Awards season has officially kicked off with the announcement of the nominees for the 2017 Golden Globes. HBO's Game of Thrones snagged a nomination for Best TV Series, Drama, but A Song of Ice and Fire author George R.R. Martin doesn't think that his show will take home the top prize. He had this to say about the Best TV Series, Drama category:
Being an HBO guy, I'm thrilled that to see that both Game of Thrones and Westworld have been nominated for the big prize... though Westworld is going to be some tough competition. (In fact, I would figure WW for the favorite).
The competition is pretty stiff for the 2017 Best Drama category. Game of Thrones is up against The Crown, Stranger Things, and This Is Us in addition to Westworld, but I would say that Westworld is the show most likely to beat out Game of Thrones. The freshman series has been well-received by critics and audiences alike, even those who don't 100% understand what's going on with all the crazy twists and turns. The show is gorgeous and nuanced, filled with talented actors and set in an incredibly unique universe. Throw in the fact that it's the newest big thing to come out of HBO, and it might have an edge over Game of Thrones.
George R.R. Martin shared his Golden Globe prediction in a post on his LiveJournal blog, and it's hard to blame him for any pessimism about Game of Thrones' chances of winning for Best Drama. Game of Thrones had already been in the running for Best Drama three times in years past, and it lost each time. In fact, the only Golden Globe win for Game of Thrones came when Peter Dinklage took home the trophy for Best Supporting Actor back in 2012. 2017 could be just another year of loss for Game of Thrones at the Golden Globes.
Game of Thrones also scored a nomination in another category for the Golden Globes. Lena Headey is up for Best Supporting Actress in a TV Series or TV Movie. Westworld's Thandie Newton is nominated for the same award, so it should be interesting to see how Game of Thrones and Westworld face off in an acting category. Headey was the only Game of Thrones performer nominated for a Golden Globe in 2017, but Evan Rachel Wood is in the running for Best Actress in a TV Series, Drama.
Of course, there have been awards upsets in years past, and George R.R. Martin could be wrong about Westworld as the favorite over Game of Thrones in 2017. Who knows? Maybe neither HBO show will win. This Is Us scored just as many nominations as Westworld, and a broadcast series beating an HBO series could definitely qualify as an upset.
Tune in to ABC on Sunday, January 8 at 8 p.m. ET to see which show will win for Best Drama, and don't forget to take a look at our list of all the TV nominations for the 2017 Golden Globes.
