FX amps up ‘American Horror Story’ – ‘True Detective’ Emmy controversy further
Some people may find it very annoying that networks are spending so much time jockeying for awards that are in a sense arbitrary forms of validation. We, however, find the entire matter to be extremely entertaining for so many reasons. The latest feud over the “True Detective” submission for the Emmys is exhibit A.
Recently, HBO decided that they were going to submit the show for the Drama Series category, which was a risky move in that they will have to face way more competition. At the time, we saw this move mostly as the network politicking, and knowing that they have a great chance of winning Miniseries / TV Movie awards with some of their other products.
FX, meanwhile, is a network that has come under fire for submitting “American Horror Story” as a miniseries … even though it is structurally the same sort of show as “True Detective.” FX Network head John Landgraf spoke out about all of this at the network upfront today (where he discussed a lot of great shows), and basically gave a Grumpy Cat face to the idea of the premium cable channel sticking a major competitor in the way of his own shows:
“My own personal point of view is that a miniseries is a story that ends, a series is a story that continues. To tell you the truth, I think it’s actually unfair for HBO to put ‘True Detective’ in the drama series category because essentially you can get certain actors to do a closed-ended series, a la Billy Bob Thornton in ‘Fargo’ or Matthew McConaughey and Woody Harrelson in ‘True Detective,’ who you can’t get to sign on for a seven-year deal.”
To be fair, Landgraf was also unhappy about “Shameless,” a show with both comedic and dramatic elements, changing to a comedy four seasons into the show. We get where he’s coming from for the most part, since the Emmys should really enforce these categories to the point where they are made extremely clear on their end.
But, here’s what it all comes down to: If you really want to make something that Emmy voters like, then go work hard on catering to them and have confidence your show will win. Otherwise, you’re better off just making shows for the great ratings and the fans. This is the realization that some shows like “Sons of Anarchy” and “Community” have come to after being snubbed for many years, and they’re much better off for it.
Landgraf also said that actors like “The Americans” star Matthew Rhys have a harder time going against actors like Matthew McConaughey in this category now, given that McConaughey’s playing a role that is still fresh, rather than one developed over many years.
What’s your take on all of this? Share your thoughts below.