LOS ANGELES — The sprawling and bloodthirsty saga “Game of Thrones,” defying the Emmy Awards’ grudging respect for such fantasy fare, emerged as the leader in the nominations announced Thursday with 19 bids, including best drama series.
Other top nominees included a pair of ambitious miniseries, “Fargo,” with 18 bids, and “American Horror Story: Coven,” with 17. The AIDS drama “The Normal Heart” received 16 nominations, including best TV movie. The meth kingpin tale “Breaking Bad” got 16 bids for its final season, including best drama and best actor for Bryan Cranston.
In the best drama series category, “Game of Thrones” will compete with “Breaking Bad,” “Downton Abbey,” “House of Cards,” “Mad Men” and “True Detective.”
Whether HBO’s “Game of Thrones” can take home the top trophy is another question: Only one fantasy or sci-fi series, “Lost,” has ever captured it, according to Tom O’Neil, author of “The Emmys” and organizer of the Gold Derby awards site.
“Orange Is the New Black,” from Netflix, took a bid for best comedy series, along with a nod for star Taylor Schilling. Also competing for best comedy are “The Big Bang Theory,” “Louie,” “Silicon Valley,” “Veep” and “Modern Family.”
