Soap Fans React To 2023 Daytime Emmy Nominees
This year will mark the 50th anniversary of the Daytime Emmy Awards, a national award recognizing entertainment on daytime TV as determined by members of the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences.
While the nominations were supposed to be released on April 26, two categories were released a day early. They included Lead Performance in a Daytime Drama Series: Actor, and Lead Performance in a Daytime Drama Series: Actress. When the full list was announced, "General Hospital" led the pack with 19 nominations, while "The Bold and the Beautiful" followed behind with 14, and "The Young and the Restless" came in with 13. All four of the remaining soaps were nominated as best Drama, along with the streaming sudser, "The Bay."
Competing in the Lead Actress spot are Jacqueline MacInnes Wood (Steffy Forrester, "The Bold and the Beautiful"), along with Finola Hughes (Anna Devane, "General Hospital"). "The Young and the Restless" garnered three nominees with Michelle Stafford (Phyllis Summers), Melissa Claire Egan (Chelsea Lawson), and the unexpected nomination of Sharon Case (Sharon Newman). The fan response was lackluster, to say the least. One viewer, disappointed that "Days of Our Lives" didn't get any female nominations in the Lead Actress category responded, "I find it hard to believe that #Days didn't have one leading lady worthy of a Daytime Emmy nomination." Yet, a fan of Michelle Stafford (Phyllis, "Y&R") enthusiastically posted, "Congratulations @TheRealStafford on your Daytime Emmy nomination! Very well deserved! You are an outstanding actress."
Fan were disenchanted by the nominations
Male Lead nominations included Maurice Benard (Sonny Corinthos, "General Hospital"), Thorsten Kaye (Ridge Forrester, "The Bold and the Beautiful"), and Billy Flynn (Chad DiMera, "Days of Our Lives"), as well as Peter Bergman (Jack Abbott) and Jason Thompson (Billy Abbott) for "Young and the Restless." A fan bored with the awards process tweeted, "Other than Finola Hughes, Maurice Benard, Billy Flynn, Sharon Case and Jacqueline MacInnes Wood, those lead noms leave a lot to be desired. I'm tired."
"B&B" and "Days" both got Supporting Actress nods for Krista Allen (Taylor Hayes) and Stacy Haiduk (Kristin DiMera) respectively, while "GH" garnered three with the beloved, late Sonya Eddy (Epiphany Johnson) receiving a posthumous nomination. "Days" star Daniel Feuerriegel (EJ DiMera) received a Supporting Actor nod, with "GH" picking up four selections including, Nicholas Chavez (Spencer Cassadine), Chad Duell (Michael Corinthos), Robert Gossett (Marshall Ashford), and Jon Lindstrom (Kevin Collins/Ryan Chamberlain). A disappointed fan of Charles Shaughnessy (Victor Cassadine, "GH") posted on Twitter, "No nom for #CharlesShaughnessy. Really people?" While a "Days" fan was confused, posting, "Hang on! How is Chad a lead and EJ supporting on Days? That makes no sense."
An unimpressed viewer tweeted, "And the Daytime Emmy nominations have spilled out the back of a cabbage truck onto the freeway for yet another year," following it uproariously with, "There is more pageantry at a parish raffle. At least then you're not sure who's name will be called."