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Television upstarts set sights on Emmy 'disruption'

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Three television upstarts and a field of film stars could shake up the annual Primetime Emmy Awards on Monday in a validation of the television industry's move toward sophisticated, long-form storytelling.
/ Source: Reuters

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Three television upstarts and a field of film stars could shake up the annual Primetime Emmy Awards on Monday in a validation of the television industry's move toward sophisticated, long-form storytelling.

Led by HBO's bayou crime mystery "True Detective," FX's snowy psychological miniseries "Fargo" and Netflix's online-delivered jailhouse comedy "Orange Is the New Black," a new breed of TV squares off against Emmy mainstays "Mad Men," "Breaking Bad" and "Modern Family."

"We have a lot of sexy newcomers," said Tom O'Neil, the editor of awards handicapper Goldderby.com. "It's not just the same old slapstick comedy show with a new face."

Together, the three shows have picked up 42 nominations and reflect the growing clout of unorthodox storytelling - from Netflix giving audiences an entire season at once to "True Detective" and "Fargo" as anthologies with new casts and stories each season.

"They have enormously high cool factors, extraordinary critical buzz and high visibility," O'Neil said.

"These are three troublemakers in town that could cause a lot of disruption."

The Emmys are handed out by the Academy of Television Arts and Sciences in a televised ceremony from Los Angeles and will be hosted by comedian Seth Meyers.

With broadcast networks again shut out from the best drama series race, the night's top honor, AMC's drug tale "Breaking Bad" will defend its title against Netflix political thriller "House of Cards," AMC ad world portrait "Mad Men," PBS British period series "Downton Abbey," HBO's fantasy epic "Game of Thrones" and "True Detective."

EMMYS' "NEW CURRENCY"

The rookie shows also have the benefit of movie star chops as Matthew McConaughey and Woody Harrelson from "True Detective," and Billy Bob Thornton and Martin Freeman from "Fargo" vie for top acting awards.

"What you see now is 'True Detective' and 'Fargo' as the vanguard for where a lot of television storytelling is going," said Andy Greenwald, a staff writer at Grantland.com, who added that the miniseries format allows Hollywood talent to test the TV waters without complicating their big-screen career.

Netflix shrewdly submitted "Orange Is the New Black," about a middle-class woman in jail on drug charges, as a comedy, avoiding a showdown against "House of Cards."

It will attempt to unseat four-time winner "Modern Family," ABC's dysfunctional family sitcom. The shows face stiff competition from HBO's political satire "Veep," whose star Julia Louis-Dreyfus and supporting actor Tony Hale each won Emmys last year.

"'Veep' has all the tea leaves to win, and we know they (Emmy voters) love Julia Louis-Dreyfus," O'Neil said, adding that "Veep" and "Orange" also picked up crucial comedy writing nods.

The gamesmanship among networks - HBO has "True Detective" in the drama running while "Fargo" is expected to sweep the miniseries competition - also reflects the value of an Emmy victory as delayed and online viewing has rendered audience ratings more opaque to networks, Greenwald said.

"Prestige and perception are really the new currency in the TV marketplace," he said.

(Editing by Marguerita Choy)