Billie Piper, Secret Diary of a Callgirl: Not only does the one-time pop chanteuse and Doctor Who sidekick score big laughs with the most subtle of punch lines, but she carries the series' moody, meditative weight solely on her shoulders. Of course, I'd give her an Emmy just for convincing me her character's boyfriend was an unreasonable lout simply because he dumped her after catching her in bed with another man, and discovering she was a prostitute in the process.
Kyle Bornheimer, Worst Week: So what if his show was a little spotty (and ultimately a little canceled)? Bornheimer's frantic energy gave a jolt of hilarious unpredictability to Worst Week's sometimes formulaic guy-tries-to-please-in-laws shtick. Whether his Sam Briggs was setting a classic car on fire or urinating on a carefully prepared goose dinner, you could practically feel his panic sweat dripping from the TV set.
Eva Longoria-Parker, Desperate Housewives: You may find her off-camera persona off-putting, but who cares? There's no denying Longoria is the funniest woman on ABC's Sunday-night lineup. Her Gaby Solis has always been a hoot, but she's funnier than ever paired in battle against her spoiled beast of a daughter, Juanita, a rival she can neither run from nor destroy, and that's made her truly Emmy-worthy.
Okay, there you have my three Emmy underdogs for nominations in the Lead Actor and Actress in a Comedy categories, now it's time to sound off in the comments section with your must-see nominee lists for those divisions, and why you're picking 'em. (If your brain needs a jump start on the major contenders, check out Gold Derby's inside-track lists for the ladies and the gents!) And remember: If your favorites don't rate with Emmy this year — and if you make a strong enough case for 'em on our message boards — they might wind up with a nomination in EW.com's second annual EWwy Awards. Hey, it's better than going home with a box of Rice-a-Roni and some Turtle Wax!
Related stories:
Michael Ausiello's picks in the Lead Comedy Acting categories
'Worst Week': Yep, I enjoyed the timeslot buddy of 'Two and a Half Men'
2008's EWwy winners!
addCredit("Piper: Michael Elins/Showtime; Bornheimer: Chris Haston/CBS; Parker: Randee St. Nicholas/ABC")
love your picks slizzy. and i’m so glad you’re doing this and not aussi what’s his face.
Jordana Spiro in My Boys would be on my love list. She’s the center of that show – one of the consistently funny shows out there.
Yvonne Strahovski of CHUCK totally deserves a nod. She, more than any other characte, is responsible for bridging the super-spy aspects of the show with those of Chuck’s “normal” life, and she pulls it off amazingly.
Yvonne Strahovski of CHUCK totally deserved a nod. She plays the character that is primarily responsible for bridging the super-spy aspect of the show with Chuck’s own “normal” life, and she does so with amazing grace and skill.
I say give props to the USA folks. Jeffery Donovan in Burn Notice is quick witted along with his quick reflexes.
If we’re talking underdogs, I fully back Eva and Cobie Smulders from How I Met Your Mother. They’re hilarious and always make my night.
Portia de Rossi for BETTER OFF TED.
JAMES RODAY FOR PSYCH — please! He is so underrated and overlooked for far too long. He is the original Mentalist!
Anna Friel from Pushing Daisies! She was great in this sadly short lived show and it deserves all the recognition it can get!
James Roday must be nominated for Psych. Do they have to nominate the same people year in and year out especially while ignoring one of the best — roday in Psych is hilarious.
Zach Braff and Sarah Chalke each deserve a nomination this year for giving true Scrubs fans the closure we were so robbed of by NBC. Not only are they both consistently hilarious, but they give this sitcom the much needed heart that is absent on 90% of current rating winners. Yeah, House lovers, I’m talking to you. How many actors can pull off JD’s genius daydreams and remain completely believable at the same time? Braff should get more than just a nom. The slap in the face an Emmy win would mean for the folks over at NBC would be just an added bonus.
I’m just picking a few underdogs for my picks (obviously I want to see The Office and 30 Rock castmembers get nominations, but those are no-brainers; I’m not worried about them cuz they’ve got nominations in the bag already).
For Lead Actor in a Comedy, I think Lee Pace (Pushing Daisies) definitely deserves a nomination. I would also love to see Jay Harrington (Better Off Ted) receive a nomination.
For Lead Actress in a Comedy, I’m sticking with the same two comedies. I’m hoping Anna Friel (Pushing Daisies) can garner a nomination, as well as Portia de Rossi (Better Off Ted). Portia de Rossi is absolutely hilarious in BOT. I’m thinking she should even win the award. But is she being considered for lead or supporting? I would assume she’s a lead role.
Miley Cyrus
Miley Cyrus
Zachary Levi for “Chuck.” Not only was he overlooked by the Emmys last year, but by the EWwys too! How is that possible?! The guy is totally hilarious and charming every week. That’s more than Charlie Sheen and Tony Shalhoub accomplish… combined! Emmy, I say.