The Academy of Television Arts and Sciences giveth, and The Academy of Television Arts and Sciences taketh away. Veep guest star Peter MacNicol (above, right), recently nominated for an Emmy, has since been disqualified from consideration.
MacNicol appeared in one too many episodes of HBO’s political comedy to be considered a guest star, which rendered him ineligible for Outstanding Guest Actor In A Comedy Series honors. MacNicol has since been replaced by another Peter: Scolari, who plays protagonist Hannah’s father on Girls.
A rule instituted in 2015 states that actors only qualify as guest stars if they appear in fewer than 50 percent of a season’s episodes. MacNicol, who played Jonah Ryan’s (Timothy Simons) vitriolic political power player of an uncle, Jeff Kane, appeared in five of Veep’s 10 season-five episodes. Per USA Today, HBO told the AP that MacNicol was only set to appear in four episodes, all of which had already aired, when his name was submitted for Emmy consideration. MacNicol’s seconds-long appearance in “Kissing Your Sister” was all it took to push him past the 50 percent mark and nullify his guest star eligibility. Apparently, this was an honest mistake—”We are very sorry that Peter’s brilliant performance will not be recognized,” HBO told THR.
Don’t feel too bad for MacNicol—the talented actor already has one Emmy to his name, a 2001 win in the Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series category for playing John Cage on Ally McBeal. Scolari, a three-time nominee for his supporting role on Newhart, has yet to win an Emmy.
Scolari supplants MacNicol in a group of nominees that includes Tracy Morgan (Saturday Night Live), Bob Newhart (The Big Bang Theory), Bradley Whitford (Transparent) and MacNicol’s fellow Veep actor Martin Mull. Meanwhile, MacNicol joins Dennis Miller and Henry Winkler among comedy actors who have seen their Emmy noms snatched away on technicalities.
Find the TV Academy’s statement on MacNicol’s lost nomination (via THR) below.
Upon review of the Guest Actor in a Comedy Series category, the Television Academy has determined that Peter MacNicol unfortunately exceeds the number of episodes permissible for inclusion in that category. HBO’s guest actor entry for Peter MacNicol was accurate at the time of the submission deadline, but he was subsequently included in an additional Veep episode. Unfortunately, that additional appearance places him in 50% of the season’s episodes and makes him no longer eligible to compete in the guest actor category. This decision is in no way a diminishment of Mr. MacNicol’s stellar performance on this season of Veep.