2015 Critics’ Choice TV Award WINNERS: The Americans and Silicon Valley Take Top Honors

The 3rd season of The Americans won Best Drama Series at the Critics’ Choice Television Awards this evening with Silicon Valley‘s 2nd season taking Best Comedy Series. I predicted the win for The Americans but didn’t see a path for Silicon Valley to beat favorites Transparent or Veep. The show also snagged a surprise win for T.J. Miller in Supporting Actor. Transparent still ended up as a double winner, with Jeffrey Tambor receiving Best Actor in a Comedy and Bradley Whitford winning Guest Performer in a Comedy Series.

The Critics’ Choices tonight went very new blood, much like the Golden Globes do. Only Mom‘s Allison Janney was a return winner (in Comedy Supporting Actress). Empire‘s Taraji P. Henson won Drama Actress for her portrayal of one of the most popular new characters on television in recent years, Cookie Lyons.

The big winner of the night was Olive Kitteridge. It won three of its five nominations (Limited Series, Actress in a TV Movie or Limited Series and Supporting Actor in a TV Movie or Limited Series). David Oyelowo won Best Actor in a TV Movie or Limited Series but his film, Nightengale, lost to Bessie in the top category.

Cat Deeley, who hosted the show, won Reality Host for So You Think You Can Dance.

Check out what I got right and what I got wrong here.

Full list of winners:

BEST DRAMA SERIES
The Americans (FX) — WINNER
Empire (Fox)
Game of Thrones (HBO)
The Good Wife (CBS)
Homeland (Showtime)
Justified (FX)
Orange Is the New Black (Netflix)

BEST COMEDY SERIES
Silicon Valley (HBO) — WINNER
Broad City (Comedy Central)
Jane the Virgin (The CW)
Mom (CBS)
Transparent (Amazon)
Veep (HBO)
You’re the Worst (FX)

BEST ACTRESS IN A DRAMA SERIES
Taraji P. Henson, Empire (FOX) — WINNER
Eva Green, Penny Dreadful (Showtime)
Julianna Margulies, The Good Wife (CBS)
Keri Russell, The Americans (FX)
Vera Farmiga, Bates Motel (A&E)
Viola Davis, How to Get Away with Murder (ABC)

BEST ACTOR IN A DRAMA SERIES
Bob Odenkirk, Better Call Saul (AMC) — WINNER
Aden Young, Rectify (Sundance)
Charlie Hunnam, Sons of Anarchy (FX)
Freddie Highmore, Bates Motel (A&E)
Matthew Rhys, The Americans (FX)
Timothy Olyphant, Justified (FX)

BEST ACTOR IN A COMEDY SERIES
Jeffrey Tambor, Transparent (Amazon) — WINNER
Anthony Anderson, Black-ish (ABC)
Chris Messina, The Mindy Project (FOX)
Johnny Galecki, The Big Bang Theory (CBS)
Thomas Middleditch, Silicon Valley (HBO)
Will Forte, The Last Man on Earth (FOX)

BEST ACTRESS IN A COMEDY SERIES
Amy Schumer, Inside Amy Schumer (Comedy Central) — WINNER
Constance Wu, Fresh Off the Boat (ABC)
Gina Rodriguez, Jane the Virgin (The CW)
Ilana Glazer, Broad City (Comedy Central)
Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Veep (HBO)
Lisa Kudrow, The Comeback (HBO)

BEST LIMITED SERIES
Olive Kitteridge (HBO) — WINNER
24: Live Another Day (FOX)
American Crime (ABC)
The Book of Negroes (BET)
The Honorable Woman (Sundance)
Wolf Hall (PBS)

BEST MOVIE MADE FOR TELEVISION
Bessie (HBO) — WINNER
Killing Jesus (National Geographic Channel)
Nightingale (HBO)
A Poet in New York (BBC America)
Stockholm, Pennsylvania (Lifetime)

BEST ACTRESS IN A MOVIE OR LIMITED SERIES
Frances McDormand, Olive Kitteridge (HBO) — WINNER
Aunjanue Ellis, The Book of Negroes (BET)
Felicity Huffman, American Crime (ABC)
Jessica Lange, American Horror Story: Freak Show (FX)
Maggie Gyllenhaal, The Honorable Woman (Sundance)
Queen Latifah, Bessie (HBO)

BEST REALITY SERIES HOST
Cat Deeley, So You Think You Can Dance (FOX) — WINNER
Anthony Bourdain, Anthony Bourdain: Parts Unknown (CNN)
Betty White, Betty White’s Off Their Rockers (Lifetime)
James Lipton, Inside the Actors Studio (Bravo)
Phil Keoghan, The Amazing Race (CBS)
Tom Bergeron, Dancing with the Stars (ABC)

BEST REALITY COMPETITION SERIES
Face Off (Syfy) — WINNER
The Amazing Race (CBS)
America’s Got Talent (NBC)
Dancing With the Stars (ABC)
MasterChef Junior (FOX)
The Voice (NBC)

BEST REALITY SERIES
Shark Tank (ABC) — WINNER
Anthony Bourdain: Parts Unknown (CNN)
Deadliest Catch (Discovery Channel)
Married at First Sight (A&E)
MythBusters (Discovery Channel)
Undercover Boss (CBS)

BEST GUEST PERFORMER IN A DRAMA SERIES
Sam Elliott, Justified (FX) — WINNER
Cicely Tyson, How to Get Away with Murder (ABC)
Julianne Nicholson, Masters of Sex (Showtime)
Linda Lavin, The Good Wife (CBS)
Lois Smith, The Americans (FX)
Walton Goggins, Sons of Anarchy (FX)

BEST GUEST PERFORMER IN A COMEDY SERIES
Bradley Whitford, Transparent (Amazon) — WINNER
Becky Ann Baker, Girls (HBO)
Josh Charles, Inside Amy Schumer (Comedy Central)
Laurie Metcalf, The Big Bang Theory (CBS)
Peter Gallagher, Togetherness (HBO)
Susie Essman, Broad City (Comedy Central)

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS IN A COMEDY SERIES
Allison Janney, Mom (CBS) — WINNER
Carrie Brownstein, Portlandia (IFC)
Eden Sher, The Middle (ABC)
Judith Light, Transparent (Amazon)
Mayim Bialik, The Big Bang Theory (CBS)
Melanie Lynskey, Togetherness (HBO)

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR IN A COMEDY SERIES
T.J. Miller, Silicon Valley (HBO) — WINNER
Adam Driver, Girls (HBO)
Cameron Monaghan, Shameless (Showtime)
Jaime Camil, Jane the Virgin (The CW)
Tituss Burgess, Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt (Netflix)
Tony Hale, Veep (HBO)

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS IN A DRAMA SERIES
Lorraine Toussaint, Orange Is the New Black (Netflix) — WINNER 
Carrie Coon, The Leftovers (HBO)
Christine Baranski, The Good Wife (CBS)
Joelle Carter, Justified (FX)
Katheryn Winnick, Vikings (History)
Mae Whitman, Parenthood (NBC)

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR IN A DRAMA SERIES
Jonathan Banks, Better Call Saul (AMC) — WINNER
Ben Mendelsohn, Bloodline (Netflix)
Christopher Eccleston, The Leftovers (HBO)
Craig T. Nelson, Parenthood (NBC)
Mandy Patinkin, Homeland (Showtime)
Walton Goggins, Justified (FX)

BEST ACTOR IN A MOVIE OR LIMITED SERIES
David Oyelowo, Nightingale (HBO) — WINNER
James Nesbitt, The Missing (Starz)
Kiefer Sutherland, 24: Live Another Day (FOX)
Mark Rylance, Wolf Hall (PBS)
Michael Gambon, The Casual Vacancy (HBO)
Richard Jenkins, Olive Kitteridge (HBO)

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR IN A MOVIE OR LIMITED SERIES
Bill Murray, Olive Kitteridge (HBO) — WINNER
Cory Michael Smith, Olive Kitteridge (HBO)
Elvis Nolasco, American Crime (ABC)
Finn Wittrock, American Horror Story: Freak Show (FX)
Jason Isaacs, Stockholm, Pennsylvania (Lifetime)
Jonathan Pryce, Wolf Hall (PBS)

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS IN A MOVIE OR LIMITED SERIES
Sarah Paulson, American Horror Story: Freak Show (FX) — WINNER
Claire Foy, Wolf Hall (PBS)
Cynthia Nixon, Stockholm, Pennsylvania (Lifetime)
Janet McTeer, The Honorable Woman (Sundance)
Khandi Alexander, Bessie (HBO)
Mo’Nique, Bessie (HBO)

BEST ANIMATED SERIES
Archer (FX) — WINNER
Bob’s Burgers (FOX)
Gravity Falls (Disney Channel)
The Simpsons (FOX)
South Park (Comedy Central)
Star Wars (Disney XD)

BEST TALK SHOW
The Daily Show With Jon Stewart (Comedy Central) — WINNER
The Graham Norton Show (BBC America)
Jimmy Kimmel Live (ABC)
Last Week Tonight with John Oliver (HBO)
The Late Late Show with James Corden (CBS)
The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon (NBC)

• Author
• Recent Posts

Erik Anderson

Erik Anderson is the founder/owner and Editor-in-Chief of AwardsWatch and has always loved all things Oscar, having watched the Academy Awards since he was in single digits; making lists, rankings and predictions throughout the show. This led him down the path to obsessing about awards. Much later, he found himself in film school and the film forums of GoldDerby, and then migrated over to the former Oscarwatch (now AwardsDaily), before breaking off to create AwardsWatch in 2013.

He is a Rotten Tomatoes-approved critic, accredited by the Cannes Film Festival, Telluride Film Festival, Toronto International Film Festival and more, is a member of the International Cinephile Society (ICS), The Society of LGBTQ Entertainment Critics (GALECA), Hollywood Critics Association (HCA) and the International Press Academy. Among his many achieved goals with AwardsWatch, he has given a platform to underrepresented writers and critics and supplied them with access to film festivals and the industry and calls the Bay Area his home where he lives with his husband and son.

Latest posts by Erik Anderson (see all)

• 2025 Oscars: Eligibility Lists for Animated Feature, Documentary Feature and International Feature Film for the 97th Academy Awards - November 21, 2024
• Nava Mau, Sean Wang Among 2024 BAFTA Breakthroughs Championing New ‘Must-Watch’ Creatives - November 21, 2024
• Hans Zimmer, ‘Emilia Pérez,’ Diane Warren Top 2024 Hollywood Music in Media Awards - November 21, 2024