If Diego Luna (“Andor“) and/or Pedro Pascal (“The Last of Us”) are nominated for Best Drama Actor at the Emmys this year, they’ll break a long and disappointing drought in the prestigious and competitive category, with Luna also breaking records for an often-overlooked genre.
It has been 24 years since a Latino actor has been nominated for Best Drama Actor, when Jimmy Smits (who was the first to do it) received his fifth (and final) consecutive nomination for “NYPD Blue” back in 1999. Since then, no other Latino actor has cracked the lofty category. Yes, you read correctly. No. Other. Latino. Actor. Not Wagner Moura for “Narcos.” Not Edward James Olmos for “Battlestar Galactica.” Not even left-field choices like Tyler Posey for “Teen Wolf” or Benjamin Bratt for “The Cleaner.” And no, multiple Emmy nominee Martin Sheen (“The West Wing”) is not included in this list (for argument’s sake) because apparently his Spanish heritage doesn’t technically qualify him as a “Latino” actor but rather an Hispanic actor (“Latino” for the purposes of this article denotes a person from Latin America, including Spanish-speaking Caribbean and even Brazil). Potato, pot-ah-to… you get the idea.
SEE Exclusive Video Interview: Diego Luna (‘Andor’)
Both Latin American actors (Luna is Mexican and Pascal is Chilean) are on the cusp of making history. It’s an unfortunate statistic for the TV academy, which has become much more inclusive over recent years, but which continues to overlook male Latino actors in the top drama acting category. To be fair, Latinos continue to be significantly underrepresented in American TV series overall (despite the fact that the group represents nearly one-fifth (20%) of the total U.S. population), according to a recent Axios report on Latinos in Hollywood in 2022. So, if Hollywood isn’t casting Latino men as leads in its shows, how are Emmy voters supposed to nominate them? Thankfully, I think that statistic is about to be erased with both Luna and Pascal in the running.
But wait, there’s even more history to be made, particularly for Luna. Earlier this year he became the first ever actor from a “Star Wars” TV series to be nominated at the Golden Globes, and only the second from the iconic saga overall after Sir Alec Guinness in 1977 (for the original “Star Wars” film). If Luna scores his first career Best Drama Actor nomination, he’d be the first ever lead actor to do so from a “Star Wars” series, and only the fifth overall, after Taika Waititi, Giancarlo Esposito, Timothy Olyphant and Carl Weathers (all for “Andor” stablemate “The Mandalorian” in the voiceover performance and/or guest actor categories).
Widening the net even further, Luna would also be the first ever actor from a space-set drama series (a space opera, if you will) to score a nomination in the prestigious Best Drama Actor category and only the second to score a nomination in a Primetime Emmy category (i.e. lead and supporting actors and actresses) in a staggering 54 years, since the late Leonard Nimoy received his third and final Emmy nomination for his iconic role as First Officer Spock in the original “Star Trek” series in 1969.
It’s time, Emmy voters. Ahora es el momento. This is your chance to recognize leading Latino actors and to acknowledge the phenomenal performances that us sci-fi nerds have been praising for years. So, let the Rebellion begin and may the Force be with you. Always.
PREDICT the 2023 Emmy nominees through July 12
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