Jury Duty remains the TV show of 2023 that I am most frequently and loudly recommending to people, so I am happy to see it on the list of Emmy nominees. It earned four nominations, not the most by any means, but its hybrid scripted/reality format made it something of a head-scratcher for potential nominations. For instance, Ronald Gladden, the unwitting protagonist of the mockumentary, was submitted for consideration as a leading actor, but there was some question as to whether or not the television academy would consider him eligible, since he is 1) not an actor, and 2) was not even aware he was “acting”.
Ultimately, it doesn’t matter, as Ronald himself was not nominated, but the show got an Outstanding Comedy Series nod, as did James Marsden for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series. Finally! Triple threat James Marsden is getting the respect he deserves! Although this does present something of a dilemma, as I sincerely love Anthony Carrigan and his performance on Barry as Noho Hank, one of the most fun characters on television over the last few years. Carrigan is nominated against Marsden, this is me hoping for a tie. (The other two Jury Duty nominations are for casting director Susie Farris and writer/actor Mekki Leeper, who played Noah, for writing the episode “Ineffective Assistance”.)
Ronald celebrated the show’s nominations:
Ronald will undoubtedly be at the Emmys, whenever they may be. The cast and crew of Jury Duty have been vocal about acknowledging how much they genuinely like Ronald and how they all keep in touch—James Marsden called Ronald first after the nominations, including his own, were announced. (Don’t worry, Ryan Gosling, Ronald is living his best life!) If the producers of the Emmys are smart, they’ll put Ronald on stage at some point, bonus points if it’s an unscripted, or just loosely scripted moment, to acknowledge that he isn’t an actor, and yet is the star of one of the year’s best shows. The comedy categories will probably be all about Ted Lasso, but pound for heartwarming pound, Jury Duty is still the best comedy series of the year.
See the full list of nominees here.
