The popular series which deal with the challenge of two successful parents rearing their family and the musical saga of a group of kids from Boston paced the nominees for the inaugural Black Reel Awards for Television which were announced this morning in the Nation’s Capitol.
Leading the field with ten nominations was the ABC comedy, Black*ish. Created by Kenya Barris, the show was nominated for Outstanding Comedy Series, as well as nominations for the talented cast, which included Anthony Anderson (Outstanding Actor, Comedy Series), Tracee Ellis Ross (Outstanding Actress, Comedy Series), Laurence Fishburne (Outstanding Supporting Actor, Comedy Series), Jenifer Lewis and Yara Shahidi (Outstanding Supporting Actress, Comedy Series), as well as a nod for Rashida Jones (Outstanding Guest Performer). The show also received several nominations for both directing and writing, notably for Barris (Outstanding Directing and Outstanding Writing) and one for Ken Whittingham.
Voters were also smitten by the BET three-part mini-series, The New Edition Story, which garnered nine nominations, including Outstanding TV Movie/Limited Series. Featuring dual sets of actors portraying Beantown’s Finest at various stages of their development, nomination opportunities were plentiful for the cast. Among those recognized included Bryshere Y. Gray, Luke James and Woody McClain (Outstanding Actor, TV Movie/Limited Series), Wood Harris and Caleb McLaughlin (Outstanding Supporting Actor, TV Movie/Limited Series), as well as nods for Chris Robins (Outstanding Directing, TV Movie/Limited Series), Abdul Williams (Outstanding Writing, TV Movie/Limited Series) and music supervisor Barry Cole (Outstanding Music).
The Netflix series featuring the exploits of “Power Man,” Luke Cage also nabbed eight nominations helping the subscription service tie ABC for the most overall nominations with 20 each. Executive Produced by Cheo Hodari Coker, Luke Cage was nominated for Outstanding Drama Series, Outstanding Actor, Drama Series (Mike Colter), Outstanding Supporting Actress, Drama Series (Rosario Dawson), Outstanding Guest Performer, Drama Series for both Mahershala Ali and Frankie Faison and Adrian Younge & Ali Shaheed Muhammad (Outstanding Music). In addition, the show picked up nods for Outstanding Directing, Drama Series for Clark Johnson and an Outstanding Writing, Drama Series for Coker.
SEE ALSO: Meet the Nominees
Capping off a record-breaking year for quality in television, several other series also heard their names called as the voters spread the wealth. Lee Daniels’ hip-hop soap opera, Empire and Issa Rae’s series, Insecure both received seven nominations. Several series shared six nominations, including John Ridley’s American Crime, Atlanta from budding superstar Donald Glover, Ava DuVernay’s story of sibling farmers, Queen Sugar, Gina Prince-Bythewood’s limited series, Shots Fired, and the feel-good family drama, This Is Us.
On the individual side, Glover paced the field with five nominations for his breakout hit, Atlanta. He was recognized for Outstanding Comedy Series, Outstanding Actor, Comedy Series, Outstanding Directing, Comedy Series, Outstanding Writing, Comedy Series, and Outstanding Music. There was a group of others that secured three nominations, including Oprah Winfrey, Laurence Fishburne, Issa Rae, Ava DuVernay, Dwayne Johnson, Kenya Barris, Michaela Coel, and John Ridley.
For the past 17 years, the television category initially was part of the Black Reel Awards, which formerly only honored movies but not series. Now all of the television content will be contained in this new format, now known as The Black Reel Awards for Television.
“When we initially conceived the idea to spin-off the Black Reel Awards to feature television, in our wildest dreams we couldn’t imagine how competitive the first year would turn out to be,” said Executive Director and Founder, Tim Gordon. “We are truly living in the “Golden Age of Television” as evidenced by the fact that in every category, from top to bottom, quality performances abound.”
Both ABC and Netflix secured 20 nominations, with HBO nipping on their heels with 19 nominations. Also nabbing double-digit nominations were FOX with 14 and BET with 13.
The 1st Annual Black Reel Awards for Television winners will be announced on Thursday, August 3, 2017.
Check out the full list of nominees, below
The 1st Annual Black Reel Awards for Television Nominees
Comedy
Outstanding Comedy Series
“Atlanta” (FX)
Alex Orr & Hiro Murai (Producers); Paul Simms, Donald Glover & Dianne McGunigle (Executive Producers)
“Ballers” (HBO)
Karyn McCarthy & Ben Slater (Producers); Julian Farino, Dwayne Johnson, Mark Wahlberg, Stephen Levinson, Evan Reilly, Peter Berg, Rob Weiss, Dany Garcia & Denis Biggs (Executive Producers)
“Black-ish” (ABC)
Lindsey Shockley & Peter Saji (Producers); Anthony Anderson, Kenya Barris, Laurence Fishburne & Corey Nickerson (Executive Producers)
“Chewing Gum” (Netflix/E4)
John Pocock, Michaela Coel, & Kelly McGolpin (Producers); Nana Hughes & Jon Rolph (Executive Producers)
“Insecure” (HBO)
Amy Aniobi & Issa Rae (Producers); Dave Becky, Jonathan Berry, Melina Matsoukas, Prentice Penny, Michael Rotenberg & Larry Wilmore (Executive Producers)
Outstanding Actor, Comedy Series
Anthony Anderson | “Black-ish” (ABC)
Brandon P. Bell | “Dear White People” (Netflix)
Donald Glover | “Atlanta” (FX)
Kevin Hart | “Real Husbands of Hollywood” (BET)
Dwayne Johnson | “Ballers” (HBO)
Outstanding Actress, Comedy Series
Logan Browning | “Dear White People” (Netflix)
Michaela Coel | “Chewing Gum” (Netflix/E4)
Issa Rae | “Insecure” (HBO)
Gina Rodriguez | “Jane the Virgin” (CW)
Tracee Ellis Ross | “Black-ish” (ABC)
Outstanding Supporting Actor, Comedy Series
Andre Braugher | “Brooklyn Nine-Nine” (FOX)
Titus Burgess | “Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt” (Netflix)
Jay Ellis | “Insecure” (HBO)
Laurence Fishburne | “Black-ish” (ABC)
Keith Stanfield | “Atlanta” (FX)
Outstanding Supporting Actress, Comedy Series
Tichina Arnold | “Survivor’s Remorse” (Starz)
Leslie Jones | “Saturday Night Live” (NBC)
Jenifer Lewis | “Black-ish” (ABC)
Yvonne Orji | “Insecure” (HBO)
Yara Shahidi | “Black-ish” (ABC)
Outstanding Directing, Comedy Series
“40 Acres and a Vote” (Black-ish) | Directed: Ken Whittingham (ABC)
“B.A.N.” (Atlanta) | Directed by: Donald Glover (FX)
“Guilty as F*ck” (Insecure) | Directed by: Debbie Allen (HBO)
“Lemons” (Black-ish) | Directed by: Kenya Barris (ABC)
“Thanksgiving” (Master of None) | Directed by: Melina Matsoukas (Netflix)
Outstanding Writing, Comedy Series
“Age Ain’t Nothing but a Number” (Chewing Gum) | Written by: Michaela Coel (Netflix/E4)
“B.A.N.” (Atlanta) | Written by: Donald Glover (FX)
“Broken as F*ck” (Insecure) | Written by: Issa Rae (HBO)
“Lemons” (Black-ish) | Written by: Kenya Barris (ABC)
“Thanksgiving” (Master of None) | Written by: Aziz Ansari & Lena Waithe (Netflix)
Outstanding Guest Performer, Comedy Series
Angela Bassett | “Master of None” (Netflix)
Dave Chappelle | “Saturday Night Live” (NBC)
Mike Epps | “Survivor’s Remorse” (Starz)
Dwayne Johnson | “Saturday Night Live” (NBC)
Rashida Jones | “Black-ish” (ABC)
Drama
Outstanding Drama Series
“Luke Cage” | (Netflix)
Aida Mashaka Croal & Akela Cooper (Producers); Dan Buckley, Cheo Hodari Coker, Charles Murray, Cindy Holland, Kris Henigman, Alison Engel, Gail Barringer, Joe Quesada, Jeph Loeb, Stan Lee, Allie Goss, Alan Fine & Jim Chory (Executive Producers)
“Power” | (Starz)
Dalmone Macedon, Raphael Jackson, Jr., David Hopwood (Producers); Courtney Kemp Agboh, Curtis “50 Cent” Jackson, Randall Emmett, Karyn Smith-Forge (Executive Producers)
“Queen Sugar” | (OWN)
Tina Mabry, Carla Gardini, Neema Barnette (Producers); Oprah Winfrey, Ava Duvernay & Melissa Carter (Executive Producers)
“This Is Us” | (NBC)
Vera Herbert, Bekah Brunstetter (Producers); Glenn Ficarra, Dan Fogelman, Charlie Gogolak, John Requa, Jess Rosenthal & Donald Todd (Executive Producers)
“Underground” | (WGN)
W. Mark McNair, John Legend, Misha Green, Akiva Goldsman, Mike Jackson, Anthony Hemingway, Tory Stiklorius, Tory Tunnell, Joe Pokaski, Joby Harold (Executive Producers)
Outstanding Actor, Drama Series
Sterling K. Brown | “This Is Us” (NBC)
Mike Colter | “Luke Cage” (Netflix)
Aldis Hodge | “Underground” (WGN)
Terrence Howard | “Empire” (FOX)
Kofi Siriboe | “Queen Sugar” (OWN)
Outstanding Actress, Drama Series
Viola Davis | “How to Get Away With Murder” (ABC)
Dawn-Lyen Gardner | “Queen Sugar” (OWN)
Taraji P. Henson | “Empire” (FOX)
Jurnee Smollett-Bell | “Underground” (WGN)
Rutina Wesley | “Queen Sugar” (OWN)
Outstanding Supporting Actor, Drama Series
Jovan Adepo | “The Leftovers” (HBO)
Trai Byers | “Empire” (FOX)
Ron Cephas Jones | “This Is Us” (NBC)
Joe Morton | “Scandal” (ABC)
Jeffrey Wright | “Westworld” (HBO)
Outstanding Supporting Actress, Drama Series
Uzo Aduba | “Orange is the Black” (Netflix)
Rosario Dawson | “Luke Cage” (Netflix)
Danai Gurira | “The Walking Dead” (AMC)
Aisha Hinds | “Underground” (WGN)
Thandie Newton | “Westworld” (HBO)
Outstanding Directing, Drama Series
“I Call Marriage” (This is Us) | Director: George Tillman Jr. (NBC)
“First Things First” (Queen Sugar) | Director: Ava Duvernay (OWN)
“A Furnace for You” (Empire) | Director: Sanaa Hamri (FOX)
“One by One, Into the Dark” (The Get Down) | Director: Clark Johnson (Netflix)
“You Know My Steez” (Luke Cage) | Director: Clark Johnson (Netflix)
Outstanding Writing, Drama Series
“First Things First” (Queen Sugar) | Written by: Ava DuVernay (OWN)
“Moment of Truth” (Luke Cage) | Written by: Cheo Hodari Coker (Netflix)
“The Right Thing to Do” (This Is Us) | Written by: Aurin Squire (NBC)
“There Are Worse Things Than Murder” (How to Get Away With Murder) | Written by: Angela Robinson (ABC)
“Toll & Trouble, Pt 1” (Empire) | Written by: Diane Ademu-John & Eric Haywood (FOX)
Outstanding Guest Performer, Drama Series
Khandi Alexander | “Scandal” (ABC)
Mahershala Ali | “Luke Cage” (Netflix)
Frankie Faison | “Luke Cage” (Netflix)
Orlando Jones | “American Gods” (Starz)
Jermel Nakia | “This Is Us” (NBC)
Phylicia Rashad | “Empire” (FOX)
TV Movie/Limited Series
Outstanding TV Movie/Limited Series
“American Crime” (ABC)
John Ridley & Julie Hebert (Executive Producers)
“Guerrilla” (Showtime)
Yvonne Isimeme Ibazebo (Producer); Idris Elba, John Ridley, Tracy Underwood, Patrick Spence, Michael J. McDonald, Anne Mensah & Katie Swinden (Executive Producers)
The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks (HBO)
Kathryn Dean (Producer); Alan Ball, Oprah Winfrey, Peter Macdissi, Carla Gardini, Lydia Dean Pilcher (Executive Producers)
“The New Edition Story” (BET)
Brooke Payne (Producer); Jesse Collins, Debra Lee, Ralph Tresvant, Ricky Bell, Johnny Gill, Bobby Brown, Ronnie DeVoe, Stephen Hill, Michael Bivins, Chris Robinson & Valerie Beth Sharp (Executive Producers)
“Shots Fired” (FOX)
Gina Prince-Bythewood (Producer); Reggie Rock Bythewood, Brian Grazer & Francie Calfo (Executive Producer)
Outstanding Actor, TV Movie/Limited Series
Laurence Fishburne | “Madiba” (BET)
Bryshere Y. Gray | “The New Edition Story” (BET)
Luke James | “The New Edition Story” (BET)
Stephan James | “Shots Fired” (FOX)
Woody McClain | “The New Edition Story” (BET)
Outstanding Actress, TV Movie/Limited Series
Loretta Devine | The Lost Souls Cafe (TV One)
Sanaa Lathan | “Shots Fired” (FOX)
Nia Long | Beaches (Lifetime)
Terry Pheto | “Madiba” (BET)
Oprah Winfrey | The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks (HBO)
Outstanding Supporting Actor, TV Movie/Limited Series
Reg E. Cathey | The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks (HBO)
Idris Elba | “Guerrilla” (Showtime)
Wood Harris | “The New Edition Story” (BET)
Orlando Jones | “Madiba” (BET)
Caleb McLaughlin | “The New Edition Story” (BET)
Outstanding Supporting Actress, TV Movie/Limited Series
Viola Davis | Custody (Lifetime)
Aisha Hinds | “Shots Fired” (FOX)
Regina King | “American Crime” (ABC)
Zoe Kravitz | “Big Little Lies” (HBO)
Dewanda Wise | “Shots Fired” (FOX)
Outstanding Directing, TV Movie/Limited Series
Tanya Hamilton | “American Crime” Season Three, Episode Five (ABC)
Kevin Hooks | “Madiba” (BET)
Victoria Mahoney | “American Crime” Season Three, Episode Three (ABC)
Chris Robinson | “The New Edition Story” (BET)
George C. Wolfe | The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks (HBO)
Outstanding Writing, TV Movie/Limited Series
“American Crime” (Season Three, Episode One) | Written by: John Ridley (ABC)
“American Crime” (Season Three, Episode Seven) | Written by: Kirk A. Moore (ABC)
The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks | Written by: George C. Wolfe (HBO)
“The New Edition Story” | Written by: Abdul Williams (BET)
“Shots Fired” (Hour One: Pilot) | Written by: Gina Prince-Bythewood & Reggie Rock Bythewood (FOX)
TV Documentary/Special
Outstanding TV Documentary or Special
L.A.: 92 | Directors: TJ Martin & Dan Lindsey (National Geographic)
L.A. Burning: The Riots 25 Years Later | Directors: One9, Erik Parker (A&E)
“The Lost Tapes”: LA Riots | Director: Tom Jennings (The Smithsonian Channel)
Rodney King | Director: Spike Lee (Netflix)
TIME: The Kalief Browder Story | Director: Jenner Furst (Spike TV)
Music
Outstanding Music (Comedy, Drama, TV Movie or Limited Series)
“Atlanta” (FX) | Ludwig Goransson (Composer); Donald Glover & Jen Malone (Music Supervisors)
“Empire” (FOX) | Fil Eisler (Composer); Jennifer Ross (Music Supervisor)
“Insecure” (HBO) | Raphael Saadiq (Composer); Kier Lehman (Music Supervisor); Solange Knowles (Music Consultant)
“Luke Cage” (Netflix) | Adrian Younge & Ali Shaheed Muhammad (Composers); Gabe Hilfer & Season Kent (Music Supervisors)
“The New Edition Story” (BET) | Barry Cole (Music Supervisor)
Nominations by Program
10 Nominations
“Black-ish”
9 nominations
“The New Edition Story”
8 nominations
“Luke Cage”
7 nominations
“Empire”
“Insecure”
6 nominations
“American Crime”
“Atlanta”
“Queen Sugar”
“Shots Fired”
“This Is Us”
5 nominations
The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks
4 nominations
“Madiba”
“Underground”
3 nominations
“Chewing Gum”
“Master of None”
“Saturday Night Live”
2 nominations
“Ballers”
“Dear White People”
“Guerrilla”
“How to Get Away With Murder”
“Scandal”
“Survivor’s Remorse”
“Westworld”
1 nomination
“American Gods”
Beaches
“Big Little Lies”
“Brooklyn Nine-Nine”
“The Get Down”
“Jane the Virgin”
L.A.: 92
L.A. Burning: The Riots 25 Years Later
The Leftovers
The Lost Souls Cafe
“Orange is the New Black”
“Power”
“Real Husbands of Hollywood”
Rodney King
TIME: The Kalief Browder Story
“Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt”
“The Walking Dead”
Nominations by Network
20 nominations
ABC
Netflix
19 Nominations
HBO
14 Nominations
FOX
13 Nominations
BET
9 Nominations
NBC
6 Nominations
FX
OWN
4 Nominations
Starz
WGN
3 Nominations
E4
2 Nominations
Lifetime
Showtime
1 Nomination
A&E
AMC
CW
National Geographic
The Smithsonian Channel
TV One
Individuals with Multiple Nominations
5 nominations
Donald Glover
Outstanding Comedy Series | “Atlanta”
Outstanding Actor, Comedy Series | “Atlanta”
Outstanding Directing, Comedy Series | “Atlanta” (“B.A.N.”)
Outstanding Writing, Comedy Series | “Atlanta” (“B.A.N.”)
Outstanding Music (Comedy, Drama, Limited Series) | “Atlanta”
3 nominations
Kenya Barris
Outstanding Comedy Series | “Black-ish”
Outstanding Directing, Comedy Series | “Black-ish” (“Lemon”)
Outstanding Writing, Comedy Series | “Black-ish” (“Lemon”)
Michaela Coel
Outstanding Comedy Series | “Chewing Gum”
Outstanding Actress, Comedy Series | “Chewing Gum”
Outstanding Writing, Comedy Series | “Chewing Gum” (“Age Ain’t Nothin But a Number”)
Ava DuVernay
Outstanding Drama Series | “Queen Sugar”
Outstanding Directing, Drama Series | “Queen Sugar” (“First Things First”)
Outstanding Writing, Drama Series | “Queen Sugar” (“First Things First”)
Laurence Fishburne
Outstanding Comedy Series | “Black-ish”
Outstanding Supporting Actor, Comedy Series | “Black-ish”
Outstanding Actor, TV Movie/Limited Series | “Black-ish”
Dwayne Johnson
Outstanding Comedy Series | “Ballers”
Outstanding Actor, Comedy Series | “Ballers”
Outstanding Guest Performer, Comedy Series | “Ballers”
Issa Rae
Outstanding Comedy Series | “Insecure”
Outstanding Actress, Comedy Series | “Insecure”
Outstanding Writing, Comedy Series | “Insecure” (“Broken as F*ck”)
John Ridley
Outstanding TV Movie/Limited Series | “American Crime”
Outstanding TV Movie/Limited Series | “Guerrilla”
Outstanding Writing, TV Movie/Limited Series | “American Crime” (Season Three, Episode One)
Oprah Winfrey
Outstanding Drama Series | “Queen Sugar”
Outstanding TV Movie/Limited Series | The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks
Outstanding Actress, TV Movie/Limited Series | The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks
2 nominations
Anthony Anderson
Outstanding Comedy Series | “Black-ish”
Outstanding Actor, Comedy Series | “Black-ish”
Gina Prince-Bythewood
Outstanding TV Movie/Limited Series | “Shots Fired” (Hour One: Pilot)
Outstanding Writing, TV Movie/Limited Series | “Shots Fired” (Hour One: Pilot)
Reggie Rock Bythewood
Outstanding TV Movie/Limited Series | “Shots Fired” (Hour One: Pilot)
Outstanding Writing, TV Movie/Limited Series | “Shots Fired” (Hour One: Pilot)
Viola Davis
Outstanding Actress, Drama Series | “How to Get Away With Murder”
Outstanding Supporting Actress, TV Movie/Limited Series | Custody
Idris Elba
Outstanding TV Movie/Limited Series | “Guerrilla”
Outstanding Supporting Actor, TV Movie/Limited Series | “Guerrilla”
Aisha Hinds
Outstanding Supporting Actress, Drama Series | “Underground”
Outstanding Supporting Actress, TV Movie/Limited Series | “Shots Fired”
Clark Johnson
Outstanding Directing, Drama Series | “The Get Down” (“One by One, Into the Dark”)
Outstanding Directing, Drama Series | “Luke Cage” (“You Know My Steez”)
Orlando Jones
Outstanding Guest Performer, Drama Series | “American Gods”
Outstanding Supporting Actor, TV Movie/Limited Series | “Madiba”
Melina Matsoukas
Outstanding Comedy Series | “Insecure”
Outstanding Directing, Comedy Series | “Master of None” (“Thanksgiving”)
George C. Wolfe
Outstanding Director, TV Movie/Limited Series | The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks
Outstanding Writing, TV Movie/Limited Series | The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks
