LOS ANGELES • HBO's Watchmen, an innovative reimagining of a superhero graphic novel that tackled racism in America, topped the nominations for this year's Emmy Awards on Tuesday with 26 nods.

Perennial Amazon hit The Marvelous Mrs Maisel was tops among the comedies with 20 nominations, followed by dark dramas Ozark and Succession at 18 each.

Netflix dominated with a whopping 160 nominations - a new record for a single platform - on the strength of a powerhouse lineup that includes Ozark and The Crown.

The nominations were revealed during a live virtual ceremony due to restrictions related to the coronavirus pandemic.

The awards show on Sept 20 will be the first organised by Hollywood during the ongoing health crisis. Late night talk show host Jimmy Kimmel is set to host the festivities, but it is unclear what form the broadcast on ABC will take.

"Despite the unprecedented challenges facing the entertainment industry, it has been an extraordinary year for television," said Television Academy chairman and chief executive Frank Scherma.

"We are honoured to be recognising so many of the talented programmes, producers, directors and craftspeople behind the remarkable storytelling that has brought us together while we remain apart," he added.

WATCHMEN RESONATES

Watchmen, a tale that has struck a chord with many viewers in the light of ongoing protests against racism and police brutality in many American cities, received nods for outstanding limited series, as well as for stars Regina King and Jeremy Irons.

"Watchmen is a great series on its own, but it's become even more resonant in recent weeks and will likely have a big day in the limited races," Ms Joyce Eng, senior editor at awards tracking website Gold Derby, said ahead of Tuesday's announcement.

Watchmen will compete in the best limited series category, against Little Fires Everywhere, the adaptation of the popular Celeste Ng book, equal rights saga Mrs America, true crime story Unbelievable and religious drama Unorthodox.

The Marvelous Mrs Maisel - Amazon's story of a 1950s housewife-turned-stand-up comic - received nods for outstanding comedy series as well as for star Rachel Brosnahan.

Ozark stars Jason Bateman, Laura Linney and Julia Garner are in the running, as are a multitude of actors from cutthroat business drama Succession, including Brian Cox, who is one of the favourites in the lead actor category.

Oscar winner Olivia Colman is hotly tipped to win an Emmy for her portrayal of Queen Elizabeth II in Netflix's The Crown.

Meanwhile, newcomer Apple TV+ nabbed its first nominations, with Jennifer Aniston, Steve Carell and Billy Crudup all earning acting nods for the platform's flagship launch programme The Morning Show.

DIVERSITY

Of the more than 100 acting nominations in the series, limited series and television movie categories, more than a third of them went to black actors - a new record.

Among them are Billy Porter (Pose), Sterling K. Brown (This Is Us and The Marvelous Mrs Maisel), Issa Rae (Insecure) and Regina King (Watchmen).

The increased number of nominations for black performers confirmed efforts by the Television Academy to boost racial diversity on the small screen.

"Black Lives Matter. Black Stories Matter," the Academy tweeted on Tuesday.

The Emmy nominations announcement comes amid a national reckoning over race in the United States after the May 25 death of Mr George Floyd, an African American, when he was being arrested by the police.

"This type of representation is a long time coming. There's no shortage of talent within the black community," actor Yahya Abdul-Mateen II, a nominee for Watchmen, told Entertainment Tonight. "Sometimes it takes certain circumstances in the world for people to open their eyes and people to open up, to widen their periphery."

The Television Academy's 23,000 voting members were given a record number of entries to sift through this year - and presumably had plenty of free time to watch television while cooped up at home due to coronavirus lockdown measures.

"Covid has obviously cancelled in-person events, so there's been no face-to-face schmoozing this year," Ms Eng said.

AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE, REUTERS

Key nominations

BEST DRAMA SERIES

• Better Call Saul (AMC)

• The Crown (Netflix)

• The Handmaid's Tale (Hulu)

• Killing Eve (AMC)

• The Mandalorian (Disney+)

• Ozark (Netflix)

• Stranger Things (Netflix)

• Succession (HBO)

BEST COMEDY SERIES

• Curb Your Enthusiasm (HBO)

• Dead To Me (Netflix)

• The Good Place (NBC)

• Insecure (HBO)

• The Kominsky Method (Netflix)

• The Marvelous Mrs Maisel (Amazon Prime Video)

• Schitt's Creek (Pop TV)

• What We Do In The Shadows (FX)

BEST LIMITED SERIES

• Little Fires Everywhere (Hulu)

• Mrs America (FX)

• Unbelievable (Netflix)

• Unorthodox (Netflix)

• Watchmen (HBO)

BEST COMEDY ACTOR

• Anthony Anderson, Black-ish

• Don Cheadle, Black Monday

• Ted Danson, The Good Place

• Michael Douglas, The Kominsky Method

• Eugene Levy, Schitt's Creek

• Ramy Yousef, Ramy

BEST COMEDY ACTRESS

• Christina Applegate, Dead To Me

• Rachel Brosnahan, The Marvelous Mrs Maisel

• Linda Cardellini, Dead To Me

• Catherine O'Hara, Schitt's Creek

• Issa Rae, Insecure

• Tracee Ellis Ross, Black-ish

BEST DRAMA ACTOR

• Jason Bateman, Ozark

• Sterling K. Brown, This is Us

• Steve Carell, The Morning Show

• Brian Cox, Succession

• Billy Porter, Pose

• Jeremy Strong, Succession

BEST DRAMA ACTRESS

• Jennifer Aniston, The Morning Show

• Olivia Colman, The Crown

• Jodie Comer, Killing Eve

• Laura Linney, Ozark

• Sandra Oh, Killing Eve

• Zendaya, Euphoria

BEST ACTRESS, LIMITED SERIES

• Cate Blanchett, Mrs America

• Shira Haas, Unorthodox

• Regina King, Watchmen

• Octavia Spencer, Self Made: Inspired By The Life Of Madam C.J. Walker

• Kerry Washington, Little Fires Everywhere

BEST ACTOR, LIMITED SERIES

• Jeremy Irons, Watchmen

• Hugh Jackman, Bad Education

• Paul Mescal, Normal People

• Jeremy Pope, Hollywood

• Mark Ruffalo, I Know This Much Is True