Emmys 2015: Our 6 Dream Nominees for Supporting Actress in a Drama

Alas we have arrived at our final category. Just like the lead actress category, the supporting actress category is always also so jam-packed. But unlike every other category, this season this category might have a few surprises in it. Who will make their first parade into the supporting actress category? It’s anyone’s guess. But here are six performances I would like to see recognized:

Christine Baranski, The Good Wife

If there were an Emmy category for strutting down office hallways, The Good Wife would win. And if a performer could be nominated in that category, Christine Baranski would win. Hands down. Thankfully Baranski can do much more than strut down office hallways. Is there a more graceful character on television at the moment? Baranski embodies her character, Diane, like a gazelle. She glides across the screen. But this gazelle has some bite, too. Baranski is wonderful. Now if only Diane can figure out how email works…

Caitlin Fitzgerald, Masters of Sex

Michael Sheen and Lizzy Caplan have taken all the credit for the acting in Masters of Sex. But Caitlin Fitzgerald, who plays Bill Masters’ wife Libby, is long overdue for her accolades. Talk about someone gliding across the screen, Fitzgerald provides viewers and Libby the epitome of what it means to be regal. She is a woman with the desire to finally be known wholly. Her affair with Robert, and her work with Robert as well, was one of the most fascinating dynamics I got to watch this season. Fitzgerald’s portrayal of a woman coming undone was as compelling as anything Masters of Sex has produced.

Holly Taylor, The Americans

Listen, it is difficult to standout while sharing the screen with such acting heavyweights as Keri Russell and Matthew Rhys. But Holly Taylor did it. What was so fascinating about Paige’s slow realization—and eventual confrontation—that her parents are actually Russian spies was twofold. First, it was the fabulous writing. Second, it was Taylor’s performance. Taylor truly owned her role. She has made Paige quite a compelling character and force against her parents. There are many life-threatening entities in the world of The Americans, but somehow Taylor’s Paige is the most nerve-racking of them all.

Lorraine Toussaint, Orange Is the New Black

Psychopathy has never been this fun. Lorraine Toussaint was just such a joy to watch on screen as Vee on Orange Is the New Black! Toussaint has previously said that Vee was a character who absolutely scared her when she read her on paper. I can understand why. Vee was crazy. Toussaint injected new life and drive into Orange Is the New Black‘s second season. Her cutthroat demeanor darkened the series, and upped the stakes, and somehow she was able to keep into the levity of the show. This performance is just sublime.

Sophie Turner, Game of Thrones

Watching Game of Thrones these days you start to wonder what else will the writers throw at Sansa Stark.  I’ve always been a fan of how Sansa has been trying to play the game by following the rules, by trying to go unnoticed. But all that rule-playing has been eating away at Sansa for quite some time now. Sophie Turner plays Sansa like all her anger is about the burst at the seams. Watching her on screen, it’s like watching someone who is going to go off at any minute now. I look forward to every new scene. Plus, I do like me a snide remark every once in a while

Bellamy Young, Scandal

Mellie for Pres. 2016! Scandal is a show where a lot of people have to talk very quickly and give extremely long monologues. No one does it better, and there is no one I love watching more deliver those epic-long monologues, then when Bellamy Young is the one delivering them. In this season, Mellie and Fitz’s his relationship reached a new level of understanding. But what I loved most was Mellie’s desire for something she wanted for herself and the drive she possessed all season. Bellamy Young is just fantastic, and I do hope she gets some recognition this season because she definitely deserves it.

Honorable Mentions: Sissy Spacek is effortless and Bloodline. I also think Danielle Brooks is one of the most underrated actors on Orange Is the New Black; she absolutely broke my heart in season two. And can I say that Olivia Munn was equal parts compelling and hilarious on The Newsroom. And I absolutely loved Ayelet Zurer in Daredevil.

Predictions: I think without question, Uzo Aduba is going to get a nomination and will most likely win. That is of course if Maggie Smith, Downton Abbey, somehow does not win. Christina Hendricks will most likely be recognized for the final season of Mad Men. Then I think the Academy will not have Sissy Spacek go unnoticed. Christine Baranski seems like a shoo-in. And then finally someone else from Orange Is the New Black, perhaps Lorraine Toussaint.

This is one in a series of Emmys posts this awards season. Check out the Emmys tag for more dream nominees and features.