Gina Rodriguez (Jane the Virgin); Lili Tomlin (Grace and Frankie)

Predictions: Rachel Bloom

Rival: Gina Rodriguez

Julia Louis-Dreyfus is like the gift that keeps on giving — or some other kind of sentiment that means you keep seeing the same thing over and over and over. Please go away for a little while Julia, and bring Jamie with you. You’re funny but you don’t need a Golden Globe. And technically neither does Rodriguez since she won it last year, but she is still a contender after becoming an it-girl in Hollywood. However, Rachel Bloom is a real talent right now. She is the creator and writer for her own show and plays the lead role, and we can only expect great things from her.

Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role in a Series, Miniseries or Motion Picture Made for Television 

Nominees: Alan Cumming (The Good Wife); Damian Lewis (Wolf Hall); Ben Mendelsohn (Bloodline); Tobias Menzies (Outlander); Christian Slater (Mr. Robot)

Prediction: Ben Mendelsohn

Rival: Tobias Menzies

It’s sort of a shame that Menzies’ co-star Sam Heughan wasn’t nominated for his role as lead actor in Outlander in his category, but what’s worse is that Menzies could end up being overlooked due to Mendelsohn’s performance. His is a very shadowy character, someone whom you know you can’t trust but you don’t know why. Mendelsohn plays it very well, and would certainly deserve the award. But Menzies’ Black Jack Randall was infinitely more memorable.

Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role in a Series, Miniseries or Motion Picture Made for Television

Nominees: Uzo Aduba (Orange Is The New Black); Joanne Froggatt (Downton Abbey); Regina King (American Crime); Judith Light (Transparent); Maura Tierney (The Affair)

Prediction: Uzo Aduba

Rival: Judith Light

Uzo Aduba has won almost every award she could for her role as Suzanne “Crazy Eyes” Warren, except for a Golden Globe. We think that will change tonight, with only slight opposition from her competitors.

Best Limited Series or Motion Picture Made for Television

Nominees: American Crime; American Horror Story; Hotel; Fargo; Flesh and Bone; Wolf Hall

Prediction: Fargo

Rival: American Crime

Yes, Fargo won this category last year, and Billy Bob Thornton won for the lead and beat out True Detective. Point being what exactly? This dark-comedy is so funny it would be a crime not to win if nominated. American Crime is a freshman show that might give Fargo some trouble, but we’re not sure about that. The dark horse would be Flesh and Bone.

Best Performance by an Actor in a Miniseries or Motion Picture Made for Television

Nominees: Idris Elba (Luther); Oscar Isaac (Show Me a Hero); David Oyelowo (Nightingale); Mark Rylance (Wolf Hall); Patrick Wilson (Fargo)

Prediction: Patrick Wilson

Rival: Oscar Isaac

Fargo might end up winning big tonight, but Isaac’s star is rising and it might just snatch the Globe away from Wilson. His appearances in Star Wars: The Force Awakens, Ex Machina and Show Me a Hero simultaneously prove that he is a versatile actor, but we hope Wilson’s subtle performance is honored.

Best Performance by an Actress in a Miniseries or Motion Picture Made for Television

Nominees: Kirsten Dunst (Fargo); Lady Gaga (American Horror Story: Hotel); Sarah Hay (Flesh and Bone); Felicity Huffman (American Crime); Queen Latifah (Bessie)

Prediction: Kirsten Dunst

Rival: —

Kirsten Dunst has to win for her contribution to Fargo. If not, then we’ll have to rethink our lives, and the purpose of this awards night.

The 73rd Annual Golden Globe Awards airs tonight on NBC at 7 p.m. Central.

Follow Sara Snoddy on Twitter at @Sara_Snoddy

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To contact Lifestyles editor Tanner Dedmon email [email protected].