LOS ANGELES — “The Studio” looks like a runaway hit, the innies and outies of “Severance” could solidify a spot among the prestige TV elite, and Noah Wyle could finally have his big awards moment as the 77th Primetime Emmy Awards arrive.
Comic Nate Bargatze will be a first-time host Sunday night when the ceremony at the Peacock Theater in Los Angeles airs on CBS Sunday night.
Apple TV+ is poised to have a breakout Emmy year with the two most nominated shows, “Severance” and “The Studio,” which are the favorites to win the two biggest awards.
How to watch and stream the Emmys and its red carpet
The Emmys air live on CBS at 7 p.m. Central time.
Paramount+ with Showtime subscribers may stream the show live. Standard Paramount+ subscribers can stream it Monday through Sept. 21.
Several outlets will have live red carpet coverage, including E! beginning at 6 p.m. Eastern and “Entertainment Tonight” at 7 p.m. Eastern. People magazine and Entertainment Weekly will also have a live red carpet show on their social platforms. The Associated Press will present a slightly delayed feed of celebrity arrivals and interviews on YouTube, beginning at 5 p.m. Eastern.
How the competition is shaping up at Sunday’s Emmys
“The Studio,” with co-creator Seth Rogen starring as the new head of a movie studio, comes into the evening with blockbuster buzz for its breakout first season.
It tied a record for a comedy with 23 nominations, and with nine Emmys already won at last weekend’s Creative Arts ceremony. It would be a major surprise if it did not break the record of 11 Emmy wins in a season by a comedy.
It could win as many as 15, and Rogen himself could win four times, as an actor, a writer a director and an executive producer.
“The Bear” and “Hacks” which have dominated the comedy Emmys in recent years, are both again up for best comedy series but suddenly find themselves underdogs.
“Severance,” the Orwellian office drama about people who surgically split their psyches into workplace “innies” and home “outies,” was the top overall nominee with 27 nominations for its second season. It won six at the Creative Arts ceremony.
Along with best drama — which would be a first for Apple — it’s nominated in all four dramatic acting categories, with stars Adam Scott and Britt Lower each looking for their first Emmys.
Its top competition for best drama could be “The Pitt,” HBO’s acclaimed drama about one shift in the life of an emergency room.
Its star Noah Wyle could be both the sentimental favorite and the actual favorite for best actor. He was nominated five times without a win for playing a young doctor on “ER” in the 1990s, and now could finally take his trophy for what is in many ways a reprise of the role.
HBO’s prestige resort soap “The White Lotus” could also be in the mix for best drama its Thailand-set third season and has three nominees apiece in each of the drama supporting acting categories.
Older women could shine in actress categories
It could be an unprecedented night of Hollywood recognition for older women in an industry known for discarding female actors.
Oscar-winner Kathy Bates at 78 could become the oldest winner ever in the best actress in a drama category for playing the title role in CBS’ “Matlock.” She’d be the first woman from a network series to win the award in a decade.
And Jean Smart at 73 could extend her own record for oldest winner of best actress in a comedy if she wins for “Hacks” as she has for all three previous seasons of the show.
‘Adolescence’ and ‘The Penguin’ headline limited series
Netflix’s “Adolescence,” the story of a 13-year-old in Britain accused of a killing whose four episodes each take place in one continuous shot, may be the year’s most acclaimed show and is the consensus favorite for best limited series. Fifteen-year-old Owen Cooper could become the youngest Emmy winner in more than 40 years for playing the accused.
But HBO’s dark Batman universe show “The Penguin” got the biggest number of limited series nominations and won eight times at the Creative Arts ceremony.
Colin Farrell is nominated for lead actor playing the title character, and Cristin Milioti is nominated for actress for playing his nemesis. Both are considered strong contenders.
A send-off for Stephen Colbert
Not all of the CBS attention Sunday night may be positive.
Voters could give “The Late Show With Stephen Colbert” the Emmy for best talk series for the first time as a sort of protest vote and tribute to its host, weeks after its cancellation by the network.
Many perceived the end of the show as punishment of Colbert and placation of President Donald Trump after Colbert was harshly critical of a legal settlement between the president and Paramount, which needed administration approval for a sale to Skydance Media. Executives called the decision strictly financial.