'The Pitt' and 'Hacks' rack up nominations for television's Emmy Awards

LOS ANGELES: HBO’s emergency room drama “The Pitt” returned to the Emmy Awards race with a ​leading 25 nominations on Wednesday, and the final season of HBO’s “Hacks” landed 24 nominations, a record-setting haul for a comedy in a ‌single year. HBO Max topped all networks with 122 nominations this year, followed by Netflix with 111. “The Pitt” has a chance to repeat as best drama winner at the television industry’s highest honors, as does star Noah Wyle, who claimed the drama actor prize last year for his role as Dr. “Robby” Robinavitch, a veteran physician at a Pittsburgh trauma center. In total, “The ​Pitt” earned 13 acting nominations including four of the seven slots for supporting drama actress. “Hacks” will compete for best comedy, a trophy it has ​claimed once in its four previous seasons. Jean Smart, who plays septuagenarian comedian Deborah Vance in the show about a ⁠comedy generation gap, has won best comedy actress for the role four times and could make it a sweep after her fifth nomination. Her “Hacks” co-stars Hannah Einbinder ​and Meg Stalter were named in the supporting actress field and Paul W. Downs, the show’s co-creator, in supporting actor. “What can I say? Being recognized by my ​peers in this way is the cherry on top of the most creatively fulfilling experience of my life,” Einbinder said in a written statement. Emmy winners will be announced at a red-carpet ceremony in Los Angeles and broadcast live on NBC and stream on Peacock on September 14. A night of cheers, a future of questions The show will give Hollywood a night to ​celebrate at a time when media companies are cutting back on the number of shows they produce, and anxiety is swirling about the rise of artificial ​intelligence and the pending Paramount Skydance acquisition of HBO owner Warner Bros Discovery. Other dramas nominated alongside “The Pitt” included “Game of Thrones” prequel “A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms,” spy thriller “Slow Horses” and “Pluribus,” ‌a post-apocalyptic ⁠sci-fi series. In the best comedy race, “Hacks” will compete with previous winner “The Bear” as well as “Abbott Elementary,” “Only Murders in the Building” and “Shrinking,” among others. Sign of the times: Harry Styles sets record with 12-night Wembley run Up against Wyle for drama actor are Sterling K. Brown for “Paradise” and Gary Oldman for “Slow Horses.” Other acting nominees included Harrison Ford for his supporting role as a gruff psychotherapist on “Shrinking,” one of six acting nominations for the Apple TV show. “I’m so pleased to share this with so many of my cast members,” Ford said in a written statement “It ​makes the experience that much more significant.” Jason ​Bateman landed four Emmy nominations, ⁠two for acting and producing “DTF St. Louis” and two more for acting and directing limited series “Black Rabbit.” Taylor Swift also showed up on the nominations list. “The Eras Tour: The Final Show,” which ran on Disney+, received five nods including best pre-recorded variety ​special. “Jimmy Kimmel Live,” which was pulled off the air for six days last year after the host joked about reaction ​to the assassination ⁠of conservative activist Charlie Kirk, received its 15th straight nomination for best variety series. “The Late Show with Stephen Colbert,” the long-running series that was canceled by CBS, also was nominated. Among the notable snubs, voters left out two-time comedy actor winner Jeremy Allen White, who plays a stressed-out chef running a Chicago restaurant on “The Bear.” The final season of ⁠Netflix’s global ​hit “Stranger Things” failed to make the best drama field. “Law & Order: SVU” star Mariska Hargitay will host ​the Emmys show and also was a nominee. Her documentary “My Mom Jayne” about her mother, the actress Jayne Mansfield, received three nominations including best documentary. Mansfield died in a car accident when Hargitay ​was three years old. “I’m profoundly grateful to have this moment with her,” Hargitay said of the nominations.