New Emmy Requirements May Make It Harder For 'Black Mirror' And Other Anthologies To Be Nominated

The Emmy Awards are revising its categories and requirements, and one change may have a major impact on the recent favorite, Netflix’s ‘Black Mirror’ and other shows like it.  Moving forward, in order to qualify as a made-for-TV movie, a work has to be at least 75 minutes long.  That doesn’t sound like much, since most people are used to cinematic movies coming in closer to two hours, if not longer.  This and other changes were voted on and passed on Thursday night.

The winner of Best Made-For-TV Movie in 2017, ‘Black Mirror”s ‘San Junipero’ clocks in at a measly 61 minutes.  Had it been released after this decision, it would not have qualified.  The 2018 winner, ‘USS Callister’ would have been fine, as it is 76 minutes long.

Generally speaking, this switch will likely only impact episodes of anthologies like ‘Black Mirror’.  CBS All Access’ has another promising anthology coming up, ‘The Twilight Zone’, crafted by Academy Award-winner Jordan Peele.  Very little is known about the series, which doesn’t arrive until next fall, but several episodes have already been filmed.  This new ruling may disqualify them for consideration if they don’t meet the 74-minute requirement.

Another previous Emmy nominee and winner, ‘Sherlock’ would also be fine, as its shortest episode is 84 minutes, with most closer to 90.

This particular category has gone through multiple changes over the years.  At times, miniseries and made-for-TV movies competed in the same category.  TV specials have also been lumped in.  But as it stands now, movies and miniseries have their own separate categories.

In addition to this new requirement, the Emmys introduced a new category, Outstanding Music Composition for a Documentary Series or Special.  The choreography category was split in two– Outstanding Choreography for Variety and Reality Programming, and Outstanding Choreography for Scripted Programming

The next Emmy Awards will be handed out on Sunday, September 22, 2019 and will be broadcast on FOX.

Source: The Hollywood Reporter