The Succession boys are off on a yacht somewhere, so we’ll see a new champ this year in the Emmy race for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series.
Last year’s winner Jeremy Strong and his costar Brian Cox aren’t eligible to repeat as nominees this year, since Succession hasn’t aired a new episode in over a year. But this year’s contenders have plenty of laurels of their own, including a pair of former winners who were also nominated last year.
Sterling K. Brown is back for the fifth straight year (including a win in 2017) for his work as This Is Us‘ Randall Pearson, and Pose‘s Billy Porter notched his third straight nod for playing boisterous emcee Pray Tell after taking home the Emmy in 2019. Matthew Rhys is back as well for his freshman turn as HBO’s Perry Mason after nabbing three nominations and a win during his time on the FX spy drama The Americans.
But a trio of newcomers is also angling to get their hands on Emmy gold this year. The Crown‘s Josh O’Connor earned his first career nomination for playing Prince Charles in Season 4 of the Netflix royal drama. Jonathan Majors also scored a first-time nod as Atticus on the now-cancelled HBO creature feature Lovecraft Country, and Bridgerton‘s breakout star Regé-Jean Page — aka the seductive Duke of Hastings — is in the mix as well for the Netflix soap’s freshman run.
Which of these leading men should take home the Emmy, though? Vote for your favorite in the poll below, then hit the comments to defend your pick.
Every weekday through Aug. 27, we’ll be posting another “Who should win?” poll, so be sure to visit TVLine.com each day to weigh in on who deserves TV’s most prestigious honor. (For a list of this year’s major Emmy nominees, click here.)
