2014 Emmy Questions: Mom

Click here for the introduction to The Cover 3's "2014 Emmy Questions" series

COLD, HARD LOCK NOMINATIONS: N/A

STRONG EDUCATED GUESS NOMINATIONS: Best Lead Comedy Actress (Anna Faris), Best Supporting Comedy Actress (Allison Janney)

QUESTION ONE: Will Anna Faris earn an Emmy nomination?

There is a ginormous hole in the Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series category that Anna Faris is primed to take advantage of. Out of the six nominees who earned a nomination last year, two (Tina Fey from 30 Rock and Laura Dern from Enlightened) aren't eligible this year. I can guarantee you that Taylor Schilling from Orange Is The New Black is going to get one of those spots, but the other one? I have absolutely no idea. Early on I thought that Emmy Rossum from Shameless could earn that last spot, but I wasn't confident at the time about that, and I certainly don't feel that same way now. I wrote in my Brooklyn Nine-Nine piece that Zooey Deschanel (New Girl) was the favorite with the possibility for Melissa Fumeo to sneak in if the Emmy's truly love Brooklyn Nine-Nine, but again I am not confident about that prediction in the least.

But then I looked at GoldDerby.com and many of their editors were predicting Anna Faris from Mom to earn that last spot. This was a complete shock to me, mainly because that thought never crossed my mind. I never watched Mom and I hadn't heard *that* many good things about it.

But Anna Faris is a movie star. In fact, she's probably on the same "fame level" as Zooey Deschanel, and Deschanel earned an Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series nomination in her rookie year for New Girl. I've never seen an episode of Mom in my life so I can't accurately judge whether Faris has a good Emmy submission episode or not. But I do know that Anna Faris is extremely talented, and having her earn a nomination wouldn't surprise me in the least.

I still don't know who is going to earn that "sixth nomination spot," but I do know that Anna Faris is the leading candidate.

QUESTION TWO: Will Allison Janney earn an Emmy nomination?

Unlike the Lead Actress field, the Supporting Actress field is extremely crowded. Last year, there were *seven* nominations in the Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series field, as opposed to the normal six. While Jane Krakowski (30 Rock) isn't eligible this year even though she earned a nomination last year, that leaves six returning nominees still eligible. Personally, I think Jane Lynch from Glee who earned a nomination in 2013 will not earn one again in 2014, but I also personally believe that Kate Mulgrew from Orange Is The New Black will take over "Lynch's spot". It's just extremely tough for Allison Janney to earn a nomination.

But with all of that being said, the Emmy's *LOVE* Allison Janney. They probably love Janney more than they love Julia Louis-Dreyfus. Janney has four Primetime Emmy's for her work on The West Wing. She won two Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series awards in 2000 and 2001 and two Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series awards in 2002 and 2004. Allison Janney is one of the few actors to actually 3-peat at the Emmy's. It doesn't matter the category, Allison Janney will dominate. 

So to predict that Janney will earn a nomination is a damn good bet. It's the same logic I used to predict that Connie Britton (Nashville) would earn a nomination last year and probably the same reason JLD keeps getting nominated and winning.  

Truth be told, there's probably a great chance Allison Janney earns a nomination because the Emmy's absolutely love her. But I'm having a tough time determining who she, for all intents and purposes, boots out of this category. Or maybe the Emmy's will give seven ladies a nomination again. 

QUESTION THREE: Does Mom have a chance to earn any other nominations in 2014?

No.

Even though there are a fair amount of holes to fill in the comedy nominations department, mainly due to 30 Rock ending, Mom still doesn't have a chance to earn any other nominations outside of Outstanding Lead Actress and Outstanding Supporting Actress. Newcomers like Orange Is The New Black and Brooklyn Nine-Nine along with existing shows like Girls, Louie, Modern Family, The Big Bang Theory, and Veep are plenty to help fill any comedy void that may exist in 2014.

DO YOU THINK ANNA FARIS OR ALLISON JANNEY WILL EARN A NOMINATION IN 2014? LET US KNOW ON OUR FACEBOOK PAGE!

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