Mad Men, Downton Abbey, And 30 Rock Land Multiple Emmy Nominations

19 July 2012

Hit dramas Mad Men and Downton Abbey, and popular U.S. comedy 30 Rock, look set to dominate the 2012 Primetime Emmy Awards after each landing multiple nominations.

Mad Men star Jon Hamm will go up against the likes of Steve Buscemi (Boardwalk Empire), Bryan Cranston (Breaking Bad) and Michael C. Hall (Dexter) for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series, while his co-star Elisabeth Moss will battle for the lead actress prize against Mariska Hargitay (Law & Order: Special Victims Unit), Glenn Close (Damages) and Kathy Bates (Harry's Law) as well as Michelle Dockery (Downton Abbey) and Julianna Margulies (The Good Wife).

The Outstanding Drama Series category will be a tight race - Mad Men, Homeland, Downton Abbey, Dexter, Breaking Bad, and Martin Scorsese's Boardwalk Empire are all in the running, while Outstanding Comedy Series nods go to 30 Rock, Girls, Modern Family, The Big Bang Theory, Veep, and Curb Your Enthusiasm.

The nominees were announced live from Hollywood on Thursday morning (19Jul12) by comedian Jimmy Kimmell, who will host the official 64th annual awards ceremony on 23 September (12), and Kerry Washington.

The main list of nominees is as follows:

Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series:

Zooey Deschanel - New Girl

Edie Falco - Nurse Jackie

Tina Fey - 30 Rock

Melissa MCCarthy - Mike & Molly

Amy Poehler - Parks And Recreation

Lena Dunham - Girls

Julia Louis-Dreyfus - Veep

Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series:

Alec Baldwin - 30 Rock

Louis C.K. - Louie