Tramell Tillman (‘Severance’) Could Become the First Black Actor to Win the Emmy for Supporting Actor in a Drama Series
Since 1954, in the history of the Primetime Emmy Awards, 16 Black actors have been nominated for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series, with five performers earning multiple nominations: Giancarlo Esposito (four, across three different shows: Breaking Bad, Better Call Saul and The Mandalorian), Eriq La Salle (two for ER) and Andre Braugher (two for Men of a Certain Age), Steve Morris (two for The Practice), Greg Morris (three for Mission: Impossible) and now, Tramell Tillman for Severance. None has ever won. That could change this year.
Tillman wasn’t nominated for Severance’s first season, even in a field of eight, but two of his co-stars were: John Turturro and Christopher Walken (both lost to Succession’s Matthew MacFadyen). His performance as the stiff, by the books Seth Milchick was one of the many highlights of the long-awaited return of the mind-bending series, one that recently earned him a Television Critics Association award nomination for Outstanding Individual Achievement in Drama.
This year, Tillman will face off with Turturro, as well as his co-star Zach Cherry, also earning his first nomination. Who he won’t go up against are any previous winners from this decade. Tobias Menzies (The Crown) and McFadyen’s shows have completed their runs and two-time winner Billy Crudup (The Morning Show) didn’t have a season air during this year’s eligibility.
What he will face, however, is the onslaught of actors from The White Lotus. That show’s first season, when it ran as a limited series, notched up three nominations in a field of seven. For its second season, where it was moved to drama, a full 50% of the nominees came from the water cooler favorite, taking up four of eight slots. This year got three actors from the Mike White drama (Walton Goggins, Jason Isaacs and Sam Rockwell) and to round out the category we have James Marsden in Hulu’s Paradise.
But what episode will Tillman submit for his Emmy entry? With a wealth of choices in front of him, his options for a killer tape are wide open. The dancing from “Cold Harbor” was among the season’s most talked about moment. The snowy field trip of “Woe’s Hollow” could also secure him a win. Comment below on what you think he should submit.
Black actors nominated for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series in the 77-year history of the Primetime Emmy Awards.
2025 – Tramell Tillman (Severance)
2025 – Zach Cherry (Severance)
2021 – Giancarlo Esposito (The Mandalorian)
2021 – O.T. Fagbenle (The Handmaid’s Tale)
2021 – Michael K. Williams (Lovecraft Country) (posthumous)
2020 – Jeffrey Wright (Westworld)
2020 – Giancarlo Esposito (Better Call Saul)
2019 – Giancarlo Esposito (Better Call Saul)
2017 – Ron Cephas Jones (This Is Us)
2017 – Jeffrey Wright (Westworld)
2012 – Giancarlo Esposito (Breaking Bad)
2011 – Andrew Braugher (Men of a Certain Age)
2010 – Andrew Braugher (Men of a Certain Age)
2002 – Dulé Hill (The West Wing)
2000 – Steve Harris (The Practice)
1999 – Steve Harris (The Practice)
1998 – Eriq La Salle (ER)
1996 – James McDaniel (NYPD Blue)
1995 – James Earl Jones (Under One Roof)
1995 – Eriq La Salle (ER)
1982 – Taurean Blacque (Hill Street Blues)
1982 – Michael Warren (Hill Street Blues)
1978 – Ossie Davis (King)
1972 – Greg Morris (Mission: Impossible)
1970 – Greg Morris (Mission: Impossible)
1969 – Greg Morris (Mission: Impossible)
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), Critics Choice Association (CCA), San Francisco Bay Area Film Critics Circle (SFBAFCC) 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.
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