Billy Porter Gets Back-to-Back Lead Actor Emmy Nominations
Carnegie Mellon University alumnus Billy Porter will be defending his historical Emmy win at the 72nd Emmy Awards.
In 2019, Porter became the first openly gay black man to win Outstanding lead actor in a drama series for his work as Pray Tell on FX’s “Pose.” The Tony, Grammy and Emmy award-winning actor graduated in 1991 from CMU’s School of Drama.
This year, 17 CMU alumni have earned 18 nominations in 12 categories.
Josh Gad, a 2003 alumnus of CMU’s College of Fine Arts, and Grammy winner, was among the presenters to announce this year’s nominations. The ceremony was reimagined as a virtual event this year due to production restrictions resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic. Gad stars in the 2020 Apple TV+ show “Central Park.” Among the cast is classmate Leslie Odom Jr. who was nominated for an Outstanding character voice-over performance for the same show.
July 28, 2020
Billy Porter Gets Back-to-Back Lead Actor Emmy Nominations
Alumni, including Ted Danson, Leslie Odom Jr., James Cromwell and Cherry Jones, receive nods in a dozen categories
By Heidi Opdyke Email
Carnegie Mellon University alumnus Billy Porter will be defending his historical Emmy win at the 72nd Emmy Awards.
In 2019, Porter became the first openly gay black man to win Outstanding lead actor in a drama series for his work as Pray Tell on FX’s “Pose.” The Tony, Grammy and Emmy award-winning actor graduated in 1991 from CMU’s School of Drama.
This year, 17 CMU alumni have earned 18 nominations in 12 categories.
Josh Gad, a 2003 alumnus of CMU’s College of Fine Arts, and Grammy winner, was among the presenters to announce this year’s nominations. The ceremony was reimagined as a virtual event this year due to production restrictions resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic. Gad stars in the 2020 Apple TV+ show “Central Park.” Among the cast is classmate Leslie Odom Jr. who was nominated for an Outstanding character voice-over performance for the same show.
The Academy of Television Arts and Sciences honors individuals for their artistic, educational and technical achievements in the television industry. Emmy Awards recognize excellence in news, sports, daytime, primetime, documentary and international programming.
Carnegie Mellon alumni and faculty have received more than 130 Emmy Awards to date.
The Television Academy’s 72nd Emmy Awards will air live at 8 p.m. Sept. 20 on ABC from the Microsoft Theater in Los Angeles. Jimmy Kimmel will serve as host.