Emmy FYC Circuit Turns to Crafts Amid WGA and SAG-AFTRA Strikes

Michael Schneider Variety Editor at Large Warner Bros. TV has suspended overall deals with more of its A-list, marquee producers, which is believed to include Greg Berlanti, Bill Lawrence, John Wells, Chuck Lorre and Mindy Kaling, as well as J.J. Abrams’ Bad Robot shingle.

Michael Schneider Variety Editor at Large CBS just smiled and gave us a Vegemite sandwich. “NCIS: Sydney,” previously announced as a Paramount+ Australia original and the first international edition of CBS’ “NCIS” procedural franchise, is making it to the U.S. shores as well.

Michael Schneider Variety Editor at Large This is it! This year’s Emmy voting is over, ending what was a rather muted Phase 2. We’ve noted the limited number of Phase 2 FYC events due to the WGA and SAG-AFTRA strikes (as well as the inability of nominated talent to participate in any press that they hadn’t already completed pre-strike).

Michael Schneider Variety Editor at Large Variety legend Tim Gray, who first joined Hollywood’s dominant trade publication in 1981, has departed after 42 years to start a new chapter with the Golden Globes organization as executive vice president. Gray, who will also serve on its board, will work closely with Golden Globes president Helen Hoehne to evolve the entity — which was formed in June, when Dick Clark Prods. and Eldridge Industries acquired the Golden Globes’ assets, rights and properties from the now-defunct Hollywood Foreign Press Association.

Michael Schneider Variety Editor at Large “The Amazing Race” executive producers Bertram van Munster and Elise Doganieri, along with host/EP Phil Keoghan, had already shot a Season 35 of “The Amazing Race” last year, and it was mostly edited and ready to go. But then came a detour: Early this winter, CBS approached both “Survivor” and “The Amazing Race” about expanding to weekly 90 minute episodes for fall 2023. Rather than try to retroactively try to pad an additional half hour on to those already-shot episodes, van Munster, Doganieri and Keoghan decided to hit the road again and take full advantage of filming supersized installments.

Michael Schneider Variety Editor at Large Because I doubt even Netflix saw this coming. “Suits,” which starred Patrick J. Adams, Gabriel Macht and Gina Torres as lawyers who filed suits while wearing stylish suits, was always a solid player for USA.

A column chronicling conversations and events on the awards circuit.

Michael Schneider Variety Editor at Large Mary Lou Belli knows she’s the longshot to win the Emmy for outstanding comedy director, and that’s fine with her. After all, she’s up against some marquee names, including Tim Burton (“Wednesday”), Bill Hader (“Barry”) and Amy Sherman-Palladino (“The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel”).

Sophia Scorziello editor Los Angeles-based pubcaster KCET has revealed its student finalists and episode line up for the 24th season of Fine Cut Festival of Films, an annual showcase and celebration of Southern California’s young filmmakers. The series of six, one-hour blocks on KCET will broadcast collections of short films from the student finalists beginning at 10 p.m. PT on Sept.

Michael Schneider Variety Editor at Large CNN news anchor Wolf Blitzer and Oscar-winning director/producer Barbara Kopple are this year’s recipients of the 44th annual News & Documentary Emmy Awards lifetime achievement honors, the National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences was set to announce on Tuesday. The News & Doc Emmys take place over two days next month in New York: Blitzer will receive his honor at the news ceremony on Wednesday, Sept. 27, and Kopple’s Emmy will be presented at the documentary ceremony on Thursday, September 28.

Emily Longeretta This is the year of firsts. For the first time, the game show trophy will be awarded as part of the Primetime Emmys ceremony (which has been delayed to January), instead of the Daytime Emmys. Additionally, it’s the first time in many years that a new show has broken into the game show category.

Michael Schneider Variety Editor at Large And yet, let’s give credit where credit is due. It is extremely impressive. And it has only happened twice before: In 1992, when NBC scored four of five slots, with “I’ll Fly Away,” “L.A.

Michael Schneider Variety Editor at Large Mark Mylod is still kicking himself over something in Season 4 of “Succession.” The series’ final installment has been universally lauded, and the general consensus is that the HBO drama stuck the landing. But for Mylod, the executive producer/director who is once again Emmy nominated, he can’t stop thinking about something — and he won’t reveal what it is just yet. “I will do the kicking myself thing.

Michael Schneider Variety Editor at Large One of my favorite categories this year, however, is lead actress in a limited or anthology series or movie. And here’s the top reason: This is the only acting category this year that features not a single previous Emmy winner among its nominees. As a matter of fact, half of them have never been nominated at all.

Brandon Lee’s heartfelt documentary, “Pamela, A Love Story,” has shattered perceptions surrounding his mother, Pamela Anderson, and ignited positive change. 

big love” for the series. Songwriter Stevie Nicks revealed in an emotional Instagram post Tuesday that Riley Keough “brought back memories that made me feel like a ghost watching my own story” after watching the hit Amazon Prime show “Daisy Jones and the Six.” The Fleetwood Mac singer also revealed that it took her two full watch-throughs before she really got into the 10-episode series. “Just finished watching ‘Daisy Jones and the Six’ for the second time,” wrote Nicks.

Michael Schneider Variety Editor at Large The Primetime Emmys were delayed, but the show must go on for the Television Academy 75th Engineering, Science & Technology Emmy Awards. This year’s recipients, revealed on Tuesday morning, will be honored at an awards ceremony on Wednesday, Oct.

Michael Schneider Variety Editor at Large Making “Daisy Jones & the Six” was more than just another show for Scott Neustadter and Lauren Neustadter: It was a family affair. Scott and his writing partner, Michael Weber (both Oscar nominated via their screenplay for the film “The Disaster Artist”), received an early copy of the “Daisy Jones” manuscript, written by author Taylor Jenkins Reid, before it even found a publisher. Neustadter, a music junkie, immediately fell in love with the script, and knew the perfect home for it: Reese Witherspoon’s company Hello Sunshine — where his wife, Lauren, had just joined as president of film and television.

Michael Schneider Variety Editor at Large Perhaps it’s coincidence, or serendipity, but two of the best-reviewed shows on television happened to both return at the same time with new seasons last week — and both put Native storytelling and Indigenous characters front and center. FX’s “Reservation Dogs” and AMC’s “Dark Winds” have a few things in common — starting, of course, with Zahn McClarnon, who stars as Navajo tribal police officer Joe Leaphorn in “Dark Winds” and recurs as Officer Big in “Reservation Dogs.” And both also share acclaim from viewers and critics: “Reservation Dogs” sports a 99% positive rating on Rotten Tomatoes’ reviews aggregator, while “Dark Winds” boasts a remarkable 100% ranking.

Michael Schneider Variety Editor at Large In a previous column I made a strong case for moving the ceremony to November, when at least the Emmys wouldn’t feel too stale or crash into Oscars season. But since Fox is moving forward with January, the silver lining is that there’s a lot more time — five months, as a matter of fact — for producer Jesse Collins Entertainment, along with Fox and the TV Academy, to figure out how to make this major Emmy anniversary a show to remember. Much of that will come down to who hosts the telecast.