The Best Actors with the Most Emmy Nominations and Zero Wins
Awards are great when they happen, but TV history is also filled with performers who kept getting called on nomination morning and never heard their name at the podium. This list celebrates those actors. They built shows, anchored seasons, and gave us characters we still quote, yet the statue kept slipping away.
You will know many of these faces right away. They guided cultural juggernauts, carried cult favorites, and pushed genres forward. Think of this as a friendly roll call of TV heavyweights who did the work and made the medium better, trophies or not.
Angela Lansbury
For a generation of viewers, Angela Lansbury was Sunday night comfort in ‘Murder, She Wrote’. Week after week she solved crimes with wit and warmth, turning a mystery series into a ritual for families everywhere.
Her TV film work showed the same craft. She could switch from cozy sleuth to steel-spined matriarch without losing a step. Across her career she received 18 Primetime Emmy nominations and somehow never won.
Steve Carell
Steve Carell made awkwardness an art form on ‘The Office’. He took a character who could have been insufferable and found the insecure heart underneath, creating a modern TV icon.
Later turns in ‘The Morning Show’ reminded everyone that he can pivot from comedy to drama with real weight. Along the way he picked up 11 Primetime Emmy nominations.
Hugh Laurie
As the cantankerous genius on ‘House’, Hugh Laurie delivered one of the most distinctive TV performances of the century. He snapped off acid one-liners, then cracked you open with a glance.
Outside that hospital he kept experimenting. From ‘The Night Manager’ to ‘Veep’, he shifted tones with ease and never lost his bite. His tally stands at 10 Primetime Emmy nominations.
Anthony Anderson
Anthony Anderson brought heart, humor, and real conversations to ‘black-ish’. He balanced silly dad energy with smart social commentary in a way that felt lived in and honest.
Across hosting gigs and guest spots he has been TV’s reliable spark. He shows up, lifts the room, and makes the material sing. He has 11 Primetime Emmy nominations.
Jason Alexander
As George Costanza on ‘Seinfeld’, Jason Alexander built a pressure cooker of neuroses that never stopped paying off. Every rant and scheme landed with perfect timing.
His later work on ‘Curb Your Enthusiasm’ and other series showed the same fearless commitment. He turns small moments into comic detonations. He has 8 Primetime Emmy nominations.
Michael C. Hall
Michael C. Hall gave us two indelible characters with ‘Six Feet Under’ and ‘Dexter’. He can play interior grief and gleeful menace, sometimes in the very same scene.
His choices are always precise. He finds tiny human details in larger-than-life roles, which is why those characters linger long after the credits roll. He has 6 Primetime Emmy nominations.
Christina Hendricks
On ‘Mad Men’, Christina Hendricks transformed Joan from a sharp office presence into one of TV’s richest studies in power and vulnerability. She made every look and line count.
Later turns in ‘Good Girls’ kept that run going. She brings elegance and flint to every frame, and the shows are better for it. She has 6 Primetime Emmy nominations.
Giancarlo Esposito
Giancarlo Esposito’s cool precision as Gus in ‘Breaking Bad’ and ‘Better Call Saul’ set a new bar for controlled menace. Few actors say more with silence.
He keeps reinventing that presence in projects like ‘The Mandalorian’ and ‘The Boys’. Each time he tweaks the flavor and it still chills. He has 6 Primetime Emmy nominations.
Keri Russell
Keri Russell’s work in ‘The Americans’ was a master class in layered performance. She played a spy, a spouse, and a mother while carrying the weight of a double life with aching clarity.
With ‘The Diplomat’ she proved that lightning can strike again. She brings intelligence, nerve, and humor to complex women, and it never feels false. She has 5 Primetime Emmy nominations.
Liev Schreiber
From ‘Ray Donovan’ to prestige limited series and narrations, Liev Schreiber brings a steady, coiled energy you can feel across the room. He can smolder and explode, often in one breath.
He is also a generous scene partner. Even when the camera favors someone else, you can watch him listen and make the moment richer. He has 9 Primetime Emmy nominations.
Ed O’Neill
Ed O’Neill became a sitcom legend twice. He turned ‘Married… with Children’ into a long-running phenomenon, then found a second signature role on ‘Modern Family’.
He grounds outrageous behavior in something recognizably human. That is the secret sauce that makes the jokes land and the characters feel real. He has 3 Primetime Emmy nominations.
Rob Lowe
Rob Lowe moved from ‘The West Wing’ idealism to the comfortable charm of workplace comedies and dramas with ease. He can carry a subplot or steer an episode without strain.
He brings a light touch that never looks lazy. The work feels effortless because he does the work before the camera rolls. He has 2 Primetime Emmy nominations.
Don Cheadle
Don Cheadle’s TV work, from ‘House of Lies’ to scene-stealing guest turns, shows a quicksilver intelligence. He can flip tone mid-sentence and land every beat.
He is a builder of ensembles too. Put him in a cast and everything starts to click a little tighter. He has 11 Primetime Emmy nominations.
Lena Headey
As Cersei in ‘Game of Thrones’, Lena Headey turned quiet rage into high drama. She held court with a stare and made power plays feel Shakespearean.
Her post-Westeros choices keep stretching that authority in new directions. She can command a kingdom or a living room with the same control. She has 5 Primetime Emmy nominations.
Emilia Clarke
Emilia Clarke carried a mythic rise on ‘Game of Thrones’ with charisma and vulnerability. She charted a character’s evolution so cleanly that fans could feel every turn.
On TV and beyond she brings an openhearted presence. You root for her even when the story pushes her into hard choices. She has 4 Primetime Emmy nominations.
Kit Harington
Kit Harington gave ‘Game of Thrones’ its moral spine, then smartly chased roles that bend that image. He plays earnest without being dull and conflicted without losing you.
He has an old-fashioned leading man quality that television still needs. It steadies big stories and keeps them human. He has 2 Primetime Emmy nominations.
Jonathan Banks
Jonathan Banks has been quietly towering for decades, but ‘Breaking Bad’ and ‘Better Call Saul’ let everyone see it. His Mike is weary, watchful, and unforgettable.
He does more with a sigh than most do with a speech. That kind of control is rare, and he has it in spades. He has 6 Primetime Emmy nominations.
Rhea Seehorn
Rhea Seehorn turned Kim Wexler into the beating heart of ‘Better Call Saul’. She made restraint thrilling and ethics dramatic, and she did it with exquisite precision.
Her work invites you in. You study her face, catch the thought, and feel the sting. She has 3 Primetime Emmy nominations.
John Slattery
John Slattery’s Roger on ‘Mad Men’ was wit wrapped in a three-piece suit. He delivered zingers while letting the sadness peek through the seams.
He keeps showing up in sharp comedies and dramas and snapping scenes to attention. He lifts the room just by walking into it. He has 4 Primetime Emmy nominations.
Mandy Moore
On ‘This Is Us’, Mandy Moore aged decades on screen and made every era feel truthful. She found small, specific moves that stitched the whole family together.
Her TV work reminds you that warmth can be complex. She plays kindness with edges, which is harder than it looks. She has 1 Primetime Emmy nomination.
Kaley Cuoco
Kaley Cuoco evolved from multi-camera rhythms on ‘The Big Bang Theory’ to twisty turns in ‘The Flight Attendant’. She brings comic snap and dramatic stakes in equal measure.
She is also a savvy producer who picks roles that challenge her. The growth is right there on screen. She has 3 Primetime Emmy nominations.
Noah Wyle
Noah Wyle helped define the network drama era with ‘ER’. He made medicine legible and character beats profound, week after week.
His later series work shows the same steady hand. He is the kind of lead who makes a show feel like home. He has 5 Primetime Emmy nominations.
Larry Hagman
Larry Hagman gave prime-time one of its great villains in ‘Dallas’. J. R. Ewing was charming, ruthless, and endlessly watchable.
Earlier, ‘I Dream of Jeannie’ showed his playful side. Few actors swing that wide and still feel exactly right. He has 2 Primetime Emmy nominations.
Elizabeth Montgomery
Elizabeth Montgomery was television magic in ‘Bewitched’. She turned a high-concept sitcom into a character piece with style and spark.
Her later TV films proved her dramatic chops were just as strong. She made familiar stories feel fresh through sheer presence. She has 9 Primetime Emmy nominations.
David Duchovny
David Duchovny’s Fox Mulder in ‘The X-Files’ redefined cool on network TV. He played curiosity and obsession with a sly, dry rhythm that reshaped the genre.
Then he flipped to messy hilarity on ‘Californication’. That jump showed a performer who refuses to be boxed in. He has 4 Primetime Emmy nominations.