The Battle For the Emmy Galaxy Begins Anew

As the campaign for Primetime Emmy Award nominations lifts off the launchpad over the next few weeks, one of the familiar refrains will surround the candidacy of a little Sci-Fi Channel show called "Battlestar Galactica" and the dichotomy between everyone raving about its quality and no one voting for it because, well, c'mon, it's a science fiction series. Everyone knows they can't possibly be mentioned in the same breath with the likes of "The Sopranos," 24," "Grey's Anatomy" and "Heroes" -- right?

"We really tend to be taken for granted as just a little cable show," understands "Battlestar" executive producer Ron Moore. "They're judging the genre rather than the show, and that's a little bit frustrating. I mean, 'The X-Files' was able to rise out of the label and be recognized, but those examples are few and far between."

If a drama series nod for "Battlestar" is considered a huge longshot, however, its lead actors are thought to have a legitimate opportunity to crash this little party. That pair would be Edward James Olmos and Mary McDonnell, the latter a two-time Oscar nominee (for "Dances With Wolves" and "Passion Fish") who portrays Laura Roslin -- President of the Twelve Colonies in the series. And McDonnell is proud to be portraying a woman in such a powerful position of political power during a time when she's simultaneously surrounded by the likes of Senators Dianne Feinstein, Barbara Boxer and Hillary Clinton and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi.

"It's truly a privilege, and extremely exciting, to have an opportunity to follow all of these real-life role models," McDonnell says. "The way these women behave is peered at through a microscope every second of every day, and I only hope I can do them justice with what I do. From my perspective, it's very humbling to play Roslin at a time when we are in such grave danger around the world."

Comments

[OldOldLady Of The Hills]

I do think this is a highly undrrated series...and like a few other "cable" series, gets overlooked at Emmy time....I am personally not a big Scci Fi person...I admit to never having seen any of the Star Wars movies, and having barely ever weatched an episiode of Star Trek, all the way through....But, I have watched this series, during the Emmy "For Your Consideration" times in the past....And liked it very very much...I thought the actors were marvelous and in particular Olmos and McDonnell...And like CCH Pounder, who is superb on 'The Sheild', and has never given a bad performance in her life...These two performers in "BG" are overlooked....It makes no sense to me.
Personally, I hope it is CCH POUNDERS YEAR, this year...and those two wonderful actors from Battlestar Gallactica, too