Emmys Acting Solo Nominees: Can Steve Carell, Chase Infiniti and Others Beat the Odds?

Awards Circuit Column: Seven performers are the only nominations for their shows. Can any win?

When the nominations for the 78th Primetime Emmy Awards landed July 8, most of the focus went to the giants — “The Pitt” and “Hacks,” which both led the field. But scattered across the acting categories is a quieter story with seven performers who are the only Emmy nominees their show could claim.

We call them the solo nominees: Riz Ahmed (“Bait”), Richard Gadd (“Half Man”), Steve Carell (“Rooster”), Yahya Abdul-Mateen II (“Wonder Man”), Colman Domingo (“The Four Seasons”), Billy Crudup (“The Morning Show”) and Chase Infiniti (“The Testaments”). Each carries a series that drew a single Emmy bid, and it’s the largest such class since 2015, when 11 performers stood alone for their shows.

Across the annals of the Emmys, 71 performers have won an acting trophy while serving as their show’s lone nominee. The most recent was Mark Ruffalo, who took lead actor in a limited series for HBO’s “I Know This Much Is True” in 2020. Others, like Regina King (“Seven Seconds,” 2018) and Louie Anderson (“Baskets,” 2016), also belong to the same club. But of those 71, there have been only 12 such wins since 2000.

Five categories have had the most solo winners in Emmy history with seven solo winners each: lead comedy actress, lead drama actress, supporting drama actress, supporting drama actor and supporting actress in a limited series.

The tally skews heavily toward women and supporting roles. The lowest counts belong to the male lead categories, where winners tend to emerge from heavily nominated prestige series rather than one-off showcases.

What also makes the solo wins remarkable is who these winners had to beat.

Of the 71, a full 61 (86%) defeated at least one rival from a show that was nominated for its genre’s top series prize. And 30 of them — or 42% — beat an actor from the show that went on to win drama, comedy or limited series.

Some notable recent upsets include Ruffalo’s win over Jeremy Irons of “Watchmen,” that year’s limited-series champion. A beloved comedian like Anderson toppled Tony Hale and Matt Walsh of “Veep” the year the political satire ruled comedy. Even Lisa Kudrow’s Phoebe Buffay from “Friends” beat “Frasier’s” Jane Leeves in 1998 as “Frasier” claimed the top comedy prize.

The steepest climbs belong to the comedy leads. Carell and Abdul-Mateen II must both get past Matthew Rhys (“Widow’s Bay”) and Martin Short (“Only Murders in the Building”), each from a comedy-series nominee.

Ahmed — already a winner in his category for “The Night Of ” in 2017 — faces a limited-actor field stacked with series muscle: Oscar Isaac from “Beef,” which pulled 16 nominations, and Rhys again for “The Beast in Me.”

Infiniti may have the hardest road of all. Her lead drama actress category includes Carrie Coon (“The Gilded Age”), Keri Russell (“The Diplomat”) and two-time winner Zendaya (“Euphoria”) — all three star are on drama series nominees — with Rhea Seehorn a heavy favorite for Apple TV’s “Pluribus.”

For a first-time nominee, the seat at the table may be the reward.

Domingo, a double nominee this year thanks to a second nod for “Euphoria,” at least arrives with momentum. Gadd, fresh off “Baby Reindeer,” and Crudup, a past winner for “The Morning Show,” round out a pedigreed group that must contend with front-running series to nab gold.

In 2010, seven solo nominees went home empty-handed. So a big solo class does not guarantee a solo winner — but maybe this time, someone’s lucky number will be one.

This week’s updated Emmy winner predictions are below.

Drama Series: “The Pitt” (HBO Max)Comedy Series: “Widow’s Bay” (Apple TV)Limited or Anthology Series: “Beef” (Netflix)Outstanding Movie: “Remarkably Bright Creatures” (Netflix)Lead Actor (Drama): Noah Wyle, “The Pitt” (HBO Max)Lead Actor (Comedy): Matthew Rhys, “Widow’s Bay” (Apple TV)Lead Actor (Limited/Movie): Oscar Isaac, “Beef” (Netflix)Lead Actress (Drama): Rhea Seehorn, “Pluribus” (Apple TV)Lead Actress (Comedy): Jean Smart, “Hacks” (HBO Max)Lead Actress (Limited/Movie): Carey Mulligan, “Beef” (Netflix)Supporting Actor (Drama): Tom Pelphrey, “Task” (HBO Max)Supporting Actor (Comedy): Stephen Root, “Widow’s Bay” (Apple TV)Supporting Actor (Limited/Movie): David Harbour, “DTF St. Louis” (HBO Max)Supporting Actress (Drama): Katherine LaNasa, “The Pitt” (HBO Max)Supporting Actress (Comedy): Kate O’Flynn, “Widow’s Bay” (Apple TV)Supporting Actress (Limited/Movie): Dakota Fanning, “All Her Fault” (Peacock)Guest Actor (Drama): Colman Domingo, “Euphoria” (HBO Max)Guest Actress (Drama): Brittany Allen, “The Pitt” (HBO Max)Guest Actor (Comedy): Rob Reiner, “The Bear” (FX)Guest Actress (Comedy): Betty Gilpin, “Widow’s Bay” (Apple TV)Variety Series: “The Daily Show” (Comedy Central), “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” (ABC), “Last Week Tonight with John Oliver” (HBO Max) and “The Late Show With Stephen Colbert” (CBS)Variety Special (Live): “The Apple Music Super Bowl LX Halftime Show Starring Bad Bunny” (NBC)Variety Special (Pre-Recorded): “The Muppet Show” (Disney+)Directing (Drama): Vince Gilligan, “Pluribus” (Apple TV) — “We Is Us”Directing (Comedy): Hiro Murai, “Widow’s Bay” (Apple TV) — “Welcome to Widow’s Bay!”Directing (Limited/Movie): Lee Sung Jin, “Beef” (Netflix) — “Oh, the Comfort, the Inexpressible Comfort”Directing (Documentary/Nonfiction): Mariska Hargitay, “My Mom Jayne: A Film by Mariska Hargitay” (HBO Max)Directing (Variety Series): Yvonne De Mare, “The Late Show With Stephen Colbert” (CBS) — “The Late Show with Stephen Colbert Series Finale”Directing (Variety Special): Hamish Hamilton, “The Apple Music Super Bowl LX Halftime Show Starring Bad Bunny” (NBC)Directing (Reality Program): Cian O’Clery, “Love on the Spectrum” (Netflix) — “Episode 1”Writing (Drama): “Task” (HBO Max) — “A Still Small Voice” by Brad InglesbyWriting (Comedy): “Hacks” (HBO Max) — “Hacks (Finale)” by Lucia Aniello, Paul W. Downs and Jen StatskyWriting (Limited/Movie): “DTF St. Louis” (HBO Max) by Steven ConradWriting (Variety Series): “The Late Show With Stephen Colbert” (CBS)Writing (Variety Special): “The Muppet Show” (Disney+) by Albertina Rizzo, Gabe Liedman, Nedaa Sweiss, Kelly Younger and Andrew WilliamsWriting (Nonfiction): “The Daily Show Presents: Jordan Klepper Fingers the Pulse: Give the Man a Prize” (Comedy Central)Game Show: “Jeopardy!” (ABC)Host (Reality or Reality Competition): Jeff Probst, “Survivor” (CBS)Host (Game Show): Martin Short, “Match Game” (ABC)Competition Program: “Survivor” (CBS)Structured Reality Program: “Love is Blind” (Netflix)Unstructured Reality Program: “Love on the Spectrum” (Netflix)Documentary or Nonfiction Special: “My Mom Jayne: A Film by Mariska Hargitay” (HBO Max)Documentary or Nonfiction Series: “Sean Combs: The Reckoning” (Netflix)Hosted Nonfiction Series or Special: “My Next Guest Needs No Introduction With David Letterman” (Netflix)Exceptional Merit in Documentary Filmmaking: “The Librarians” (PBS)Animated Program: “South Park” (Comedy Central) — “Sermon on the ‘Mount”