Welcome to my Monday newsletter! This week, I am looking at Presumed Innocent and the Emmy Race for Lead Actor in a Limited Series!
Please note there will be no newsletter next Monday, it will return on July 1!
Presumed Innocent is a new limited series on Apple TV+ based on the very successful 1987 novel and moderately successful 1990 film. Jake Gyllenhaal takes the Harrison Ford role of a prosecutor who becomes embroiled with, and then a suspect in, a grisly murder case. While that may have been a unique premise in 1987, we have seen things like this a bazillion times in recent years. And this series, which comes from David E. Kelley, offers a few strengths but often failed to meet its potential in the first two episodes, which dropped last week.
First of all, the series is supposedly set in Chicago. Now I'm no expert but it's the least Chicago-looking show I've ever seen. We have seen a recent hit show (The Bear) make great use of its Chicago location. Even the NBC Chicago shows capture the city pretty well. This is so clearly Los Angeles. Not just the locations but even the sun-soaked visual palette and the whole vibe of the series. Why in the world did they set the show in Chicago only to do that? Why not just set it in Los Angeles? You may think I'm nitpicking on something that doesn't matter but it speaks to the whole series seemingly not paying attention to detail. The series wants to talk around topics, O-T Fagbenle is using a very strange accent, the quick flashbacks are adding very little to the story. These are all things that more detail-oriented people in charge may have (should have?) flagged.
But, on the plus side, the series does have the very appealing Gyllenhaal in the lead role and he does a lot of work to cover up the many inadequacies. He's very believable as both a prosecutor on the right side of justice and a philandering husband. He makes every scene work that he's in, even when it maybe shouldn't. The supporting cast is mostly underused in the first two episodes aside from some strong moments from Bill Camp and Ruth Negga. I am curious enough to see where the story goes but the main reason I'll probably stick it out is Gyllenhaal's performance. I was just a little underwhelmed by a show that felt a little undercooked, and should have been set in LA.
This award feels pretty up in the air since Shogun left the category (Hiroyuki Sanada would have easily been a frontrunner). So who is the frontrunner now? It's really hard to tell. A few weeks ago, I would have told you it was Richard Gadd for Baby Reindeer but will some of the bad publicity surrounding the show take away votes? He still seems very likely to get a nomination. Jon Hamm also seems a shoo-in for a nomination for his acclaimed turn on the fifth season of Fargo. If Gadd falters, Hamm could be waiting in the wings. Ripley seemed underseen in general but it received rave reviews and its best chance for a nomination is likely leading man Andrew Scott. I'm pretty down on Feud: Capote vs. the Swans getting a lot of nominations, but I do think Tom Hollander has a really good chance for his strong performance on an otherwise messy series. Fellow Travelers, like Ripley, was another underseen show but Matt Bomer received strong notices for his performance. It's easy to forget that TV movie actors can also get in and Tony Shalhoub received three Emmys for his run as Detective Adrian Monk in the 2000s. Don't be surprised at all if he gets a nod for Mr. Monk's Last Case. After those frontrunners, it gets dicier. If Masters of the Air does well with nominations then Austin Butler could definitely get in. Hoa Xuande could get in for The Sympathizer but that show seems to have gotten mostly ignored. Sheridan-verse shows don't do well at the Emmys but I wouldn't count out David Oyelowo for Lawmen: Bass Reeves. And Michael Douglas did not get great reviews for Franklin but he is Michael Douglas. Looking for a dark horse? Ewan MacGregor was a surprise nominee and then a very surprising winner for Halston a few years ago. Could he sneak in again for A Gentleman in Moscow? Some other dark horses include Leo Woodall for One Day, Tobias Menzies for Manhunt and Benedict Cumberbatch for Eric.
Projected Nominees (ranked in order of confidence):
1. Richard Gadd, Baby Reindeer
2. Jon Hamm, Fargo
3. Andrew Scott, Ripley
4. Tom Hollander, Feud: Capote vs. the Swans
5. Tony Shalhoub, Mr. Monk's Last Case
Possible Spoilers
6. Matt Bomer, Fellow Travelers
7. David Oyelowo, Lawmen: Bass Reeves
8. Ewan MacGregor, A Gentleman in Moscow
SCRIPTED PREMIERES THIS WEEK
It's a big old nothing week for scripted premieres. The only premieres are all six episodes of the third season of Shoresy on Hulu (the whole season has aired in Canada already) and the premiere of Orphan Black: Echoes on AMC on Sunday. Yawn. But we do have The Bear next week!
ODDS & ENDS
- I enjoyed the third episode of Clipped. I thought the scene where Doc Rivers (Laurence Fishburne) got the team together had a real serious chance of going off the rails and becoming uber preachy. But instead Fishburne and the team sold the scene and it was written well enough to feel real. Although I felt like the episode could probably have used a touch more plot, it was still a good third episode that deepened each character's resolve and motivation.
- I have slowly been making my way through Broad City over the last year or so and I finally finished it this week. What a fun show and I wish I had watched it in its original run. Abbi Jacobson and Ilana Glazer were a dynamic duo (I think I liked Jacobson more but Glazer had higher highs and lower lows) and there was great writing from the two stars and the writing team that went on to Hacks. Watching it now, the show also felt like a time capsule of a pre-COVID NYC. If the 2010s are starting to feel like an era, look no further than this show.
- I didn't do very well on my Tonys predictions. Although I got the big four right on my predictions in this space a week ago, I changed The Outsiders to Suffs on Gold Derby on Sunday morning. Big mistake! The Tonys definitely spread the love around which was nice to see. As for the telecast itself, I thought it was plodding with some bad camera work and an uninspired hosting job by Ariana DeBose. Some performances and speeches were nice but the awards themselves did not come close to the great telecast last year amidst the Writer's Strike.
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