Rotten Tomatoes Predicts the 2020 Emmy Winners

(Photo by HBO)

When the Television Academy announces winners for the 72nd Annual Emmy Awards on Sunday, HBO’s Watchmen and Succession and the final season of Schitt’s Creek are sure to dominate — in the world according to us.

We’ve weighed the variables — including Tomatometer scores (critical reception), Audience Scores, industry buzz, competition in each category, and our own wild (but educated) hunches — to come up with our list of who we think will take home awards this weekend.

Check out our Emmy award predictions below and come back on Sunday when we reveal the winners of the 2020 Emmy Awards.

Disagree? Let us know who you think will win in the comments.

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Read also: Rotten Tomatoes’ 2020 Fall TV Reader Survey — The Mandalorian and The Stand Lead Our Top Categories

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Outstanding Comedy Series

What’s nominated?

79% The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel: Season 3 (2019)

100% Schitt's Creek: Season 6 (2020)

100% The Good Place: Season 4 (2019)

94% Curb Your Enthusiasm: Season 10 (2020)

96% Dead to Me: Season 2 (2020)

100% The Kominsky Method: Season 2 (2019)

98% What We Do in the Shadows: Season 2 (2020)

96% Insecure: Season 4 (2020)

What will win? Schitt’s Creek

And why? The sixth and final season of Pop series Schitt’s Creek climbed from four nominations last year to a whopping 15 this year, and its cast is likely to dominate in their respective categories. With 20 nominations this year and 17 past Emmy wins, Amazon Prime Video’s The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel is the title to beat, but its Certified Fresh third season scored an 82% compared to Schitt’s Creek season 6’s Certified Fresh 100% score. Meanwhile, a win by What We Do in the Shadows, another title whose most recent season is Certified Fresh at 100%, would be a big category upset.

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Lead Actress in a Comedy Series

Who is nominated?

100% Schitt's Creek: Season 6 (2020) — Catherine O’Hara

79% The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel: Season 3 (2019) — Rachel Brosnahan

96% Dead to Me: Season 2 (2020) — Christina Applegate

96% Dead to Me: Season 2 (2020) — Linda Cardellini

96% Insecure: Season 4 (2020) — Issa Rae

- - black-ish: Season 6 (2019) — Tracee Ellis Ross

Who will win? O’Hara

And why? O’Hara will ride the Schitt’s Creek wave and take the category for her role as the Rose family’s wig-loving matriarch, Moira. Brosnahan, with three Emmy nominations in her career, won this category once for her as Midge Maisel. The stars of Dead to Me are likely to have split their vote, while Ross was the surprise nomination for the category, despite having been nominated three previous times for her role as Rainbow Johnson.

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Lead Actor in a Comedy Series

(Photo by Pop TV)

Who is nominated?

100% Schitt's Creek: Season 6 (2020) — Eugene Levy

100% The Good Place: Season 4 (2019) — Ted Danson

83% Black Monday: Season 2 (2020) — Don Cheadle

95% Ramy: Season 2 (2020) — Ramy Youssef

100% The Kominsky Method: Season 2 (2019) — Michael Douglas

- - black-ish: Season 6 (2019) — Anthony Anderson

Who will win? Levy

And why? We’re betting on Levy and that Schitt’s Creek love, though we felt that Youssef was a strong contender for the award. They face Danson, who’s been nominated in this category for the past two years, and Douglas, while Cheadle and Anderson’s nominations came as a surprise.

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Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series

(Photo by Amazon Prime Video)

Who will be nominated?

79% The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel: Season 3 (2019) — Alex Borstein

73% Saturday Night Live: Season 45 (2019) — Kate McKinnon

73% Saturday Night Live: Season 45 (2019) — Cecily Strong

100% Schitt's Creek: Season 6 (2020) — Annie Murphy

79% The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel: Season 3 (2019) — Marin Hinkle

87% GLOW: Season 3 (2019) — Betty Gilpin

100% The Good Place: Season 4 (2019) — D’Arcy Carden

96% Insecure: Season 4 (2020) — Yvonne Orji

Who will win? Borstein

And why? Borstein won this category the past two years in a row for her role as Susie Myerson in The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel and, we think, is again the front runner this year. Seven-time nominee, two-time winner McKinnon and nomination newcomer Strong, may split votes for their Saturday Night Live work. Meanwhile, Emmy-nomination newbies Murphy and Carden have strong support for the final seasons of their respective shows — but this is a tough category.

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Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series

(Photo by Amazon Prime Video)

Who is nominated?

79% The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel: Season 3 (2019) — Tony Shalhoub

100% Schitt's Creek: Season 6 (2020) — Dan Levy

100% The Kominsky Method: Season 2 (2019) — Alan Arkin

79% The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel: Season 3 (2019) — Sterling K. Brown

73% Saturday Night Live: Season 45 (2019) — Kenan Thompson

95% Ramy: Season 2 (2020) — Mahershala Ali

89% Brooklyn Nine-Nine: Season 7 (2020) — Andre Braugher

100% The Good Place: Season 4 (2019) — William Jackson Harper

Who will win? Shalhoub

And why? Emmy heavyweight Shalhoub (11 career nominations, four wins) will defend his title in this category against Schitt’s Creek executive producer, co-creator, and star Levy. (We’re thinking the Television Academy will reward Levy’s producer role with the comedy series win.) Braugher and Harper’s nominations were a nice surprise, but they’re facing an uphill battle against the two favorites; that said, Ali could provide an even bigger surprise and knock everyone out come awards time.

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What is nominated?

97% Succession: Season 2 (2019)

98% Ozark: Season 3 (2020)

90% The Crown: Season 3 (2019)

99% Better Call Saul: Season 5 (2020)

82% The Handmaid's Tale: Season 3 (2019)

93% The Mandalorian: Season 2 (2020)

80% Killing Eve: Season 3 (2020)

89% Stranger Things: Season 3 (2019)

What will win? Succession

And why? The strength of Succession’s first season seemed to take some off-guard, but series creator Jesse Armstrong (Oscar nominated for 2009’s In The Loop) went on to win a writing Emmy for it. The HBO show’s story was on steroids in season 2, setting the series itself up for an award this year. Still, the category offers a few questions to ponder: Could all that Baby Yoda love carry surprise nominee The Mandalorian into the winners’ circle? Or will Better Call Saul take revenge for its stars’ snubs in the acting nominations and spank everyone in the category? We’re sticking with Succession in our predictions.

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Lead Actress in a Drama Series

(Photo by Steve Dietl/Netflix)

Who is nominated?

90% The Crown: Season 3 (2019) — Olivia Colman

98% Ozark: Season 3 (2020) — Laura Linney

61% The Morning Show: Season 1 (2019) — Jennifer Aniston

80% Killing Eve: Season 3 (2020) — Sandra Oh

80% Killing Eve: Season 3 (2020) — Jodie Comer

80% Euphoria: Season 1 (2019) — Zendaya

Who will win? Linney

And why? Colman seemed the actress to beat for her highly-anticipated turn as Queen Elizabeth II in season 3 of The Crown, but Linney and Aniston are Emmy favorites, now with seven nominations each in their careers, with Linney winning four times and Aniston winning once. Comer is the incumbent here, but Killing Eve Tomatometer score took a dive in season 3 at 80%, compared to season 1’s 96% and 2’s 92% (all were Certified Fresh), and then there’s the nomination of Oh in the category that further dilutes the Killing Eve duo’s individual chances. Zendaya’s nomination surprised many (not us), but with so many awards-veteran challengers, a win seems out of reach. We’re giving it to Linney for the buzz on her chances — but wouldn’t be surprised at all if Colman snagged it from her.

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Lead Actor in a Drama Series

(Photo by Peter Kramer/HBO)

Who is nominated?

97% Succession: Season 2 (2019) — Brian Cox

98% Ozark: Season 3 (2020) — Jason Bateman

97% Succession: Season 2 (2019) — Jeremy Strong

98% Pose: Season 2 (2019) — Billy Porter

61% The Morning Show: Season 1 (2019) — Steve Carell

91% This Is Us: Season 4 (2019) — Sterling K. Brown

Who will win? Cox

And why? Forgive us, we’re still reeling from the nomination snub of Bob Odenkirk in this category for his work on season 5 of Better Call Saul. That leaves Cox in the strongest position; though Strong may have split the vote among Succession fans, leaving Bateman in the lead. Porter won this category last year for his role as Pray Tell in the FX series, and there’s every reason to think he could take it again. Brown and Carell were the surprise nominations for us, and we don’t see them overtaking the front runners. We’re betting Cox will prevail for his epic performance as the Roy family patriarch.

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Supporting Actress in a Drama Series

(Photo by Sophie Mutevelian/Netflix)

Who is nominated?

90% The Crown: Season 3 (2019) — Helena Bonham Carter

98% Ozark: Season 3 (2020) — Julia Garner

85% Big Little Lies: Season 2 (2019) — Meryl Streep

85% Big Little Lies: Season 2 (2019) — Laura Dern

97% Succession: Season 2 (2019) — Sarah Snook

73% Westworld: Season 3 (2020) — Thandie Newton

80% Killing Eve: Season 3 (2020) — Fiona Shaw

82% The Handmaid's Tale: Season 3 (2019) — Samira Wiley

Who will win? Carter

And why? Carter clearly had a ball playing aging Princess Margaret in season 3 of The Crown, but the big question is how she will fare against last year’s winner in the category, Garner, for her role as Ruth Langmore in Ozark. The category’s competition is wickedly strong across the board, but we think it’s down to those two, and we’ll give it to Carter for her surprising and delightful portrayal.

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Supporting Actor in a Drama Series

(Photo by Apple TV+)

Who is nominated?

61% The Morning Show: Season 1 (2019) — Mark Duplass

61% The Morning Show: Season 1 (2019) — Billy Crudup

99% Better Call Saul: Season 5 (2020) — Giancarlo Esposito

73% Westworld: Season 3 (2020) — Jeffrey Wright

97% Succession: Season 2 (2019) — Kieran Culkin

82% The Handmaid's Tale: Season 3 (2019) — Bradley Whitford

97% Succession: Season 2 (2019) — Nicholas Braun

97% Succession: Season 2 (2019) — Matthew MacFadyen

Who will win? Crudup

And why? Our guess is that Crudup and Culkin battled it out for supremacy; though both must contend with the possibility that their costars siphoned off votes, and maybe Whitford, Wright, or Esposito will have realized an advantage because of it. Team Succession probably collectively won, but we’re betting on Crudup in a category that could really go to any of the nominees.

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What is nominated?

96% Watchmen: Season 1 (2019)

96% Mrs. America: Miniseries (2020)

98% Unbelievable: Season 1 (2019)

79% Little Fires Everywhere: Season 1 (2020)

96% Unorthodox: Miniseries (2020)

What will win? Watchmen

And why? Mrs. America and Unbelievable may have higher Tomatometer scores, but we think the category is going Watchmen, Damon Lindelof’s timely and tense examination of history, race, and justice within the superhero milieu.

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TV Movie

The winner in this category will be announced on Saturday, September 19 as part of the Creative Arts Emmy Awards presentation, airing at 5 p.m. PT / 8 p.m. ET on FXX.

(Photo by Ben Rothstein / Netflix)

What is nominated?

92% El Camino: A Breaking Bad Movie (2019)

94% Bad Education (2019)

57% Dolly Parton's Heartstrings — These Old Bones

48% American Son (2019)

What will win? Bad Education

And why? The power of Bad Education, with its Certified Fresh 93% score and outstanding performances led by Hugh Jackman and Allison Janney, is undeniable. Jesse Pinkman and his El Camino may not go down without a fight, but we think they’re going to get schooled.

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Lead Actress in a Limited Series or Movie

(Photo by Mark Hill/HBO)

Who is nominated?

96% Mrs. America: Miniseries (2020) — Cate Blanchett

96% Watchmen: Season 1 (2019) — Regina King

79% Little Fires Everywhere: Season 1 (2020) — Kerry Washington

68% Self Made: Inspired by the Life of Madam C.J. Walker: Miniseries (2020) — Octavia Spencer

96% Unorthodox: Miniseries (2020) — Shira Haas

Who will win? King

And why? Though Blanchett is a front runner, we think 2018 category winner King will emerge victorious once more for her powerful performance in HBO’s alternate-history, vigilante-superhero drama.

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Lead Actor in a Limited Series or Movie

(Photo by Atsushi Nishijima/HBO)

Who is nominated?

74% I Know This Much Is True: Miniseries (2020) — Mark Ruffalo

59% Hollywood: Season 1 (2020) — Jeremy Pope

94% Bad Education (2019) — Hugh Jackman

91% Normal People: Season 1 (2020) — Paul Mescal

96% Watchmen: Season 1 (2019) — Jeremy Irons

Who will win? Ruffalo

And why? Ruffalo turned in a stellar dual performance in I Know This Much Is True, and his biggest competition is fellow film star Jackman. We can’t help thinking, however, that Ruffalo did twice the work.

(Photo by Mark Hill/HBO)

Who is nominated?

98% Unbelievable: Season 1 (2019) — Toni Collette

96% Watchmen: Season 1 (2019) — Jean Smart

96% Mrs. America: Miniseries (2020) — Tracey Ullman

96% Mrs. America: Miniseries (2020) — Uzo Aduba

96% Mrs. America: Miniseries (2020) — Margo Martindale

59% Hollywood: Season 1 (2020) — Holland Taylor

Who will win? Smart

And why? This is a tough category chock full of superb performances. For one, we expect the three Mrs. America stars to divide the Academy, leaving Smart — with her buzzy performance in a timely genre series — as the favorite for the win.

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The 72nd Emmy Awards winners will be announced on Sunday, September 20, at 5 p.m. PT / 8 p.m. ET on ABC.