Ebony's Michael Arceneaux offers his take on this year's Primetime Emmy Awards candidates, with a focus on the way African-American actors fared.
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… And of course, many of us are out there lamenting the more pressing issue about the overall lack of color present on the Emmy’s list of honorees.
There are some spectacles of melanin to be found, though.
Idris Elba received a nomination for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Mini-series or Movie for his role on the British psychological crime drama Luther. Don Cheadle was nominated for Lead Actor in a Comedy Series for his role on House of Lies, while Giancarlo Esposito received a nomination for Supporting Actor in a Drama Series for his role on Breaking Bad.
Meanwhile, Minnie [Riperton]'s baby Maya Rudolph scored a nod in the Outstanding Guest Actress in a Comedy series category for her guest hosting gig on Saturday Night Live. Unfortunately, Maya is the only Black actress to be recognized by the Academy of Television Arts and Sciences.
Yes, that means, Taraji P. Henson was overlooked for her role on CBS' Person of Interest. Same for Kerry Washington — who read the nominations with Jimmy Fallon yesterday — and her starring role on Scandal. Ditto for Regina King and her terrific work on the painfully ignored Southland.
Read Michael Arceneaux's entire piece at Ebony.com.
The Root aims to foster and advance conversations about issues relevant to the black Diaspora by presenting a variety of opinions from all perspectives, whether or not those opinions are shared by our editorial staff.
Michael Arceneaux hails from Houston, lives in Harlem and praises Beyoncé’s name wherever he goes. Follow him on Twitter.
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