"Better Call Saul", the “Breaking Bad” prequel and sequel, concluded its six-season run with an unprecedented 53 nominations at the Emmy Awards but failed to secure a single win, marking a new record for futility in the history of the prestigious television awards.
The Television Academy, in what can only be described as a head-scratching decision, snubbed the critically acclaimed drama at the 75th Emmy Awards, leaving fans and industry insiders alike questioning the voting process. The stellar cast led by Bob Odenkirk and Rhea Seehorn were nominated in the Best Actor and Best Supporting Actor (Female) categories but lost to “Succession” star Kieran Culkin and Jennifer Coolidge (“The White Lotus”) respectively.
Odenkirk, who portrayed the slimy lawyer Jimmy McGill, aka Saul Goodman, was nominated six times for Best Lead Actor in a Drama but failed to clinch the award. Even the show's supporting cast, including Giancarlo Esposito as Gus Fring, failed to secure a win for his portrayal of the iconic character .
Odenkirk, whose subsequent AMC series, "Lucky Hank," was cancelled after just one season, almost died during the filming of the show when he suffered a heart attack.
Seehorn, who portrayed Jimmy's lawyer wife, Kim Wexler, faced a similar fate, being nominated twice for Best Supporting Actress in a Drama and going home empty-handed both times. Despite the setbacks, Seehorn expressed pride in the work created and commended co-creator and finale writer-director Peter Gould for crafting a solid conclusion to the series.
Odenkirk has been nominated for five Golden Globes for the role but failed to win there. He did clinch a Critics Choice Award and so did Esposito.
“Breaking Bad”, widely considered the greatest show ever made raked in all the awards during its five season run with Bryan Cranston winning four Best Actor awards and two for Outstanding Drama Series (as a producer).
Anna Gunn won twice in the Supporting Actor (Female) category while Aaron Paul picked up the trophy thrice for Supporting Actor (Male). 16 wins across numerous categories through its run. And a few Golden Globes too.
While many have argued that “Better Call Saul” is a superior show than its predecessor, awards have failed to show the recognition to the drama it very well deserved. Zero wins from 53 nominations across six seasons at the Emmys alone makes the show with the most losses at the programme that supposedly recognises television's finest.
The show has an Imdb rating of 9 and 98% on Rotten Tomatoes; "Breaking Bad" has a 9.5 rating and 96% respectively.
While "Better Call Saul" wasn't the sole victim of Emmy night's snubs, other notable shows faced a similar fate. "Ted Lasso," once the darling of the academy with 21 nominations, left empty-handed, with stars Jason Sudeikis and Hannah Waddingham becoming yesterday's news. "The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel," despite securing 14 nominations for its final season, found itself on the short end of the snub stick.
Additional disappointments included "Andor," "The Last of Us," and the buzzworthy “Yellowjackets”. "Barry," nominated 11 times, failed to secure a win for Bill Hader, Henry Winkler, or Anthony Carrigan. Similarly, "Wednesday" received 12 nominations but only secured wins at the Creative Arts Emmys.
AMC's "Better Call Saul" is streaming on Netflix.
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