While the fan reaction to the epic eighth and final season of Game of Thrones was certainly mixed, to say the least, it’s clear that the Emmy voters were not listening to the backlash.
While the show has enjoyed Emmy love over its first seven seasons, there was no telling what would happen this year. But no worries — the 2019 Emmy Awards nominations were announced on Tuesday, and the beloved HBO series walked away with a whopping 32 nominations.
Not only were a number of actors nominated — some for the very first time — the show was also nominated for directing, writing, visual effects, and so much more. In fact, 10 actors in total were nominated for Emmys. Kit Harington and Emilia Clarke were both nominated in the Best Actor and Best Actress categories, respectively.
Sophie Turner (Sansa), Maisie Williams (Arya), Lena Headey (Cersei), and Gwendoline Christie (Brienne) all snagged Best Supporting Actress nominations, while Alfie Allen (Theon), Peter Dinklage (Tyrion), and Nikolaj Coster-Waldeau (Jamie) are all up for Best Supporting Actor.
Rounding out the acting nominations, Carice van Houten, who played Melisandra, was nominated in the guest actress category, probably making her very happy that the Red Witch was banished for much of the season so she didn’t have to be in the supporting category.
A few of the actors took to social media to express their gratitude, including newlywed (she has been enjoying her honeymoon with Joe Jonas) Turner, who wrote a message on her Instagram Story.
“I’m beyond humbled. I truly never thought that this would ever happen. This is the best farewell to the show that has been my life for the past 10 years,” she wrote. “And YES QUEEN to these queens; @gwendolineuniverse, @iamlenaheadey, @maisie_williams.”
Headey also took to Instagram to share a boomerang video of her freaking out, saying, “No I’m not engaged, I’m just super CHUFFED and shocked and FULL of gratitude for the game changing opportunity that has been Game Of Thrones…. what a way to say Adios to this adventure of a lifetime .. Congrats to our INCREDIBLE CREW AND CAST.”
And Christie, who earned her first nomination, wrote on Instagram, “I CANT BELIEVE IT!!!!!!????!?!!?!!!!!!!!! THANK YOU UNIVERSE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! #EmmyAwards #CANITTRULYBEREAL.”
Van Houten also wrote on her page, “Whut ?!?!? The summer is hot and full of surprises! Wow, I’m very excited and proud!”
Make sure to tune into the 71st Annual Emmy Awards when it airs on Sunday, September 22 on Fox to see how many of your Game of Thrones faves end up taking the golden statuette home!
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