James Marsden Is Up For a ‘Jury Duty’ Emmy — Here’s Why He Deserves It

July 26, 2023

What a slay, he did it. James Marsden has been nominated for an Emmy for his work in Jury Duty. This is the first time he’s up for an Emmy, being a Best Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series nominee.

In Jury Duty, James Marsden plays a selfish version of himself. He tries to use his celebrity status to be excused from being a juror in a Los Angeles trial. He even arrogantly name-drops movies that he’s been in.

“The idea of lampooning the cliché of entitled, self-absorbed, egocentric Hollywood actor was really exciting to me,” Marsden told NPR. “I could do it as myself, and hopefully by the end of it, everyone would know that I’m satirising that character, and it’s not really me.”

“This James Marsden is always trying to get the conversation steered back to him because that’s the only conversation he knows, and it’s the only conversation he’s interested in.”

So, did Marsden pull this trick off in Jury Duty? Yes, yes, and yes. This car crash version of Marsden is a sheer and utter delight. Hence his well-deserved Emmy nomination.

Speaking to Vanity Fair after the Emmy nominations were announced, Marsden was both surprised and delighted.

“This is new territory for me,” said Marsden. “I think the sort of understatement of this whole show is uncertainty. It’s a new frontier.”

**The Other Jury Duty Emmy Nominations**

Overall, Jury Duty was nominated for three other Emmy awards. Jury Duty was nominated for Best Comedy Series, Best Casting, and Best Writing.

The Other Best Supporting Actor Nominees

Now, it’s worth noting that James Marsden isn’t the only person up for a Best Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series Emmy. In fact, he’s up against some stiff competition.

The other actors up for this award include:

Anthony Carrigan, Barry
Phil Dunster, Ted Lasso
Brett Goldstein, Ted Lasso
Ebon Moss-Bachrach, The Bear
Tyler James Williams, Abbott Elementary
Henry Winkler, Barry

But for our money, Marsden’s the dude on this list that deserves this win the most. This is because, as other critics have noted, Jury Duty is the most comedic series to get nommed.

Vanity Fair Chief Critic, Richard Lawson, recently published a piece titled Yet Again, the Year’s Most Acclaimed TV Comedies Aren’t Very Funny. In it, he critiques programmes like Ted Lasso and The Bear for being “comedies that want to be taken seriously”.

“Pure comedy has been relegated to front-facing character work on TikTok and Reels,” he writes.

Of Ted Lasso, Lawson notes: “By its third season, the series seemed hell-bent on creating nothing but viral emotional moments, something more akin to This Is Us than The Office.”

Meanhwile, while crediting Barry for its “eerie brilliance”, Lawson adds: “It wasn’t very funny, though it’s classified as a comedy by the Emmys, where it’s won piles of awards.”

And despite the fact that The Bear “never really advertised itself as a raucous comedy”, it’s still found itself nominated in the comedy categories.

With Jury Duty being one of the only genuine comedies nominated at the Emmys this year, doesn’t Marsden seem like the obvious choice?

Will James Marsden Get His First Emmy?

Despite the fact that Jury Duty is the most humorous series up for an Emmy, the odds are against James Marsden. This is because it’s difficult to win an Emmy while performing as yourself.

Take for instance, Jerry Seinfeld. This man was nominated for five Emmys for playing himself on Seinfeld, but he never won. Likewise, Larry David has also been nominated for six Emmys for playing himself on Curb Your Enthusiasm, but he too never clinched a win.

Finally, Matt LeBlanc was nominated for five Emmys for playing himself on Episodes. And you guessed it, zero wins under his belt.

May James Marsden break this wild and unfortunate tradition. Let’s hope he’s rewarded for his great work.

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