The limited series races are often some of the best and most competitive at the Emmy Awards because of the exceptional talent these programs, which require only short, finite commitments, tend to attract. That trend continues this year, but there’s also a fun through line in the race for Best Limited Series/TV Movie Actor. Currently, five of the top six actors (and six of the top 10) in Gold Derby’s combined odds are also veterans of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. And there are 13 men in total who’ve appeared in the expansive comic-book universe across the entire field.
When we first checked in on the limited actor race in February, “Dopesick” star Michael Keaton led the pack with his layered portrayal of a small-town doctor at the center of the opioid epidemic. The beloved actor, who joined the MCU in 2017 when he played Adrian Toomes, aka Vulture, opposite Tom Holland in his first solo film, “Spider-Man: Homecoming,” is still firmly in first place after picking up wins for his performance throughout the winter, including at the Screen Actors Guild Awards and Critics Choice Awards. He’s a lock for a nomination, if not also the win, with 7/2 odds and 10 Experts and 10 Editors predicting him to triumph.
However, the competition behind Keaton is heating up as we approach the end of the Emmy eligibility window. Andrew Garfield, who reprised his role as Peter Parker in Sony and Marvel’s “Spider-Man: No Way Home” last year alongside Holland and Tobey Maguire, has risen in the odds from fifth to second place (11/2 odds). The Brit, who is coming off a Best Actor Oscar nomination for his performance as the late composer and playwright Jonathan Larson in the musical “Tick, Tick… Boom!”, stars in FX’s new limited series “Under the Banner of Heaven,” which streams on Hulu (we’ve explained that confusing situation and how to watch right here). He portrays Jeb Pyre, a Mormon detective who investigates the murders of a young mother (“Normal People” star Daisy Edgar-Jones) and her infant daughter in the Salt Lake Valley area of Utah in 1984, uncovering some awful truths about the origins of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS) and the dangers of uncompromising faith in the process.
Garfield is followed by the lone non-MCU actor in the top seven, Ben Foster, who stars in HBO’s “The Survivor” (13/2 odds). But after that, the list becomes Marvel central. Oscar Isaac, the star of Marvel’s new limited series “Moon Knight,” sits in fourth place (9/1 odds) for his work on HBO’s updated version of “Scenes From a Marriage.” (Isaac is also one of the two MCU stars actually eligible for their Marvel work — he’s in 1tth place for his performance as Steven Grant/Marc Spector on “Moon Knight.”) Right behind him in fifth place (19/2 odds) is Paul Bettany, who was nominated in the category last year for his excellent performance on the Disney+ series “WandaVision” and is now competing for his turn as Ian Campbell, the 11th Duke of Argyll, in the three-part drama “A Very British Scandal.”
SEE Every Marvel Cinematic Universe actor who’s been nominated for an Emmy
Also climbing in the odds is Sebastian Stan (13/1), who has portrayed fan favorite Bucky Barnes, aka the Winter Soldier, across multiple Marvel films and in the Disney+ series “The Falcon and The Winter Soldier” since first joining the MCU in 2011. Stan has moved up one spot, from seventh to sixth place, for his transformative performance as rocker Tommy Lee in Hulu’s “Pam & Tommy.” Meanwhile, Samuel L. Jackson, who has played Nick Fury and thus been the connective tissue of the MCU for more than a decade, is sitting in eighth place (28/1 odds) for his starring role in Apple TV+’s “The Last Days of Ptolemy Grey.”
Since February, one MCU actor has exited the race, but don’t fret because another has since become eligible and has been rising in the odds. Evan Peters, who entered the MCU with a brief but memorable appearance on “WandaVision” and won an Emmy last year for his supporting turn on “Mare of Easttown,” won’t be eligible as Netflix’s “Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story” will not make the May 31 cut. However, in March, Apple TV+ announced that “The Essex Serpent,” starring Tom Hiddleston, will premiere on May 13. Hiddleston, who has embodied yet another fan favorite Marvel character, Loki, aka the God of Mischief, across six films and the ongoing Disney+ drama “Loki,” is in 20th place for “The Essex Serpent” (he’s in 14th place in drama actor for “Loki”). He’s closely followed by two-time Oscar nominee Jeremy Renner, who sits in 24th place for his work in “Hawkeye,” the exceptionally fun holiday-themed limited series that saw him reprise his role as Clint Barton before handing off the Hawkeye mantle to the next generation. Meanwhile, Paul Rudd, known for playing Scott Lang, aka Ant-Man, is now in 25th place, for his performance in Apple TV+’s “The Shrink Next Door.”
Sitting outside the top 30 are “Angelyne” star Martin Freeman, who portrayed Everett Ross in “Captain America: Civil War” (2016) and “Black Panther” (2018); “Night Sky’s” J.K. Simmons, who has now embodied J. Jonah Jameson in both the MCU and Sam Raimi’s Spider-Man trilogy; “We Own This City” star Jon Bernthal, who played the violent vigilante Frank Castle on the TV shows “Daredevil” and “The Punisher,” which recently moved from Netflix to Disney+ and are now considered canon since Matt Murdock (Charlie Cox) and Wilson Fisk (Vincent D’Onofrio) have appeared in other MCU properties; and “Outer Range” actor Josh Brolin, who brought the giant purple alien Thanos to life using motion-capture technology.
The level of talent the Marvel Cinematic Universe has featured over the years is obviously quite high, so the fact that these 13 men are also turning in exceptional performances elsewhere probably shouldn’t be all that surprising (100 actors who have appeared in the MCU have already received Emmy nominations thus far). But to see so many Marvel stars eligible in the same year and in the same category is noteworthy, especially since only two are actually eligible for their work on the new Marvel shows on Disney+. It says a lot about the current state of the limited series races, while perhaps offering a hint about what they might look like in the future as the MCU continues to grow and expand even more.
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