From Maya Erskine to Sofia Vergara, a Look at the Comedic Actors in the Emmy Drama Race

Jennifer Aniston, trendsetter! After six comedy acting Emmy nominations and one win — five for “Friends” and one for a guest spot on “30 Rock” — Aniston was finally recognized for something other than the laughs she created as Rachel Green. Beginning in 2020, she broke into the drama acting race with her serious(ish) role as television host Alex Levy on Apple TV+’s “The Morning Show.”

She’s nominated once again for the role — and is just one of many actresses usually recognized for comedy that are contenders in the drama race.

Maya Erskine earned her third Emmy nomination this year, her first in the drama race, for her leading role as Jane Smith in Amazon Prime Video’s adaptation of “Mr. & Mrs. Smith.” The first two nods for Erskine were for “PEN15,” the Hulu comedy she co-created, wrote and starred in for two seasons.

Sixteen-time(!) Emmy nominee Christine Baranski was also recognized this year for her supporting role in HBO’s “The Gilded Age,” her first time being noticed for the period piece. To be fair, six of her 16 Emmy nominations in the past have been for drama, thanks to “The Good Wife.” But before that, it was all comedy, earning nods for her roles in “Cybill,” “Frasier” and “The Big Bang Theory.” (Somehow, the only time she took home a trophy was in 1995 for “Cybill.”)

Holland Taylor, nominated for her powerful portrayal of Cybil Richards in “The Morning Show,” has five comedy acting nominees, thanks to her roles in “Two and a Half Men” and “The Lot.”

And then there’s the actress in a limited series or movie category, which features Juno Temple and Sofia Vergara, for “Fargo” and “Griselda,” respectively. This is the fourth nomination for Temple, but her first for a dramatic part; the other three were for her role as Keeley Jones in Apple TV+’s “Ted Lasso.” She’s chilling as Dot in the Noah Hawley-created FX series, so the dramatic part could earn her her first trophy.

Speaking of chilling, Vergara’s take as crime boss Griselda Blanco for the Netflix miniseries resulted in her first dramatic Emmy nod; in fact, it was the first serious role of her career. A four-time nominee, all her past accolades have been for her portrayal of Gloria Pritchett in ABC’s “Modern Family.”