2014 Emmys: Game of Thrones leads with 19 nominations

HBO's epic fantasy series Game of Thrones leads all series with 19 Primetime Emmy Award nominations, including best drama.

Game of Thrones will competewithBreaking Bad, True Detective,House of Cards, Downton Abbeyand Mad Men at the Aug. 25 ceremony, the Academy of Television Arts and Sciences announced Thursdayin Los Angeles.

Game of Thrones, based on a series of high-fantasy books by George R.R. Martin, is a premium cableseriesthat often generates water-cooler discussion and online debates about its sexual politics and frequentplot twists.

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The show features severalnoble families fighting for control of a mythical land calledWesteros.During itsrecently completedfourthseason, it became the most-watched show in HBO's history, surpassingThe Sopranos.

Cast members PeterDinklageand LenaHeadeypicked up nominations for best supporting actor and best supporting actress, respectively.

The 19 nominations for Game of Thrones pushed HBO's overall nodsthis year to 99, the most of any network.

Other top nominees included a pair of ambitious miniseries, the Calgary-shotFargo,with 18 bids.

American Horror Story: Coven is another big contender with 17 nominations. The AIDS drama The Normal Heartreceived 16 nods, including best TV movie. The meth kingpin drama Breaking Badgot 16 bids for its final season, including best drama and best actor nod for star Bryan Cranston.

The 66th prime-time Emmy Awards ceremony will have big-screen star power to spare.

This year's Academy Awards best-actor winner Matthew McConaughey (Dallas Buyers Club) and nominee Chiwetel Ejiofor (12 Years a Slave) are both nominees for TV projects, as is past Oscar winner Julia Roberts.

'Platform agnostic'

Television academy chair Bruce Rosenblum introduced the Emmy nominations event by saying, "Quality television is now platform agnostic" an observation that was reflected in the nominees.

Online streaming company Netflix Inc. more than doubled its nominations for TV's highest honours compared to last year, reaching 31 with political thriller House of Cardsearning 13 nods.

Another Netflix program, Orange is the New Black, was among the leaders in the comedy categories, with 12 nominations including for best comedy series, along with a nod for star Taylor Schilling.

The prison-set hybrid "dramedy" could have been entered in either the drama or comedy category, and the decision to go for the latter appears to havepaid off.

Other comedy nominees includeThe Big Bang Theory,Louie,Silicon Valley,VeepandModern Family.

Canadian nominations

Canadian Matt Lloyd scored a nomination for outstandingcinematography on Fargo,while Jackie Lind, anotherCanuck, isup for outstanding casting for a miniseries.

Canadians did not fare so well in other categories.

OrphanBlackstarTatianaMaslanywas snubbed in the lead dramaticactress category for a third year, despite recently winning aCritics' Choice Television Award for her work on the show.

Here's a complete list of nominees in sixmajor categories:

Outstanding drama series

• Breaking Bad (AMC)
• Downton Abbey (PBS)
• Game of Thrones (HBO)
• Mad Men (AMC)
• True Detective (HBO)
• House of Cards (Netflix)

Outstanding lead actor in a drama series

• Bryan Cranston, Breaking Bad
• Jeff Daniels, The Newsroom
• Kevin Spacey, House of Cards
• Jon Hamm, Mad Men
• Matthew McConaughey, True Detective
• Woody Harrelson, True Detective

Outstanding lead actress in a drama series

• Michelle Dockery, Downton Abbey
• Claire Danes, Homeland
• Robin Wright, House of Cards
• Kerry Washington, Scandal
• Julianna Margulies, The Good Wife
• Lizzy Caplan, Masters of Sex

Outstanding comedy series

• The Big Bang Theory
• Louie
• Modern Family
• Orange is the New Black
• Silicon Valley
• Veep

Outstanding lead actor in a comedy series

• Jim Parsons, The Big Bang Theory
• Matt LeBlanc, Episodes
• Don Cheadle, House of Lies
• Louis C.K., Louie
• William H. Macy, Shameless
• Ricky Gervais, Derek

Outstanding lead actress in a comedy series

• Lena Dunham, Girls
• Edie Falco, Nurse Jackie
• Amy Poehler, Parks and Recreation
• Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Veep
• Melissa McCarthy, Mike & Molly
• Taylor Schilling, Orange is the New Black