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In 2025, streaming platforms like Apple TV+, HBO Max, Netflix and Amazon dominated over traditional broadcasters, with Apple TV+’s “Severance” leading the Primetime Emmy Nominations with 27 nods across award categories.
On July 17, the Television Academy announced the nominations for the Primetime Emmy Awards. Eight shows stood out in the Outstanding Drama Series: “Severance,” “The White Lotus,” “The Pitt,” “Slow Horses,” “Andor,” “The Diplomat” and “Paradise,” all reflecting the push towards streaming and the television industry’s attempts to modernize.
Streaming platforms dominated the 2025 nominations, with Apple TV+’s “Severance” leading with 27 nominations. The show previously earned 14 nominations and two wins in 2024 for its first season. Other streaming platforms, such as HBO Max and Netflix, also dominated with numerous nods across all categories, signaling a shift from traditional broadcasting to digital platforms.
Streaming platforms like Amazon and Netflix often give creators more freedom to experiment with tone, form, content and genre in ways that traditional networks may not greenlight. For instance, Seth Rogen, once known for raunchy comedies, earned acclaim for “The Studio,” a dark satire streaming on Amazon.
“Being at this point in our lives and making a thing that has this type of attention is just so kind of novel in a lot of ways and exciting and thrilling and very validating in a way that I’m not used to being validated,” Rogen told AP News.
The rise in creative freedom and genre experimentation is evident across all of this year’s Best Drama nominations. “The Last of Us” experiments with a post-apocalyptic world, “Severance” presents a surreal workplace thriller, “Andor” tells the story of a sci-fi rebellion set in the “Star Wars” universe and “The White Lotus” darkly satirizes wealth and travel.
“People wanted to watch it. They wanted to talk about it. They wanted to dress as the characters,” Jason Isaacs, a supporting actor in “The White Lotus,” told AP News. “It gave people a happy place to be…in a world…that’s complicated and challenging to be in.”
Some critics, however, argue that the nominations still lack diversity, noting that recognition remains concentrated among a select few high-profile shows.
Vulture Editorial proposes systemic change in how we value TV excellence.“The Emmy Awards should implement a nomination ceiling… to diversify recognition and encourage voters to engage with a broader range of content,” it reported.
Still, beneath the high-profile shows, underrepresented groups were nominated for awards. 77-year-old Kathy Bates became the oldest Drama Lead Actress nominee for “Matlock,” Bella Ramsey became the first non-binary actor with nominations in the same category on “The Last of Us” and 15-year-old Owen Cooper became the youngest ever nominee in a supporting limited series (“Adolescence”).
However, some have urged the Academy and TV to broaden their purview, especially amid rising cultural conservatism.
“The Emmys are a reflection of the best of what television has to offer — which also means that they can only reflect what television has offered,” Cris Abrego, a leading producer, said in a letter to the chair. “Our past two ceremonies were historic celebrations of superlative artists and storytellers from a variety of communities and identities: white, Black, Asian, Latino, Indigenous, LGBTQ. But there’s no denying the current retrograde push throughout the nation…This cultural conservatism has impacted what projects get developed, what gets greenlit and what ultimately makes it into our living rooms.”
He added that if the Academy truly values excellence, it should be worried when the full range of talent in the industry seems to be only partially recognized. Abrego also raised concerns about the current government administration and communities affected by its actions, noting the ICE raids across the country.
“This is not the time to bend the knee,” he said. “In addition to whatever actions people opt to take in their personal lives, as mass media storytellers, we can continue to create an industry that reflects the broad spectrum of our humanity and our audiences.”