Entertainment

Ben Mendelsohn's Emmys Reaction Is So Cool

by Alice Walker

He may play the black sheep of the Rayburn family on Bloodline, but Ben Mendelsohn is clearly very welcome in Hollywood. As you may have heard the 2015 Emmy nominations went live this morning and there is all sorts of excitement around the celebration (suck it, ageism) and 2015 Emmys snubs (Empire and Jane the Virgin noooo!). One of the most pleasant surprises for me was Ben Mendelsohn's Emmy nomination for best supporting actor. He was absolutely electric on Bloodline, going head to head with Kyle Chandler in a way that I did not see coming. Even though this tears me apart to root for someone other then Jonathan Banks (please tell me you're watching him kill it on Better Call Saul) I think Mendelsohn just rose to the top of my ballot.

The actor — who you would never know was from Australia — actually has some pretty stiff competition. Besides Banks he is going up against against Tyrion Lannister himself Peter Dinklage, Jim Carter, Alan Cumming (who is too good for words) and Michael Kelly. That is one tough and good looking race, my friends. It's also a highly enviable position to be in, something Mendelsohn clearly understands and appreciates. He spoke out about his nomination, dropping a bit of a spoiler along the way, telling Bustle:

As an actor who has spent twenty years trying to crack America, the day I reached the Bloodline set and found my name on a chair next to Sissy Spacek's was the happiest of my working life. This has just matched it. Thank you, Daniel Zelman, Glenn and Todd Kessler, for creating, in Danny Rayburn, this absolute gift of a role and to Netflix for allowing me to bring him to life (and death). I am grateful beyond measure.

Now that's how you do a nomination speech. Short, humble and paying homage to the ultimate queen herself Sissy Spacek. I'm rooting for him to take home the gold this year for many reasons. I want Netflix to keep getting some credit for their amazing shows, and he was one of the best parts of an amazing show. And yeah, I'm not going to lie, I want to hear his acceptance speech — I bet he'll give it with his native accent. Good luck, Ben!

Images: giphy