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The nominations for the 76th annual Emmys have dropped. There were some records broken, a lot of surprises including 36 first-time nominees and some major snubs. And a lot of fun facts and trivia about this year’s nominees. FX’s period drama series “Shogun” earning 25 Emmy nominations this year, the most of any dramatic series this year. The original NBC miniseries adaptation of the James Clavell best-seller which starred Richard Chamberlain and the legendary Toshiro Mifune received 14 nominations and won for limited series, costume design, graphic design and title sequences. Hulu’s “The Bear” broke the record for most nominations for a comedy series earning 23 nominations. NBC’s “30 Rock” had held the record with 22 nominations since 2009. Native Americans finally have some representation in this year’s nomination with Lily Gladstone and Kali Reis earning outstanding supporting actress nominations for Hulu’s “Under the Bridge” and HBO’s “True Detective: Night Country.

As Gold Derby predicted, Barack Obama was just awarded the Best Narrator prize at the 2022 Creative Arts Emmys for the Netflix documentary series “Our Great National Parks.” The former U.S. president was, understandably, not in attendance to accept his first TV Academy honor. He is now halfway to Egot status, having already nabbed two Grammys for Best Spoken Word Album.

Obama fended off quite a formidable challenger in three-time Best Narrator Emmy winner David Attenborough, who was recognized this year for “The Mating Game.” The other three contenders in the lineup were returning nominees Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (“Black Patriots: Heroes of the Civil War”) and Lupita Nyong’o (“Serengeti II”) and category first-timer W. Kamau Bell (“We Need to Talk About Cosby”).

SEE2022 Creative Arts Emmy winners list in all categories [Updating Live]

“Our Great National Parks” was also nominated for Best Cinematography (Nonfiction) but lost to HBO’s “100 Foot Wave.” The...

The TV academy has honored the work of voice actors nearly every year since 1992 and has bestowed separate Emmys for Best Narrator and Best Voice-Over Performance annually since 2014. Included among those recognized in the former category this year are a three-time champion, a pair of returning nominees and two newcomers (one of whom is a Grammy-winning former U.S. president).

Historian David Attenborough (“The Mating Game”) is seeking his fourth Emmy victory against challengers Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (“Black Patriots: Heroes of the Civil War”), W. Kamau Bell (“We Need to Talk About Cosby”), Lupita Nyong’o (“Serengeti II”) and Barack Obama (“Our Great National Parks”). He already bested Abdul-Jabbar and Nyong’o in 2020, but can he do it again, especially with a heavy hitter like Obama in the mix? Let’s take a look at what makes each of these contenders worthy of the honor. Be sure to make your Emmy predictions...

“Planet Earth” producer Jonny Keeling has been appointed the new head of the BBC’s Natural History Unit (Nhu), Variety can exclusively reveal. He takes up the new role in December.

Keeling, who is currently series producer on “Planet Earth III,” will be responsible for all of the Nhu’s creative and commercial activity, reporting to BBC Studios’ managing director of factual, Tom McDonald. He will also join McDonald’s leadership team.

The producer, whose credits include David Attenborough series “Planet Earth,” “Planet Earth II,” and “Seven Worlds, One Planet,” will take over as the unit’s head from Julian Hector, whose five-year stint saw him oversee shows such as “Blue Planet II,” “Dynasties” and “The Green Planet.”

Hector also oversaw the Nhu’s first original commissions for international broadcasters. Keeling’s remit will include developing the unit’s presence in North America via its satellite office in Los Angeles.

“I seriously think this is the most important film I’ve worked on in my career,” acclaimed cinematographer Gavin Thurston admits about shooting Netflix’s “David Attenborough: A Life on Our Planet.” After having collaborated with revered documentarian David Attenborough for over 30 years, it is Thurston who is probably better placed than almost anyone else to declare this film the most personal and essential work that Attenborough has ever produced. Watch our exclusive video interview with Thurston above.

See Exclusive Video Interview: Steven Price (‘David Attenborough: A Life on Our Planet’ composer)

“A Life on Our Planet” is narrated by the legendary 93 year-old broadcaster and natural historian, who himself has won three consecutive Emmys for narrating the nature documentaries “Blue Planet II” (2018), “Our Planet” (2019) and “Seven Worlds, One Planet” (2020). It premiered on Netflix late last year to wide acclaim from critics (scoring a staggering 95% “fresh” rating at Rotten Tomatoes) and...

“Let’s make this as concise as possible hang on his every word,” Oscar-winning composer Steven Price (“Gravity”) reveals what he set out to achieve with his haunting and emotional score Netflix’s “David Attenborough: A Life on Our Planet,” the most personal project that revered documentarian David Attenborough has ever produced. “Let’s support everything he has to say and hopefully make the music reflect the man and his life,” he says. Watch our exclusive video interview with Price above.

See Let’s discuss the vastly different kinds of reality TV shows [Watch]

The program is narrated by the legendary 93 year-old broadcaster and natural historian, who himself has won three consecutive Emmys for narrating the nature documentaries “Blue Planet II” (2018), “Our Planet” (2019) and “Seven Worlds, One Planet” (2020). It premiered on Netflix late last year to wide acclaim from critics (scoring a staggering 95% “fresh” rating at Rotten Tomatoes) and it features...

Julian Hector, head of the Natural History Unit at BBC Studios Productions, will step down at the end of the year after five years leading the unit, and almost three decades at the BBC.

Since taking over from Wendy Darke in 2016, Hector has overseen a stellar period in the Bristol, England-based production house’s 64-year history, with shows like “Planet Earth II,” “Blue Planet II,” “Dynasties” and “Seven Worlds, One Planet” proving global successes.

Under his leadership, the Natural History Unit (Nhu) also won several new commissions, including the BBC’s “The Green Planet” and “Frozen Planet II,” Apple’s upcoming “The Year the Earth Changed,” National Geographic’s “Ocean Xplorers,” “Endangered” for Discovery, and “The Americas” for NBCU.

In the past four years the unit’s output has received more than 200 awards, including four Emmys and 11 BAFTA TV awards.

Hector began at the unit in 1993, producing series like “Battle of the Sexes...

Access for U.K. producers and distributors to the lucrative Chinese TV and film market could be under further threat amid worsening political relations between China and the U.K.

Tensions between the two countries have centred on their media brands in recent weeks. The relationship, which has been fraught for some time, reached a breaking point when China’s international English-language news channel Cgtn was stripped of its U.K. broadcast licence after media regulator Ofcom concluded it was ultimately controlled by the Chinese Communist Party. Days later, in a tit for tat move, China’s State Film, TV and Radio Administration retaliated by banning BBC World News from the country.

In recent years, TV trade between the two countries has become more complex and challenging against a backdrop of Anglo-Chinese tensions over pro-democracy protests in Hong Kong, former President Trump’s trade wars, and the banning of Huawei from U.

China’s top TV regulator on Monday issued a list of 102 state-backed TV documentaries set to hit the airwaves by 2025, indicating the kind of content Beijing wishes to promote amongst local viewers in the years to come.

The titles are the first batch selected by China’s National Radio and TV Administration as part of a project begun in 2018 to “create and promote documentary films that ‘Record the New Era’ ” That means the development of propaganda that bolsters the ruling Communist Party’s legitimacy by showcasing its recent achievements and historical roots.

The Administration noted that “key topics of priority will be favored and supported with preferential funding and policies,” highlighting the Communist Party’s involvement in crafting its own cultural narrative. Major content themes include poverty alleviation and 2021’s 100th anniversary of the founding of the Communist Party, a key government milestone expected to be accompanied by heightened media censorship and online speech controls.

The 72nd annual Primetime Emmy Awards are in the books and HBO topped all other platforms with 30 total wins. It’s Regina Kinda-led limited series “Watchmen” took home 11 statuettes, the most of any show nominated this year.

In a distant second to HBO was Netflix with 21 victories. Pop TV came in third place with 10 golden ladies, nine of which went to the final season of Dan Levy and Eugene Levy’s “Schitt’s Creek,” making that show the second-biggest winner of the night among programs.

Other networks/streaming services near the top of the winners list were Disney+ and NBC, which tied at No. 4 with 8 wins apiece. In fifth place was VH1 with six statuettes, followed by a tie for sixth between ABC and National Geographic, with both channels picking up five wins.

In the series race, behind winner “Watchmen” and runner-up “Schitt’s Creek” were Disney+’s live-action “Star Wars” series...

The Primetime Emmys take place on September 20 and air live coast-to-coast on ABC. But the majority of awards are handed out at the five Creative Arts Emmy ceremonies that take place in the week leading up to TV’s biggest night. The Creative Arts trophies will be awarded at five events on: September 14 (reality and nonfiction; Sept. 15 (variety); Sept. 16; Sept. 17 and Sept. 19 (mix). The first four of these will stream live on Emmys.com while the last will air on Fxx.

Because of the Covid-19 pandemic, which has forced TV productions, film shoots and entertainment events to shut down all year to slow the spread of the easily transmitted disease, all of this year’s Emmy ceremonies will be held virtually. While Jimmy Kimmel emcees just one show — the Emmys next Sunday — Best Reality Host nominee Nicole Byer (“Nailed It”) has been tapped to preside over all five of the Creative Arts awards.

The first of five nights of the Creative Arts Emmys began on Monday, with “RuPaul’s Drag Race” and “Apollo 11” getting out to an early lead.

The first night of the awards focused on the artisans categories for reality and nonfiction programming. “Apollo 11” picked up three awards in total, including a win for best picture editing for a nonfiction program. “RuPaul’s Drag Race” won for both best casting for a reality program and best picture editing for a structured reality or competition program. The Netflix docuseries “Cheer” also picked up two awards for the night — best pictured editing for an unstructured reality program and best directing for a reality program.

Other early winners include “Queer Eye,” “The Cave,” “American Factor,” and “The Apollo.”

Comedian and “Nailed It” host Nicole Byer will host all five nights of the Creative Arts Emmys, for which she pre-taped all of her host segments...

David Attenborough cemented his third straight win at tonight’s Creative Artists Emmy Awards, taking home the Emmy for Outstanding Narration for his work on the BBC America documentary “Seven Worlds, One Planet.” The win comes with its fair share of controversy, though, considering Attenborough — the go-to narrator over the decades for nature documentaries — was the only white nominee.

The Outstanding Narrator category is a relatively young one for the Emmys. It initially debuted back in 2016. Attenborough’s win is a bit of a shock considering the Emmys’ push towards diversity and inclusion, especially in a year where this very category saw four of five nominees being Black performers. However, the category, historically, has often been the domain of white Englishmen, going back to the year the category debuted; Jeremy Irons was the first Outstanding Narrator winner for his work on “Game of Lions.” Since that time predominately white actors have snagged wins,...

International powerhouse BBC Studios is leaning heavily into new and expanding SVOD partnerships with the likes of Discovery and its global-facing BritBox service as it looks to weather the Covid-19 era.

In an exclusive interview, Paul Dempsey, president of global distribution, tells Variety that BBC Studios’ landmark Discovery deal, through which the “Blue Planet II” and “Seven Worlds, One Planet” distributor is supplying around $393 million worth of natural history programming to Discovery’s forthcoming streamer, is a “good example of what you can expect to see from us over the next few years.”

“Over time, we’re moving from having a content sales business driven by relationships with 600-700 customers around the world and our own linear services, to a world that will be dominated by a group that’s more global in their outlook — large customers with whom we’ll have deeper relationships,” says Dempsey. Look no further than...

Updated With Winners: Chernobyl was the big winner at the BAFTA TV Craft Awards on Friday after the Sky and HBO drama scooped seven awards.

The Sister-produced nuclear disaster series beat competition from the likes of The Crown, Killing Eve and The Virtues at the pre-recorded ceremony, triumphing in categories including Director: Fiction for Johan Renck. Other wins included best Production Design and Editing: Fiction.

Elsewhere, other winners included Jesse Armstrong, who took home best Writer: Drama for Succession, while Jamie Demetriou scooped best Writer: Comedy for Stath Lets Flats. This Was Up creator Aisling Bea won the Breakthrough Talent gong. BBC and HBO drama His Dark Materials won in two categories: Special, Visual and Graphic Effects, and Titles and Graphic Identity.

The BAFTA TV Craft Awards was one of the industry’s first major awards ceremonies of the pandemic era. The event, which celebrated the best of British TV’s behind-the-scenes talent,...

Now that first-round Emmy voting is completed, who will be nominated for the season’s best song? RuPaul? Hailee Steinfeld? Darren Criss? Kristin Chenoweth?

That’s right, all four actors are potential nominees in Emmy’s song competition, officially known as Outstanding Original Music and Lyrics … as are such musical personalities as the Weeknd, Sara Bareilles, Brad Paisley and Nick Jonas — along with about 200 other songwriters.

If you’re an Emmy voter in the music branch, how do you decide what song to vote for? Do you pick something you already know and like, or do you investigate some, or all, of the many tunes entered?

There are seven music categories, which encompass more than 300 separate programs, a daunting task for even the most diligent voter. The vast number of shows entered is overwhelming, and no one — especially working professionals, which constitute the bulk of the estimated 600 composers, songwriters and...

Netflix has again led all networks at the second annual Critics Choice Real TV Awards, and its series Cheer and Queer Eye topped the winners, each taking home two awards.

Cheer nabbed trophies for Unstructured Series and Male Star of The Year Jerry Harris, and Queer Eye for Lifestyle: Fashion/Beauty Show and Ensemble Cast in an Unscripted Series. The Culinary Show category resulted in a tie, with both Chopped and Top Chef honored. Queer Eye also topped the winners’ list last year.

Netflix won eight awards in all including Jeffrey Epstein: Filthy Rich (Crime/Justice Series), Somebody Feed Phil (Travel/Adventure Series), Love Is Blind (Relationship Show), as well as Outstanding Achievement in Nonfiction Programming by a Network or Streaming Platform.

ABC and Bravo followed Netflix with two awards each.

Survivor host and executive producer Jeff Probst received this year’s Critics Choice Real TV Impact Award, for...

The Critics Choice Association (Cca) and nonfiction producers’ organization Npact announced the winners for the second annual Critics Choice Real TV Awards, honoring the best in nonfiction, unscripted and reality programming aired on broadcast, cable and streaming platforms.

Netflix programming was the big winner this year, with the streamer taking home eight wins from its 31 nominations, including two wins each for “Cheer” and “Queer Eye,” with the former earning accolades for Unstructured Series and Male Star of the Year (Jerry Harris), while the latter scored for Lifestyle: Fashion/Beauty Show and Ensemble Cast in an Unscripted Series.

Other notable winners include several Emmy hopefuls, including Hulu’s “Hillary” in Limited Documentary Series, ESPN’s “The Last Dance” in Sports Show, plus a win for streaming newbie Disney+ for “The World According to Jeff Goldblum” in Structured Series.

Executive producer and host of longtime CBS competition series “Survivor” Jeff Probst was...

Two Netflix series, “Cheer” and “Queer Eye,” were the big winners at the second annual Critics Choice Real TV Awards, which were announced on Monday by the Critics Choice Association and the nonfiction producers’ organization Npact.

Because of the coronavirus, the awards for nonfiction and reality television were not handed out at a physical or a virtual ceremony. Instead, winners were notified privately and given the opportunity to make a video acceptance speech. Links to those speeches are available at the Critics Choice website.

“Cheer” and “Queer Eye” both won two awards, the former for Unstructured Series and Male Star of the Year (Jerry Harris) and the latter for Lifestyle: Fashion/Beauty Show and Ensemble Cast in an Unscripted Series. In the Structured Series category, though, “Queer Eye” lost to Disney+’s “The World According to Jeff Goldblum.” “Cheer” lost in the Limited Documentary Series category to Hulu’s “Hillary.

Netflix dominated this year’s Critics Choice Real TV Awards, thanks in part to “Cheer” and “Queer Eye,” which led the winners list with two kudos each.

“Cheer” was named best unstructured series, as well as male star of the year for Jerry Harris, while “Queer Eye” landed wins for lifestyle: fashion/beauty show and ensemble cast in a scripted series.

Overall, Netflix won eight awards, also picking up trophies for “Jeffrey Epstein: Filthy Rich” (crime/justice series), “Somebody Feed Phil” (travel/adventure series), “Love Is Blind” (relationship show), as well as the peer-voted award for outstanding achievement in nonfiction programming by a network or streaming platform.

Other networks with multiple wins were ABC and Bravo, with two each. “Survivor” host and executive producer Jeff Probst was awarded this year’s Critics Choice Real TV Impact Award, “for his ongoing contributions to the unscripted television industry.”

The Critics Choice Association...

Netflix’s “Cheer” and VH1’s “RuPaul’s Drag Race” both earned five nominations for the second annual Critics Choice Real TV Awards, while Netflix dominated the tally among all networks.

Administered jointly by the Critics Choice Association and the nonfiction producers organization Npact, the Critics Choice Real TV Awards has also named “Survivor” host and executive producer Jeff Probst as the recipient of its Critics Choice Real TV Impact Award.

“Cheer’s” nominations were for categories including unstructured series, sports show, limited documentary series, male star of the year (Jerry Harris), and female star of the year (Monica Aldama). “RuPaul’s Drag Race” will compete in competition series, ensemble cast in an unscripted series, female star of the year (Michelle Visage), male star of the year (RuPaul Charles), and show host (also RuPaul Charles).

Netflix landed 31 nominations, far ahead of second-place networks ABC, Bravo and VH1 (tied at six each). Disney...

In a Gold Derby exclusive, we have learned the category placements of the key Emmy Awards contenders for AMC, BBC America, IFC and Sundance. For this season, the network group has returning hits “Better Call Saul” (Bob Odenkirk), “Brockmire” (Hank Azaria), “Doctor Who” (Jodie Whittaker), “Killing Eve” and “Luther” (Idris Elba), plus limited series “Dispatches from Elsewhere” (Jason Segel) as part of their 2020 campaign.

Below, their list of lead, supporting and guest submissions for their comedy, drama and limited series. More names might be added by the networks on the final Emmy ballot. Also note that performers not included on this list may well be submitted by their personal reps.

SEETony Dalton Interview: ‘Better Call Saul’

“Better Call Saul” (AMC)

Drama Series

Drama Actor – Bob Odenkirk

Drama Supporting Actor – Jonathan Banks, Tony Dalton, Giancarlo Esposito, Patrick Fabian, Michael Mando

Drama Supporting Actress – Rhea Seehorn

Drama Guest Actor – Dean Norris

“Brockmire...

Chernobyl and The Virtues were the big winners at the Broadcasting Press Guild Awards in London on Friday.

Chernobyl, the Sister Pictures series for Sky and HBO on the Soviet nuclear disaster, won Best Drama Series, while writer Craig Mazin took home Best Writer, beating Fleabag scribe Phoebe Waller-Bridge.

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Shane Meadows’ Channel 4 show The Virtues claimed the prize for Best Single Drama/Mini-Series, while Stephen Graham won Best Actor for his performance as an alcoholic man haunted by his past. The award was also recognition of Graham’s work in Line Of Duty and A Christmas Carol.

Other winners included Fleabag for Best Comedy and For Sama for Best Single Documentary/Mini-Series, while two-time Oscar-winner Glenda Jackson was...

Fleabag and Chernobyl, two of the breakout Brit hits of 2019, will be competing for prizes at the 46th annual Broadcasting Press Guild Awards in London on March 13.

Sky and HBO’s Chernobyl scooped more nominations than any other show, and will compete in four categories including Best Drama Series at the awards, which are voted on by the UK’s best television, radio and media journalists.

Craig Mazin is up for Best Writer for his gripping retelling of the Soviet nuclear disaster, while Jared Harris and Emily Watson are competing for Best Actor and Best Actress respectively.

Mazin will go up against Fleabag creator Phoebe Waller-Bridge in the writing category, while the second season of her BBC Three/Amazon series is also nominated for Best Comedy. Fleabag‘s third nomination is for ‘Hot Priest’ Andrew Scott in the Best Actor category.

Both shows have been hot tickets during awards season,...

BBC America’s Seven Worlds, One Planet series has shifted its opening episode to one that focuses on Australia in response to the devastating wildfires. The episode will inform viewers how they can support relief efforts.

The David Attenborough-narrated series premieres Saturday, January 18, at 9 Pm/8c on BBC America, AMC, IFC and SundanceTV.

“Seven Worlds, One Planet is a series about the majesty and fragility of our planet, capturing precious stories of wildlife at a pivotal moment,” said Sarah Barnett, President Entertainment Group + AMC Studios, AMC Networks. “The catastrophic wildfires occurring right now in Australia are a reminder to us all of the importance of protecting our environment and the animals that inhabit it. Given these devastating events, we have decided to change our schedule to draw attention to and share ways to support relief efforts in Australia.”

Seven Worlds, One Planet tells the story of earth’s seven...

David Attenborough will explore the far reaches of the planet on BBC America’s upcoming “Seven Worlds, One Planet” and IndieWire is exclusively premiering the trailer for the nature documentary series which will premiere on January 18, 2020.

Each of the seven installments of the Attenborough-narrated series will focus on a particular continent and how it shapes animal behavior and biodiversity. The multi-network series, which recently aired its final episode in the United Kingdom, will air stateside on BBC America, AMC, IFC, and SundanceTV. The show marks the first time that BBC Studio’s Natural History Unit has explored all the planet’s continents in a single series.

The trailer features series theme “Out There,” an original track co-composed by Hans Zimmer and Sia. Jacob Shea, who also composed the theme, scored the series through Bleeding Fingers Music, Zimmer’s production music company.

The soundtrack will accompany all manner of exotic locales,...

BBC America will become Wonderstruck on Saturdays later this year and will air nature and natural history shows during that time.

Set to launch in the fourth quarter of 2019, Wonderstruck will be the exclusive U.S. television home to the “Planet Earth” collection and other series from BBC Studios’ Natural History Unit. It will take over BBC America’s channel space on Saturdays beginning at 6 a.m. and running until 6 a.m. the next morning. This is similar to how Adult Swim takes over Cartoon Network at nights, but is considered a different network.

Wonderstruck will feature sneak peek at David Attenborough’s “Seven Worlds, One Planet,” which will debut in 2020. “Blue Planet Now,” a follow up to the award-winning “Blue Planet II,” will also anchor the new micro-net.

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Additionally, BBC America has ordered “Eden,...