Before Emmy Gold: Outstanding Lead Actress In A Limited Or Anthology Series Or Movie

As with most years, the Outstanding Lead Actress In A Limited Or Anthology Series Or Movie category is very competitive. Although I have a strong theory on who will take the gold on Emmy night (spoiler alert: Sofía Vergara for Griselda), we could end up with a surprise on the big night.

Before Emmy Gold is a series about highlighting the nominees differently by reflecting on their standout projects before they earned their 2024 nomination. This year, I’m looking back on the careers of Jodie Foster, Brie Larson, Juno Temple, Sofía Vergara, and Naomi Watts, respectively.

You can check out my thoughts from last year’s edition here.

Brie Larson

Nominated For: Lessons in Chemistry

Previous Nominations: Outstanding Original Interactive Program – The Messy Truth VR Experience – 2020, winner)

Hidden Gem: United States of Tara (2009)

Brie Larson has carved an excellent path in film, becoming a household name after her 2015 Academy Award win for Room, and then taking on Captain Marvel in the Marvel Universe. Still, when I think of Brie Larson, it always goes back to her earlier years on the severely underrated Showtime series United States of Tara. In the short-lived show, Toni Collette plays Tara, a woman struggling with disassociative identity disorder, and Larson, her brooding daughter Kate, who’s just trying to maintain a semblance of normalcy as her mother practically shapeshifts into different identities before her eyes. It’s a performance well beyond her years and puts the hint of her range on display.

After a successful career in film and one Academy Award later, Lessons in Chemistry marks Brie Larson’s significant return to the silver screen. Larson plays Elizabeth Zott, a chemist in the 1960s who pivots into hosting a feminist cooking show called Supper at Six to spread information on different scientific topics to the average housewife. Throughout the show, she deals with unexpected fame, misogyny, and breaking societal expectations. It’s one of Larson’s strongest performances to date.

Sofía Vergara

Nominated For: Griselda

Previous Nominations: Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series – Modern Family – 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013)

Hidden Gem: Chef

Technically, Sofía’s role in the movie Chef was after she earned her Emmy nominations, but rules are meant to be broken. Chef, directed by Jon Favreau, is a delightful, charming movie that doesn’t get nearly enough attention as it deserves. In the film, Vergara plays Inez, Carl (Favreau’s) ex-wife, who pushes him to start a food truck business. While the actress doesn’t have much screen time, her presence is felt, and her performance is subdued.

If you asked me what my favorite performance of the year is, it’s hands down Sofía Vergara as real-life cocaine druglord Griselda. For 11 years, American audiences have become familiar with Vergara for her comedic portrayal of Gloria Delgado-Pritchett, a performance that earned her 4 Emmy nominations, and comedic comparisons to the legendary Lucille Ball, so it was a complete 180 to see the actress embody Griselda. Not only did she look unrecognizable thanks to remarkable prosthetics and makeup, but she completely disappeared into the role and showed viewers that she could spread her wings beyond comedy. It’s a genuinely demanding role as the Netflix series covers decades of Griselda’s escape from Colombia, to building her drug empire in Miami, to her inevitable downfall. This award practically has Sofía’s name carved into it already.

Juno Temple

Nominated For: Fargo

Previous Nominations: Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series – Ted Lasso – 2021, 2022, 2023)

Hidden Gem: Killer Joe

Before Juno Temple had a breakout hit on her hands with Ted Lasso, the actress got her start early on in drama as an indie darling. One of her most memorable roles, which is a must-watch for any new fans of Juno Temple, has to be Killer Joe. In the film, she plays Dottie Smith, the sister of Chris (Emile Hirsch), a drug dealer with some serious debts. Chris hires a contract killer to squash some of that debt by putting a hit out on his mother. The only problem is that the insurance policy money is in his sister’s name (Temple). While Killer Joe is not a movie for everyone, especially those who are squeamish, Juno Temple stands out in this and proves she can go toe-to-toe with Matthew McConaughey (Killer Joe).

This year, Juno Temple celebrates her 4th fourth consecutive Emmy nomination, and this time, she’s nominated for Fargo in a completely different series and genre. In the anthology series, Juno plays Minnesota’s Dorothy “Dot” Lyon, a protective mother who finds that her dangerous past is still out there, trying to hunt her down. The series shows a tumultuous dynamic between Dot and her abusive ex-husband and Sheriff Roy (Jon Hamm). She sets all sorts of traps to get one step ahead of him and avoid being captured. It’s a different kind of performance from Juno, a great departure from her role as Keeley in Ted Lasso, and because of that, it might just perk up some voters.

Jodie Foster

Nominated For: True Detective: Night Country

Previous Nominations: (Outstanding Directing for a Comedy Series – Orange is the New Black – 2014)

Hidden Gem: Paper Moon (1974)

When it comes to Jodie Foster’s illustrious career, it’s impossible to find a hidden gem, especially one that predates her first nomination. For instance, Foster was nominated for her first Academy Award in 1977 for Taxi Driver, only 8 years before she debuted as a child actress on the silver screen on The Doris Day Show. And although I’ll go to bat and say that it was her 1995 film Nell that always seems to fly under the radar, she was still nominated for an Academy Award for the movie.

Paper Moon, the 1974 TV sitcom, featured the then 12-year-old opposite actor Christopher Connolly in one of her first lead roles. Foster played Addie Pray, an orphan who road trips with Long Boy Pray. Although the show was short-lived, it’s a performance that shows off her charisma.  

Decades later, with 3 Emmy nominations, 3 Academy Award nominations, and 2 Oscar wins, Foster is vying for the gold once again in two categories: Outstanding Lead Actress in a Limited or Anthology Series or Movie Outstanding Limited or Anthology Series, for True Detective: Night Country. After a so-so 2nd and 3rd seasons, critics mostly raved about the 4th season of True Detective. Thanks to a fresh visionary in director-writer Issa López, the tone was noticeably different, terrifying viewers as a straight-up thriller, following Chief of Police Liz Danvers (Foster) and Detective Navarro (Kali Reis) investigating the deaths of a group of scientists and opening up an old cold case. It’s a strong performance by Foster, but I think the field is too competitive for her to win on the big night.

Naomi Watts

Nominated For: Feud: Capote vs. The Swans

Previous Nominations: First Emmy nomination

Hidden Gem: Luce

There’s no mistaking that Naomi Watts is a powerhouse performer. She’s been in films like Birdman, Mulholland Drive, 21 Grams, I Heart Huckabees, etc. She’s one of the most exciting performers to date, always picking projects that differ from one to the next. I would have to say her hidden gem is her 2019 performance in the movie Luce. It’s one of my favorite films that came out that year and showcases a stunning performance by then-unknown Kelvin Harrison Jr as the title character. In the film, Watts plays Luce’s mother, whom she adopted from Eritrea. I won’t spoil it for those who haven’t checked it out. In the film, she’s a mother who refuses to see the sinister parts of her son and fiercely does everything in her power to protect him from anyone she sees as a potential threat, including her husband, played wonderfully by Tim Roth. It’s a performance that feels different from Watts and deserves attention.

Fast forward, and now she’s nominated for the FX series Feud: Capote vs. The Swans (based on the book Capote’s Women) for her portrayal as Truman Capote’s constant friend and socialite, Babe Paley. The swans are comprised of a who’s who of Hollywood royalty, including Diane Lane, Chloë Sevigny, Calista Flockhart, Demi Moore, and Molly Ringwald. Naomi Watts gives a standout performance as one of the few swans who doesn’t completely shun Capote after he writes a tell-all about the lives of these fabulous women. It’s lovely to see such a restrained performance from Watts, especially as Babe’s health suffers, and she realizes that she can’t keep a brave face as her husband’s affairs are brought to light. On the opposite end, her showdowns opposite the late Treat Williams, who plays her husband and CBS exec Bill Paley, are not to be missed.