‘House of Cards,’ ‘Modern Family’ Lead 2015 SAG Awards Nominations, ‘Transparent’ Shut Out

This morning at the almost unbearable hour of 6am (PT), the Screen Actors Guild selected the nominees for the upcoming 21st awards ceremony in Los Angeles, CA. While the guild spread the love around a bit, honoring a variety of shows, “Modern Family” stood out on the comedy side landing four nominations while “House of Cards” took a narrow lead with three nominations in the drama categories.

“True Detective” was able to land nods for both Matthew McConaughey and Woody Harrelson as Outstanding Male Actors in a Drama Series, but couldn’t score an ensemble nomination. “Game of Thrones” landed an ensemble nod and one for Peter Dinklage, while “Boardwalk Empire” was well-represented in its final season by Steve Buscemi and as an ensemble. “Olive Kitteridge” and “The Normal Heart” both made strong showing in the miniseries category, making it an all around excellent morning for HBO.

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The same cannot be said for Amazon. The young streaming network was shut out from the SAG Awards, despite boasting one of the most well-reviewed series on television in “Transparent.” Jeffrey Tambor seemed like a lock heading into the morning, and the excellent ensemble cast could have easily been rewarded together if not individually, as well. Instead, two “Modern Family” actors were again rewarded (Ty Burrell and Eric Stonestreet, the same as in 2013) over Tambor’s groundbreaking portrayal of transgendered Maura. 

READ MORE: Jeffrey Tambor on ‘Transparent’: ‘The Revolution is Here’

Instead, voters chose to reward many of the more traditional TV shows in the comedy categories. “Orange is the New Black” marked the exception, though star Taylor Schilling couldn’t replicate her luck from the Emmys this year. Instead, in its sophomore season, “Orange is the New Black” landed nods for Uzo Aduba and broke into the ensemble race alongside fellow second-year nominee “Brooklyn Nine-Nine,” replacing ineligible shows from last year, “30 Rock” and “Arrested Development.” The other three nominees — “The Big Bang Theory,” “Modern Family,” and “Veep” — were all also nominated for the 2014 SAG Awards.

There was a tie in the race for Female Drama Actress, as six women were included in a race already too close to call. Only two of last year’s nominees returned to the race — Claire Danes for “Homeland” and Maggie Smith for “Downton Abbey” — while Kerry Washington (“Scandal”) and Jessica Lange (“American Horror Story”) were bumped out in favor of Viola Davis (“How to Get Away With Murder”), Tatiana Maslany (“Orphan Black”), Juliana Margulies (“The Good Wife”) and Robin Wright (“House of Cards”).

The nominees for Best Ensemble Drama remained identical to last year’s list, save for “Breaking Bad,” which is no longer eligible. Its exclusion along with Robin Wright’s first SAG nomination in television made “House of Cards” the only drama series to score three nominations (excluding Stunt Ensemble).

Other highlights:
• Mark Ruffalo and Benedict Cumberbatch are the only actors to score dual nominations this year: Ruffalo is up for “The Normal Heart” and “Foxcatcher,” while Cumberbatch received a nod for “Sherlock: His Last Vow” and “The Imitation Game.”

• Though the Emmys snubbed “Homeland” last year, the SAG Awards did not. They’ve consistently supported the Showtime drama.

• The battle for supremacy between freshman anthology series “Fargo” and “True Detective” continues. While “Fargo” has been picking up a ton of critics’ honors (aka spots on their Top 10 lists), the HBO drama bested it at the SAGs 2:1.

• This marks the second consecutive year Jon Hamm and “Mad Men” have been shut out of the SAGs. It has one more year of eligibility, as the “second half” of its final season will air in 2015.

• Julia Louis-Dreyfus has won three Emmys and one SAG award already for “Veep.” Though she’s been nominated twice, she needs a win at this year’s Globes to complete the trifecta. 

• Remarkably, this is only Amy Poehler’s second SAG nomination. She was nominated for “Parks and Recreation” in 2013, but snubbed in 2014.

• Notable shows shut out from the SAG Awards: “American Horror Story,” “Mad Men,” “The Leftovers,” “The Newsroom,” “Scandal,” “Transparent”

Here’s a full list of the nominees:

Television Programs

Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Television Movie or Miniseries
ELLEN BURSTYN / Olivia Foxworth – “FLOWERS IN THE ATTIC” (Lifetime)
MAGGIE GYLLENHAAL / Nessa Stein – “THE HONORABLE WOMAN” (Sundance TV)
FRANCES McDORMAND / Olive Kitteridge – “OLIVE KITTERIDGE” (HBO)
JULIA ROBERTS / Dr. Emma Brookner – “THE NORMAL HEART” (HBO)
CICELY TYSON / Carrie Watts – “THE TRIP TO BOUNTIFUL” (Lifetime)

Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Drama Series
STEVE BUSCEMI / Enoch “Nucky” Thompson – “BOARDWALK EMPIRE” (HBO)
PETER DINKLAGE / Tyrion Lannister – “GAME OF THRONES” (HBO)
WOODY HARRELSON / Martin Hart – “TRUE DETECTIVE” (HBO)
MATTHEW McCONAUGHEY / Rust Cohle – “TRUE DETECTIVE” (HBO)
KEVIN SPACEY / Francis Underwood – “HOUSE OF CARDS” (Netflix)