Emmys 2020: Supporting Actor, Limited Series — Dream Nominees

The 72nd Primetime Emmy Awards will be airing (in some form!) on Sept. 20. Before the real nominees are unveiled on July 28, we at TVLine have come up with our own dream nominations in 15 major categories. Scroll down to see our ideal contenders for Supporting Actor in a Limited Series or Movie, then give us your thoughts!

DYLAN MCDERMOTT, HOLLYWOOD

WHY HE DESERVES A NOD: Ryan Murphy's alt-history showbiz drama was absolutely studded with stars, but McDermott managed to outshine them all with a devilishly charming, authentically touching turn as gas station pimp Ernie West. McDermott happily chewed up scenery left and right as the fast-talking Ernie dazzled his handsome young charges with visions of silver screen stardom — but when Ernie confessed to a secret passion for acting and fell for studio executive Ellen, he also revealed the slickster had an artist's heart.

JESSE PLEMONS, EL CAMINO: A BREAKING BAD MOVIE

WHY HE DESERVES A NOD: Yeah, the Breaking Bad sequel was kind of unnecessary, but it was all worth it just to see Plemons back in the saddle as smiling psychopath Todd. Whether he's nonchalantly disposing of a murder victim's body or cheerfully asking a truck driver to honk his horn, Todd's trademark mix of chilling violence and goofy childishness is certainly unique, and Plemons brought a welcome burst of twisted humor to a gravely serious epilogue.

TIM BLAKE NELSON, WATCHMEN

WHY HE DESERVES A NOD: May we direct your attention to Episode 5 of HBO's limited series, in which Nelson executes a gorgeous, near-instantaneous turn from post-makeout bliss to full-on shame as Wade (aka Looking Glass) realizes the woman with whom he's been flirting is actually a member of a racist doomsday cult? Or earlier in that same episode, when he loses his stuff in a gorgeously performed, highly paranoid and still somehow very entertaining freakout on the phone? Nelson is a low-key, bona fide gem.

TITUSS BURGESS, UNBREAKABLE KIMMY SCHMIDT: KIMMY VS. THE REVEREND

WHY HE DESERVES A NOD: Kimmy Schmidt's perpetual sidekick finally became a big-screen leading man in the Netflix comedy's farewell special — even if he did squander that opportunity by instead choosing to accompany the titular redhead on yet another madcap (albeit well-intentioned) adventure. Whether he was improvising all the wrong lyrics to "Free Bird," or trying on glasses at a gas station ("These might as well be a clown in a sewer, because they are it!"), you couldn't go wrong in this choose-your-own-adventure extravaganza by consistently betting on Burgess' hysterical, spinoff-worthy character.

YAHYA ABDUL-MATEEN II, WATCHMEN

WHY HE DESERVES A NOD: Cal Abar may not have a superpower, but his portrayer certainly does: It's the ability to play both an average dad and an omniscient superhero so effortlessly that the transition from one to the other is as smooth as Doctor Manhattan's bald, blue head. Abdul-Mateen II imbued all of Manhattan's gestures and facial expressions with a weariness borne of the knowledge that tragedy is inevitable but love endures, leaving us absolutely gutted by the end of HBO's mesmerizing adaptation.

JOHN SLATTERY, MRS. AMERICA

WHY HE DESERVES A NOD: Slattery may not have had as much screen time as some of our other Dream Emmy contenders, but each of his appearances as Phyllis Schlafly's husband, Fred, left an impression nonetheless. With little more than a downward glance or a slight shift in his chair, the actor communicated Fred's internal struggle, proudly backing his wife's activism while feeling threatened by the ever-changing power dynamics in their relationship. And when Fred and Phyllis really leveled with each other — like the Episode 4 scene in which he helped her prep for a debate against Betty Friedan — Slattery was just as magnetic as leading lady Cate Blanchett.