BENJAMONSTER AWARDS 2023: Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series

Today's award is Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series!

Past Awards in This Category: 2022 2021 2020

This year's nominees are...

CHRISTINE BARANSKI as Diane Lockhart in The Good Fight (Paramount+)

HELEN MIRREN as Cara Dutton in 1923 (Paramount+)

ELISABETH MOSS as June Osbourne in The Handmaid's Tale (Hulu)

BELLA RAMSEY as Ellie Williams in The Last of Us (HBO)

KERI RUSSELL as Ambassador Kate Wyler in The Diplomat (Netflix)

SARAH SNOOK as Shiv Roy in Succession (HBO)

IMELDA STAUNTON as Queen Elizabeth II in The Crown (Netflix)

And the Winner Is...

SARAH SNOOK

Succession (HBO)

Sarah Snook has always been strong on Succession but she really kicked it up another notch for the final season. Her character really was a driving force this season especially through the fictional election and then the board vote and of course, her character catapulted the show to its wild final 15 minutes. Snook was a perfect fit for this show because she can cut people down with her words and have some serious passive aggressive behavior. I think the real strength in her performance is she somehow made many audience members believe that she was more noble than her brothers or her father when in reality, she was just as petty and vindictive. But because Snook gave her a sense of regality, her finale actions surprised many. If you follow closely though, we should have seen it coming. I look forward to seeing what Saran Snook does next.

Thoughts on the Rest of the Nominees:

This category was full of strong performances. The young Bella Ramsay was a force in The Last of Us with a lot of spunk and humor but also some harrowing scenes. On the flip side of the age spectrum, Helen Mirren added gravitas to 1923 while Imelda Staunton brought Queen Elizabeth into her later years with the stoic dignity that the real Queen had. Christine Baranski has been playing Diane Lockhart since 2009's premiere of The Good Wife and has always been strong in the role including in the final season of The Good Fight that grew increasingly absurd. Elisabeth Moss continues to be excellent in The Handmaid's Tale and it's almost easy to take her for granted. Finally, Keri Russell helped The Diplomat be better than it needed to be with an interesting mix of drama and humor.

Tomorrow: Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series!

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