Tag: darren criss

A case for ‘Twin Peaks’ and twin nominations for Laura Dern and Jeff Daniels

“Big Little Lies” and “Feud: Bette and Joan” made the limited series Emmy categories the races to watch last year, offering a wealth of first-rate acting and entertaining and intimate moments. This year’s races don’t quite offer the same appeal, though my dream — and, yeah, it’s a surreal one containing plenty of low-frequency ambient noise — is that David Lynch will finally win a trophy on prime-time television. What would he say? Would Candie, Mandie and Sandie accompany him to the stage? Emmy voters: Make this happen!

In the meantime, biding time in the Black Lodge, let’s offer a few thoughts on this year’s primary limited series categories.

LIMITED SERIES

“Twin Peaks”

“The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story”

“The Looming Tower”

“Godless”

“Howards End”

Possible spoilers: “Genius: Picasso,” “Patrick Melrose,” “American Vandal,” “Top of the Lake: China Girl”

In the mix: “The Sinner,” “The Alienist,” “Alias Grace,” “The Terror,” “Waco”

Analysis: I’ll wait until after the nominations before embarking on a full-court-press hard sell for “Twin Peaks.” “Versace” figures to be its primary competition; it’s an ambitious and often alienating follow-up to the Emmy-winning “The People v. O.J. Simpson” that was less about the titular event and more a look at the heartbreaking harm of homophobia on a national and personal scale. It was lurid, uneven and often inert, but also a fascinating depiction of what it was like to be gay in America in the ’90s. It will be interesting to see just how deeply voters invest in Ryan Murphy’s divisive series.

LEAD ACTOR, LIMITED SERIES/MOVIE

Darren Criss, “The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story”

Kyle MacLachlan, “Twin Peaks”

Al Pacino, “Paterno”

Benedict Cumberbatch, “Patrick Melrose”

Jeff Daniels, “The Looming Tower"

Michael B. Jordan, “Fahrenheit 451”

Possible spoilers: Antonio Banderas, “Genius: Picasso”; Jesse Plemons, “Black Mirror: USS Callister”

In the mix: Daniel Brühl, “The Alienist”; Evan Peters, “American Horror Story: Cult”; Matthew Macfadyen, “Howards End”; Jared Harris, “The Terror”; Taylor Kitsch, “Waco”

Analysis: Daniels has been on a phenomenal run since Aaron Sorkin cast him in the Emmy-winning “The Newsroom” six years ago. He figures to pull in two Emmy nominations this year — here for his turn on “The Looming Tower” as the FBI investigator tracking Osama bin Laden and over in supporting for playing a trigger-happy outlaw on Netflix’s “Godless.” (Laura Dern, another national treasure, figures to pull off an Emmy double-dip of her own for “Twin Peaks” and “The Tale.”)

Daniels is one certainty in a competitive category that doesn’t lack big names and outsized performances. “Paterno” wasn’t anything special, but Pacino was convincing in the way he humanized the disgraced Penn State football coach without excusing his complicity in the child sex abuse scandal that rocked the school. He’s in, as are Cumberbatch, Criss, the electrifying MacLachlan and probably Jordan for his expressive turn in “Fahrenheit 451.”

SUPPORTING ACTRESS, LIMITED SERIES/MOVIE

Laura Dern, “Twin Peaks”

Nicole Kidman, “Top of the Lake: China Girl”

Penélope Cruz, “The Assassination of Gianni Versace”

Judith Light, “The Assassination of Gianni Versace”

Merritt Wever, “Godless”

Angela Lansbury, “Little Women”

Possible spoilers: Naomi Watts, “Twin Peaks”; Jennifer Jason Leigh, “Patrick Melrose”; Ellen Burstyn, “The Tale”

In the mix: Julia Ormond, “Howards End”; Elizabeth Debicki, “The Tale”; Philippa Coulthard, “Howards End”; Tracey Ullman, “Howards End”; Sharon Stone, “Mosaic”

Analysis: Betty White was 92 when she earned her last Emmy nomination in 2014 for hosting “Betty White’s Off Their Rockers.” Lansbury, who turned 92 in October, would join her as the oldest Emmy nominee for her turn as Aunt March in the BBC production of “Little Women,” which aired on PBS’ “Masterpiece.” Lansbury has hinted it might be her final role. She has 18 previous Emmy nominations — 12 for “Murder, She Wrote” — but has never won. Playing the opinionated matriarch, Lansbury was dependably amusing and a complete joy to watch. Who wouldn’t want to see her finally win?

SUPPORTING ACTOR, LIMITED SERIES/MOVIE

Jeff Daniels, “Godless”

Edgar Ramirez, “The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story”

Michael Shannon, “Fahrenheit 451”

Michael Stuhlbarg, “The Looming Tower”

Peter Sarsgaard, “The Looming Tower”

Ricky Martin, “The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story”

Possible spoilers: Bill Camp, “The Looming Tower”; Brandon Victor Dixon, “Jesus Christ Superstar Live in Concert”; Jason Ritter, “The Tale”; Sam Waterston, “Godless”

In the mix: Bill Pullman, “The Sinner”; Tahar Rahim, “The Looming Tower”; Scoot McNairy, “Godless”; T.R. Knight, “Genius: Picasso”; Hugo Weaving, “Patrick Melrose”; Cody Fern, “The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story”

Analysis: After Daniels and Shannon, this category comes down to a question of voters sifting through the members of the “Looming Tower” and “Versace” ensembles, with Dixon being a wild card for his intense portrayal of Judas on “Superstar.” (The mesh glitter top costume will fix him in many voters’ minds.) Choosing among Sarsgaard, Stuhlbarg, Camp and Rahim for “Looming Tower” is impossible, but Rahim — a star in his native France who has worked with filmmakers Asghar Farhadi and Jacques Audiard — deserves special mention for providing the series its moral center.

A case for ‘Twin Peaks’ and twin nominations for Laura Dern and Jeff Daniels

dcriss-archive:

roguemagazine: Here’s a peek at our 6 page feature with Darren Criss @darrencriss in @roguemagazine roguemagazine’s Summer Issue N°9, out now, link bio. Find out about his upcoming tour with @leamichele, his future acting projects & his new Hollywood piano bar @trampstampgrannys where you can catch him singing live for free!
Photography by @josephsinclair 
Styling by @krishanparmar_ 
Hair by @naradkutowaroo 
Makeup by @laurengriffinmua 
Written by @jackiefern #darrencriss #assasinationofgianniversace #americancrimestory #versace #glee @americancrimestoryfx

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superslothsavesthegalaxy:

Darren Criss at the Largo

Notes from Darren’s Show at the Largo 6/11/18

1. The show was at the historical Largo. A gorgeous venue. Darren was geeking out about seeing shows there as a youth and how excited he was to play at it. Very full circle. No video recordings were allowed.

2. His parents and Mia were a row behind us. They’re adorable. I sat next to Joe Moses? Before Darren started he turned to my friend and I and asked, “Is that Harry Potter?” That was cool!

3. Darren, of course, hit up the vocals, acoustic guitar, electric guitar, and piano throughout the show. He said all his equipment was jacked up from the tour, so his acoustic guitar had this feedback that was driving him crazy. At some point, he borrowed the bands guitarists guitar to play, because his worker better. He started trying to play “I Dreamed a Dream” on it, but gave up and went back to his acoustic.

4. The bad pianist was amazing. He played the keyboard and piano at the same time. Like?! How.

5. He kept going on about how their only real rehearsal was sound check before the show. In a true Darren fashion.

6. His solo set was like a clusterfuck but in the best way. This guy literally has a songbook in his head? Including like so many Great American Songbook numbers. You never know what’s gonna show up. He said he enjoyed playing songs related to each LMDC tour city stop so much, to make each city a little special, he wanted to play them for us. I think the Nashville/ Patsy Cline number was my favorite and I think his dedication was for Mia.

7. He played “Gloria” from the American Crime Story soundtrack. He gave us a history lesson and how he talked about imagining Versace hearing it in his shop in Milan when he was about Darren’s age. He talked about how he and his Spanish-speaking cast members spoke Italian on set, but how he probably spoke the best Italian. He started singing “Gloria” in Italian, since that’s how it originally was written, then switched to English.

8. “Cough Syrup” has become one of my favorite songs to see/ hear him perform. The power and emotions he puts into it is unreal. You could kind of hear the toll the tour was putting on his voice at this point, though.

9. Before playing “Teenage Dream” he tinkered around in the piano and told everyone not to sing along. He ended up doing this quiet then loud, then quiet, then loud rendition, which was phenomenal. I liked that he took the song we knew him for and made it fresh and new. I love how he makes songs his own.

10. The planned encore was “Get Back To Hogwarts”. It was hilarious. He played all the characters and before each one entered, he gave a synopsis. He talked about being a “half-Asian kid” and jokingly said he “wasn’t racist” before Cho Chang entered and talked about how there was only one other Asian person in the department, so they wanted to do a bait-and-switch and make her a Southern blonde. A totally fun song!

11. The audience was mostly middle aged. I really liked that for a change. Of course there were a few screaming girls in the front row, but they were mostly controlled. The mix of guys/ gals might have been 60/40.

12. Overall, I really liked the atmosphere. I somewhat wish there was video of some of the songs, but the Largo said they may post some pics or something. Dude must be dead on his feet from the tour and show, but somehow he’s already at an interview this morning?

Feinberg Forecast: Where Things Stand Midway Through Nom Voting

FRONTRUNNERS

The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story (FX)
Godless (Netflix)
The Looming Tower (Hulu)
Patrick Melrose (Showtime)
Genius (National Geographic)

FRONTRUNNERS

Darren Criss (The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story)
Al Pacino (Paterno)
Benedict Cumberbatch (Patrick Melrose) — podcast
John Legend (Jesus Christ Superstar)
Jeff Daniels (The Looming Tower) — podcast
Antonio Banderas (Genius: Picasso)

Best Supporting Actor in a Limited Series or a Television Movie

FRONTRUNNERS

Jeff Daniels (Godless) — podcast
Edgar Ramirez (The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story)
Brandon Victor Dixon (Jesus Christ Superstar)
Tahar Rahim (The Looming Tower)
Peter Sarsgaard (The Looming Tower)
Bill Camp (The Looming Tower)

MAJOR THREATS

Ricky Martin (The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story)
Sam Waterston (Godless)
Scoot McNairy (Godless)
Bill Pullman (The Sinner)
Alex Rich (Genius: Picasso)
Michael Shannon (Fahrenheit 451) — podcast
Hugo Weaving (Patrick Melrose)

POSSIBILITIES

Cody Fern (The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story)
Jason Ritter (The Tale)
Beau Bridges (Mosaic)
Alice Cooper (Jesus Christ Superstar)
Dylan Baker (Little Women)
Robert Forster (Twin Peaks)

Best Supporting Actress in a Limited Series or a Television Movie

FRONTRUNNERS

Merritt Wever (Godless)
Nicole Kidman (Top of the Lake: China Girl) — podcast
Penelope Cruz (The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story)
Judith Light (The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story)
Sharon Stone (Mosaic)
Ellen Burstyn (The Tale)

Feinberg Forecast: Where Things Stand Midway Through Nom Voting


https://acsversace-news.tumblr.com/post/175021295814/audio_player_iframe/acsversace-news/tumblr_pajh5lYMaC1wcyxsb?audio_file=https%3A%2F%2Fia601501.us.archive.org%2F5%2Fitems%2F234567ytre%2FHayley%2520Atwell%2520is%2520a%2520natural%2520in%2520%2527Howards%2520End%2527.mp3

Hayley Atwell is a natural in ‘Howards End’

The category of Outstanding Limited Series is a hot topic this week. Lynette and Kristen discuss why it’s time for the rules to be changed, and if this is the year a streaming service will win. Plus, Hayley Atwell joins the podcast to discuss her role on the period drama Howards End. She also reveals who convinced her to take the role and shares some fun behind-the-scenes stories of her love for pulling on-set pranks. Credits: Hosts: Henry Goldblatt (@henrygoldblatt), Lynette Rice (@lynetterice), and Kristen Baldwin (@kristengbaldwin) Producer/Editor: Patrick Antonetti (@pja477) at Cadence13 Supervising Producer: Cristina Everett (@cristinaeverett) | 18 June 2018

Emmy Nominations 2018: Variety’s TV Critics on Their Dream Picks

This year’s Emmy nominations are almost upon us, and with the possibilities more scattered than usual, so are our opinions on who deserves to get a nod. So, with voting now underway, Variety’s TV critics got together to hash out their favorite contenders and — more importantly — point to some of the stellar performances that might not have enough support or clout to be recognized, but really ought to be.

OUTSTANDING LIMITED SERIES

D’Addario: We’ve gotten spoiled in recent years—the era of “Big Little Lies,” “The People v. O.J. Simpson,” and “Fargo”—such that this year seems pretty widely considered “weak.” There are plenty of credible nominees that exist in a slightly older mode: The tony TV literary adaptation. I was pleasantly surprised by both Netflix’s “Alias Grace” and Showtime’s “Patrick Melrose,” series that assay widely-respected recent novels with elegance, but verve, too. They may not be quite as edgy as the limited series that have bloomed in recent years, but they weren’t “Masterpiece Theatre,” either.

Framke: I’ll freely admit that this category doesn’t excite me much this year, with a couple exceptions. One is “Alias Grace,” which crawled under my skin for days after I finished it. The other is “American Crime Story: Assassination of Gianni Versace,” which didn’t get nearly as much attention or adulation as “People vs. OJ,” but was slick and confrontational in a way that kept my attention.

D’Addario: I’m glad we agree on “Alias Grace”—its direction, by Mary Harron, was eerily discomfiting, expanding the question of just what accused murderess Grace does and doesn’t know about her own capacity for evil. But I’m going to diverge from you on “American Crime Story,” which troubled me and has stayed with me in not-good ways. While many found this the pinnacle of TV impresario Ryan Murphy’s achievements, I was dubious of its psychologizing of Andrew Cunanan, and the degree to which it seemed to paint all gay men as either villains or victims. 

LEAD ACTOR, LIMITED SERIES OR MOVIE

Framke: Given your ambivalence towards “The Assassination of Gianni Versace,” I’ll stump here for Darren Criss, whose performance just about chilled my blood with every blink. And on the complete opposite of the spectrum (and in what I’ll admit is a “no way in hell” nomination dream), I’ll say that Jimmy Tatro‘s surprisingly grounded “American Vandal” role deserves more attention than it got.

D’Addario: I’ll admit I didn’t vibrate on “Vandal’s” frequency. I admired Kyle MacLachlan’s sheer commitment to his “Twin Peaks” role(s) enough to hope he lands a nomination, but find myself rooting for “Patrick Melrose’s” Benedict Cumberbatch. The actor’s no stranger to the Emmys thanks to “Sherlock,” but his compelling, painful, redemptive journey through addiction and self-loathing on “Melrose” deserves notice.

SUPPORTING ACTOR, LIMITED SERIES OR MOVIE

Framke: If the FYC campaigns are any indication, this might be Jeff Daniels’ race to lose, but his consciously hammy performance in “Godless” left me pretty cold. Instead, I find myself in a somewhat hilarious position that my middle school self would find perfectly appropriate: rooting for Ricky Martin’s heartbreaking performance in “ACS: Versace.” I will also happily accept Cody Fern’s.

D’Addario: Cody Fern was a genuine discovery in “Versace.” My vote, though, would go to Jason Ritter, putting his considerable charm towards risky and, eventually, genuinely scary use as a predator in “The Tale.” It’s a performance that walks close to the edge without losing balance.

SUPPORTING ACTRESS, LIMITED SERIES OR MOVIE

D’Addario: If anyone onscreen in “Versace” earned a prize, it’s Penelope Cruz’s uncanny Donatella, balancing feral pain with the need to save face. In my dream world, Riley Keough’s sharp, dogged work in “Paterno” pays off, and Frances Conroy gets in for an eerie, brief appearance in “The Tale,” one that leaves a painful afterburn.

Framke: I see your Penelope Cruz and raise you a Judith Light — which might be one of my favorite sentences I’ve ever written. Bless TV forever and ever, amen.

Emmy Nominations 2018: Variety’s TV Critics on Their Dream Picks

MTV Movie & TV Awards: Stars Praise Gender-Neutral Awards, Inclusion on Red Carpet

dcriss-archive:

Last year, Emma Watson and Millie Bobby Brown made history by winning gender-neutral acting awards at the MTV Movie & TV Awards, the first ever in the show’s existence. This year, stars on the show’s red carpet made it clear: There’s no looking back.

“We don’t need to separate,” Black Panther’s Winston Duke told The Hollywood Reporter about the move to gender-neutral awards while on the carpet Saturday night outside the Barker Hangar in Santa Monica. “We have to be inclusive about how we celebrate people’s work. It’s a very brave step into the future that we’re all asking for.”

At Monday’s awards ceremony, Saiorse Ronan and Daisy Ridley are up for best performance in a movie alongside Ansel Elgort, Timothee Chalamet and Chadwick Boseman. The best performance in a show category features four women — Maisie Williams, Issa Rae, Katherine Langford and Brown — and Darren Criss.

Gender-neutral awards are only one way Hollywood is looking to make changes to promote inclusivity. At the 2018 Academy Awards, Frances McDormand shed light on inclusion riders, a requirement in a particular talent’s contract to have a certain level of gender and racial diversity on set. Since the speech, stars including Michael B. Jordan and Brie Larson have been vocal about inclusion riders being the new norm.

Avengers: Infinity War co-director Joe Russo, who recently launched the new studio AGBO with his brother Anthony, told THR on Saturday that inclusion riders will be a point of emphasis at the company, adding that it’s up to Hollywood now to set the new standard.

“It is our job to be as inclusive as possible, whether that be through race or gender or sexual orientation. It’s 1,000 percent incumbent on us to lead the way,” Russo said. He went on to say that gender-neutral awards should be adopted at other awards ceremonies moving forward.

Actress-writer-producer Lena Waithe will be honored at Monday’s show with the Trailblazer Award for her work in adding and promoting diverse voices in the writers room and beyond. Waithe is currently executive producing Showtime’s The Chi, which she created, as well as the upcoming TBS comedy Twenties, which follows a queer black woman and her two straight friends.

As for what her speech will entail on Monday, Waithe told THR that it will “pay homage to those who came before us.”

The MTV Movie & TV Awards will be hosted by Tiffany Haddish and is scheduled to air at 9 p.m. ET.

MTV Movie & TV Awards: Stars Praise Gender-Neutral Awards, Inclusion on Red Carpet