Best Limited/Movie Writing Emmy 2022: Only 3 of 6 nominees contend in series race

One of the biggest surprises on Emmy nominations morning showed up in the Best Limited/Movie Writing category when “Impeachment: American Crime Story” got nominated, a season that many pundits were clearly underestimating, as lead actress Sarah Paulson also nabbed a bid. This category is especially stunning in that half of these six shows are not nominated in the program category, despite most of them being predicted in this race. That said, as far as potential winners, the two nomination leaders, “The White Lotus” and “Dopesick,” will be battling it out to see who comes out on top.

Here are Gold Derby’s current Best Limited/Movie Writing Emmy 2022 racetrack odds:

“The White Lotus” (Mike White) – 10/3 odds
“Dopesick” (“The People vs. Purdue Pharma” by Danny Strong) — 4/1 odds
“Station Eleven” (“Unbroken Circle” by Patrick Somerville) — 5/1 odds
“The Dropout” (“I’m In A Hurry” by Elizabeth Meriwether) — 11/2 odds
“Maid” (“Snaps” by Molly Smith Metzler) — 6/1 odds
“Impeachment: American Crime Story” (“Man Handled” by Sarah Burgess) — 15/2 odds

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HBO’s “The White Lotus” performed beyond most expectations, garnering a whopping 20 nominations, with eight of its cast members nominated in the two supporting categories. Since White penned the entirety of the season, he is the only writer not nominated for a single episode, which could work to his advantage. This category often rewards shows that go on to win Best Limited Series or Best Television Movie, as shown in recent years with “Chernobyl,” “Watchmen” and the “Black Mirror” episodes, and with “The White Lotus” looking like a heavy frontrunner, White could ultimately prevail.

But at a close second is Hulu’s “Dopesick,” which nabbed 14 bids, of which six were for actors. Strong has been a long-time Emmy favorite, winning this category in 2012 for “Game Change” and nominated in 2008 for “Recount.” This is his first nomination for a miniseries, and the finale of “Dopesick” highlighted the importance of fighting the battle of justice for the victims of the opioid crisis by the major pharmaceutical company.

The rest of the series in this category racked up single-digit nominations with six for Hulu’s “The Dropout,” Meriwether being the last nominee with a series nom. The pilot illustrates the early life of Theranos founder Elizabeth Holmes (Amanda Seyfried) as she meets Sunny Balwani (Naveen Andrews) and drops out of Stanford to start her company for her medical technology invention, while the episode begins and ends with a flash forward into an investigation into its function and violations.

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It is fair to say that HBO Max’s “Station Eleven” was a series that surpassed expectations as it was on the border of most nominations in the main categories, but it managed seven mentions and three in the main ceremony. The finale by Somerville is a heartfelt and emotional episode about forgiveness, with The Traveling Symphony performing “Hamlet,” and Jeevan (Himesh Patel) finally reuniting with Kirsten (Mackenzie Davis) after 20 years. The relevance of the series about the effects of a pandemic could also work in its favor.

Netflix’s “Maid” is perhaps the show that many were surprised missed the top category, only gaining a measly three nominations, and drastically underperforming. It is all the more confusing given that they were all in key categories that would usually result in a series nomination – acting, directing and writing. That said, just like the other finale nominees, the episode by Metzler is filled with hope for Alex (Margaret Qualley), as she is finally freed of her abusive ex-boyfriend and moves to Montana with her daughter, which could tug at heartstrings.

While FX’s “Impeachment” episode by Burgess is the only nominee that isn’t a pilot or finale, it is certainly a memorable one. Monica Lewinsky (Beanie Feldstein) finds out about Linda Tripp’s (Paulson) betrayal with taping their discussions after refusing to disclose her affair with Bill Clinton (Clive Owen) to the public, and faces prosecution and imprisonment for perjury offenses. The season received only five nominations, so its surprise inclusion in this category may be the win here. Remember, the first two installments of “American Crime Story” won their series races, with “The People v. O. J. Simpson” also claiming writing (2016), while “The Assassination of Gianni Versace” lost writing to “USS Callister: Black Mirror” (2018).

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