Emmy Predictions: Patten’s Last Minute Picks For Top Categories Winners

There’s a few more hours, a couple more parties and a Sunday Night Football clash between the New York Giants and the Dallas Cowboys still to go before they start handing out trophies at the 70th Primetime Emmys tomorrow on NBC but the winners’ names are already in the envelopes.

With the countdown clock about to start to the Michael Che and Colin Jost hosted ceremony, here are some last minute predictions on who could be holding the gold on Monday at the Microsoft Theater.

Now, my TV TALK co -host and Deadline’s Awards main man Pete Hammond has been making his own well considered picks over the past few weeks and his expertise is always in top form. However, if you feel like making a last minute wager or two on if HBO’s Game of Thrones will be reclaiming the Outstanding Drama throne or Amazon’s comedy The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel turns out to have a wonderful night, let me add to the odds for you with a few wild cards or two.

In that spirit, as the nominees, presenters and guests start getting their gowns and suits ready and speeches are practiced, take a look at who and what I think could be victorious tomorrow – and tell us what your picks are.

And of course, be right here at Deadline on Monday starting just before 5 PM PT for full coverage and analysis of the 70th Primetime Emmys.

OUTSTANDING DRAMA SERIES NOMINEES
The Handmaid’s Tale
Game of Thrones
This Is Us
The Crown
The Americans
Stranger Things
Westworld

PREDICTION – The Crown or Game of Thrones
My heart says FX’s Cold War spy drama The Americans should finally get the Emmy for a near perfect final season. Yet, my head says otherwise, having a bit of a sense how TV Academy voters can go. With that, this one is very close with the prize in a tight race between two royal thoroughbreds. My prediction is the Best Drama Emmy is going to either the second season of Netflix’s The Crown or the second to last season of HBO’s two-time past winner and now multiple nominated Game of Thrones.

Back on the track for its penultimate season and heading next year into the six episode eight and final season, the blockbuster based on George R.R. Matin’s writings sat out the 69th Primetime Emmys due to ineligibility because of when it aired on the premium cabler.  As for the latest cycle of Peter Morgan’s lush latest look at the British monarchy, with Claire Hoy moving on from her Elizabeth II role, there is a lot of affection for The Crown this year too. Of course, don’t count out last year’s winner, Hulu’s The Handmaid’s Tale that had an extremely timely second season this year.

OUTSTANDING COMEDY SERIES NOMINEES
Atlanta
Barry
Black-ish
Curb Your Enthusiasm
GLOW
The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel
Silicon Valley
Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt

PREDICTION – The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel
Right after it first debuted earlier this, I would have had the Roseanne reboot as a strong contender but once the ABC hit sitcom self -imploded and was cancelled due to its star’s raciest tweets, that became DOA. I know some feel HBO’s Barry could take it but I see this as all green lights and parking spaces for Amazon’s sharp tongued 1950s NYC set The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, with its star Rachel Brosnahan winning the top comedy actor spot too.

 

OUTSTANDING LIMITED SERIES NOMINEES
The Alienist
The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story
Genius: Picasso
Godless
Patrick Melrose

PREDICTION – Patrick Melrose
This Showtime 5-parter based on Edward St Aubyn’s novel of a drug addled and family traumatized scion of the British upper class has more than one horse on the track with past Emmy winner Benedict Cumberbatch also nominated as best actor in the related category. While I still can’t understand why Hulu 9/11 lead up drama The Looming Tower didn’t make the cut, Patrick Melrose looks well poised to top strong rival FX’s Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story when all is said and done.

 

OUTSTANDING LEAD ACTOR, DRAMA NOMINEES
Jason Bateman, Ozark
Sterling K. Brown, This Is Us
Ed Harris, Westworld
Matthew Rhys, The Americans
Milo Ventimiglia, This Is Us
Jeffrey Wright, Westworld

PREDICTION – Sterling K. Brown for This Is Us
A lot of people think Matthew Rhys should get this for all the great work he did on The Americans up until and including its final season, but I think This Is Us and NBC star and past Emmy winner Sterling K. Brown will be taking the Emmy home again.

At the Creative Emmys last week, Ron Cephans Jones, who plays Brown’s now deceased on-screen biological father was a winner in the Outstanding Guest Actor in a Drama series category. That win surely indicates that TV Academy winners were watching the hit NBC series from Dan Fogelman closely in its second season. And if that’s the case, that means they saw a lot of Brown in action again.

OUTSTANDING LEAD ACTRESS, DRAMA NOMINEES
Claire Foy, The Crown
Tatiana Maslany, Orphan Black
Elisabeth Moss, The Handmaid’s Tale
Sandra Oh, Killing Eve
Keri Russell, The Americans
Evan Rachel Wood, Westworld

PREDICTION – Too close to call for either Elisabeth Moss for The Handmaid’s Tale or Sandra Oh for Killing Eve
Lots of heavyweights here like past winner Tatiana Maslany of Orphan Black and The Americans’ Keri Russell in the Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series category. Ultimately, with such a plethora of talent, this is either going to Mad Men alum Elisabeth Moss for the second year in a row for last year’s Best Drama winner the dystopian The Handmaid’s Tale or to Sandra Oh for killing it in BBC America’s Killing Eve. If the Grey’s Anatomy alum takes it for the top-notch spy series, which was oddly not nominated itself, she will make history as the first Asian woman ever to win the category. So, with great work by both Moss and Oh, Best Actress Drama is standing at the timely crossroad of precedence or something prodigious. With two exceptional performers in play, it’s a hard call for Emmy voters and me too.

OUTSTANDING LEAD ACTOR, COMEDY NOMINEES
Anthony Anderson, Black-ish
Ted Danson, The Good Place
Larry David, Curb Your Enthusiasm
Donald Glover, Atlanta
Bill Hader, Barry
William H. Macy, Shameless

PREDICTION – Donald Glover for Atlanta 

The FX series creator and Grammy winner known as Childish Gambino won this category in 2017 with Atlanta’s first season. As Atlanta Robbin Season wonderfully and with no small degree of melancholy, exceeded the very high standards of that first year, Glover deserves to be giving a winner’s speech on Monday in DTLA.

OUTSTANDING LEAD ACTRESS, COMEDY NOMINEES
Pamela Adlon, Better Things
Rachel Brosnahan, The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel
Allison Janney, Mom
Issa Rae, Insecure
Tracee Ellis Ross, Black-ish
Lily Tomlin, Grace and Frankie

PREDICTION – Rachel Brosnahan for The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel
The House of Cards alum nailed the role of a lifetime as the jilted Eisenhower Era NYC housewife turned barbed standup comic in the Amy Sherman-Palladino created series. Brosnahan also found a well-earned Golden Globe come her way earlier this year and an Emmy to join it on the shelf after Monday.