LGBT Emmy nominations include RuPaul’s Drag Race
Despite the continuing problems with the removal of LGBT characters on TV, the list of LGBT Emmy nominations for 2017 show that you can’t go wrong having LGBT representation on TV.
In fact, almost all category features had a nominee in an LGBT role or queer-leaning show, or even an out actor.
More importantly, the nomination of shows like RuPaul’s Drag Race strengthens the confidence of LGBT youth when they see representation of themselves on TV as well as mainstream cultural understanding of the LGBT lives.
Both aspects of LGBT-inclusiveness lead to acceptance as these stories are honored.
The list of LGBT Emmy nominations
When the nominations for the 69th Annual Emmy Awards were announced, it included LGBTQ actors, writers, and show creators as well as TV characters and shows.
Among the nominations were actress Evan Rachel Wood for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series (HBO’s Westworld), Lily Tomlin for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series (Netflix’s Grace and Frankie), and Saturday Night Live’s Kate McKinnon for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series.
Samira Wiley was nominated for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series (The Handmaid’s Tale), and BD Wong and Denis O’Hare for Outstanding Guest Actor in a Drama Series for Mr Robot and This is Us respectively.
Meanhwhile, Laverne Cox and Shannon Purser were both nominated in Outstanding Guest Actress in a Drama Series for Orange is the New Black and Stranger Things respectively, while Wanda Sykes was cited forOutstanding Guest Actress in a Comedy Series for black-ish.
Tituss Burgess was nominated for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series for Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt while his character’s song “Hell No” (a parody of Beyonce’s “Lemonade”) was nominated in Outstanding Original Music and Lyrics.
There was also Jane Lynch for Dropping the Soap and Ellen Page’s Gaycation. RuPaul’s Drag Race picked up seven nominations while Lady Gaga’s Super Bowl LI Halftime Show picked up six.
Other LGBT Emmy nominations
Further cited were director Jamie Babbit, and writers Ryan Murphy and Lena Waithe, while Master of None, Modern Family, Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt, and Veep are all nominated for Outstanding Comedy Series.
There were nominations also for The Handmaid’s Tale, House of Cards, and This is Us. Our favorite Netflix’s Black Mirror episode “San Junipero” was cited for two nominations with the sadly-cancelled Sense8 nominated in Outstanding Cinematography for a Single-Camera Series.
Cartoon Network’s Steven Universe was nominated for Outstanding Short Form Animated Program while Netflix’s Bill Nye Saves the World episode “The Sexual Spectrum,” picked up a nomination in Outstanding Writing for a Nonfiction Program.
LGBT Emmy nomination for Drag Race
While RuPaul had won as best reality host category last year for the long-running edgy drag reality contest Drag Race, the show itself finally scored a nomination for Outstanding Reality Competition after coming on air in 2009.
RuPaul, who was also nominated in the Reality Competition Host category again, said of the nomination: “I really didn’t expect this.”
“I came here thinking, I got invited to the prom and I’m going to dance my ass off tonight but I didn’t expect that I would have this in my hand while I was dancing,” RuPaul said.
Jennifer Yamada, a writer for Creators.co posting at MoviePilot, noted that Drag Race’s nomination is significant because this show “is one of only a handful of shows that tackle the difficult issues the LGBTQ community faces daily.”
As RuPaul once told Billboard, “Against all odds, these gorgeous and courageous kids come on our show and live their lives with no apologies to the status quo. People who watch our show, who are not drag queens, can relate to that.”