Tony Shalhoub could add to Emmy collection with ‘Mr. Monk’s Last Case’
“Monk” was an Emmy favorite. Tony Shalhoub is an Emmy favorite. Reunite them 14 years later with a heavy dose of nostalgia and an excellent TV movie and what do you get? The answer is pretty obvious: an Emmy favorite.
Peacock’s “Mr. Monk’s Last Case” brings back the old “Monk” gang for a final, follow-up TV movie to wrap up the story of Adrian Monk, a detective with obsessive-compulsive disorder. He returns to solve one final case, which involves his stepdaughter Molly, a journalist on the brink of getting married and preparing for her big day. The TV movie didn’t disappoint and proved to be a worthy addition to the “Monk” canon, not least because of Shalhoub’s inspired performance, which critics have again flocked to praise in exactly the same way as they did for the original show, which ran from 2002 to 2009 on the USA network.
Robert Lloyd (LA Times) explained: “As the mournful Monk, Shalhoub may be rated among the great screen comedians, specifically those who use the intimacy of the camera to create characters who remain still at the heart of chaos of which they’re often the cause. Your Stan Laurel, your Rowan Atkinson as Mr. Bean, your Droopy the cartoon pooch. As a detective, he’s a superhero, with keen powers of observation, but as a person, he’s the hangdog underdog, the little guy, upon whom his foes look with disdain.”
Kelly Lawler (USA Today) opined: “Shalhoub is, of course, compulsively perfect once again in the role that garnered him three Emmy awards. He slides easily into Monk’s tweed jackets and high collars, with every tick and quirk recreated and aged up appropriately. It feels simultaneously like 14 years have passed and no time has gone by at all; Shalhoub, 70, has always been Monk, even when he was off on other adventures.”
Marcelo Leite (Screen Rant) stated: “While the feeling of how time has passed is one of the best things about the movie, Shalhoub shines in making it seem like he never stopped playing Monk. It’s easy to forget that over a decade has passed since ‘Monk’’s series finale aired when Shalhoub delivers one of his best performances ever as the beloved detective.”
Shalhoub will be looking to score a nomination for Best TV Movie/Limited Series Actor for “Mr. Monk’s Last Case” and he has Emmy history on his side. The great Shalhoub is an Emmy force to be reckoned with an even dozen bids to his name and four wins. His most recent win came for the second of his four Best Comedy Supporting Actor bids for “The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel” in 2018, 2019, 2020, and 2022.
He contended for each of the eight seasons of “Monk,” winning three times — in 2003, 2005, and 2006. Shalhoub has never not been nominated for playing Monk. If he wasn’t nominated here for “Mr. Monk’s Last Case,” it would be the first time in Emmys history that he failed to land a bid for playing the detective. Voters love, love, love this character.
We fully expect them to love him again this year, not least because Shalhoub has already received significant awards attention for his turn in “Mr. Monk’s Last Case.” He was nominated for Best TV Movie/Limited Series Actor at both the Critics Choice TV Awards and the SAG Awards. He’s already proven awards bodies still like his performance as Monk in this TV movie and Emmy voters will likely follow suit.
There are another couple of factors on his side, too. Veteran actors often get into this category, including the likes of Michael Keaton (“Dopesick”), Hugh Grant (“The Undoing”), Jeremy Irons (“Watchmen”), Jared Harris (“Chernobyl”), and Jeff Daniels (“The Looming Tower”). Plus, Emmy voters seem to like actors playing detectives in this category, with the likes of Andrew Garfield (“Under the Banner of Heaven”), Mahershala Ali (“True Detective”), and Benedict Cumberbatch (“Sherlock”) all receiving bids for playing detectives. Shalhoub fits right in on both accounts.
The only thing going against him is the fact that TV movies don’t tend to do well in this category anymore. Limited series are the order of the day now. There have been a few nominations for TV movie actors of late, including Daniel Radcliffe (“Weird: The Al Yankovic Story”) and “Hamilton” stars Lin-Manuel Miranda and Leslie Odom Jr. but, in general, voters seem to prefer limited series.
Make your predictions at Gold Derby now. Download our free and easy app for Apple/iPhone devices or Android (Google Play) to compete against legions of other fans plus our experts and editors for best prediction accuracy scores. See our latest prediction champs. Can you top our esteemed leaderboards next? Always remember to keep your predictions updated because they impact our latest racetrack odds, which terrify Hollywood chiefs and stars. Don’t miss the fun. Speak up and share your huffy opinions in our famous forums where 5,000 showbiz leaders lurk every day to track latest awards buzz. Everybody wants to know: What do you think? Who do you predict and why?