Inaugural AHS Awards Nominations

From left to right: Chinonye Chukwu, Diego Calva, Michelle Yeoh, Jabari Banks, and Maitreyi Ramakrishnan - David M. Benett / Axelle/Bauer-Griffin / Rebecca Sapp / Steve Granitz / Cindy Ord.

The first annual virtual A Hot Set Awards (AHS Awards) honors the best of media in film, television, and new media.  Nominees are selected by A Hot Set journalists and editors among 25 categories (9 film, 13 television, and 1 new media). Actresses Michelle Yeoh and Shonda Rhimes will be the inaugural Lifetime Achievement Award honorees.

Roundup

Will Smith - Emancipation (Apple Original Films / Overbrook Entertainment / Westbrook Studios / McFarland Entertainment / Escape Artists)

Six films were nominated, with Everything Everywhere All At Once receiving the most. In the sci-fi adventure Everything Everywhere All At Once, an elderly Chinese immigrant must save reality by traveling to alternate universes and connecting with the lives she may have led. The Black Panther saga continues in Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, which got five nominations for best picture. The Wakandans battle to defend their nation from invading world powers and a brand-new foe beneath the seas as they lament the passing of King T'Challa. Daniel Kaluuya and Keke Palmer play brother and sister horse trainers in California who experience an unexplainable phenomenon in the movie Nope, which has won four nominations. The Woman King received three nominations for its tale of a group of all-female warriors who protect the African kingdom of Dahomey in the 1800s. Till and Emancipation received two nominations. Till recounts the terrible true story of Mamie Till-Mobley's relentless pursuit of justice for her 14-year-old son, Emmett Till, who was lynched in 1955 in Mississippi. Emancipation follows the story of Peter (Will Smith), a slave who flees a plantation in Louisiana, outwitting his hunters within the swamps of Louisiana in his journey north.

The top nominees for the TV categories are Atlanta which received the most television nominations with four total for comedy, Abbott Elementary with three nominations for comedy, and two nominations each for Lopez vs Lopez, Never Have I Ever, and Wednesday. Atlanta follows college dropout and music manager Earnest "Earn" Marks (Donald Glover) and rapper Alfred "Paper Boi" Miles (Brian Tyree Henry) as they navigate Atlanta’s hip-hop scene. Abbott Elementary is a mockumentary sitcom about a group of teachers thrown together in an underfunded Philadelphia public school where, despite the odds stacked against them, they are determined to help their students. Lopez vs Lopez centers around a once-estranged father and daughter duo who navigate their dysfunctional lives and reconnect through headaches and joy as they make up for the lost time. In the Netflix original series Never Have I Ever, Devi Vishwakumar (Maitreyi Ramakrishnan), an Indian American first-generation kid, tries to connect with her crush and get ahead at school after experiencing a devastating year. In Wednesday, the iconic Addams Family character Wednesday Addams (Jenna Ortega) is reimagined as a student attempting to develop her psychic skills and unravel the mystery surrounding her parents.

Mayan Lopez and George Lopez - Lopez vs Lopez (NBC / Mi Vida Loba / Mohawk Productions / Travieso Productions / 3 Arts Entertainment / Universal Television)

Andor, Bel-Air, and Industry were each nominated twice for TV dramas. Science-fiction action-adventure limited series Andor, commonly referred to as Star Wars: Andor, is available on Disney+. It is a prequel to both the 2016 spin-off movie Rogue One and the original Star Wars (1997) movie, making it the fourth live-action series in the Star Wars universe canonical timeline. The series follows Cassian Andor, a former burglar turned Rebel agent, over the five years that precede the events of the previously mentioned films. Developed by Morgan Cooper, Malcolm Spellman, TJ Brady, and Rasheed Newson, Bel-Air is a Peacock original drama series based on Cooper's short fan film of the same name. The series is a reimagining of the classic sitcom The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air. Like the original, Bel-Air follows the adventures of a street-smart youth whose life changes when he leaves the rough streets of West Philadelphia to live with his relatives in one of LA's affluent neighborhoods. Industry is an HBO and BBC 2 drama series that follows a group of young graduates from all walks of life competing for permanent positions at Pierpoint & Co, a prestigious investment bank in London, after the 2008 economic collapse. 

The TV news, competitive shows, and unscripted program categories have an impressive lineup. Breaking Points, the only news program nominated that wasn't from a major television outlet, received two nominations and made history as the first millennial-driven news program to be chosen. One cohost represented the left, and the other cohost represented the right. Ziwe was the first millennial-focused talk show to be recognized with two nominations for combining musical performances, interviews, and comedy to confront racial, political, and other cultural problems in America. With two nominations each, Family Feud, The Masked Singer, and RuPaul's Drag Race dominated the categories for competitive shows. Family Feud is a daytime game show where five members of one family compete against five members of another family and is hosted by African American comedian Steve Harvey. The objective of each team is to guess the answers to audience survey questions. Celebrities sing songs on the reality singing competition series The Masked Singer while hiding their identities using masks and costumes. The Nick Cannon-hosted show features celebrity panelists who try to identify the performers by deciphering hints given during each season. In the reality competition RuPaul's Drag Race, a group of drag queens compete in tasks to win cash, a crown, and the title of "America's Next Drag Superstar."

The last category is about new media and focuses on the best social media content creators of 2022. AHS Awards’ inaugural celebration honors content creators Steven He, Jesusnalgas, Khaby Lame, Nyma Tang, and Safiya Nygaard as its first nominees. Steven He O'Byrne is a Chinese Irish comedy sketch creator and actor with 13 million followers across three platforms. He is well-known for his parodies of Asian parenting and the "EMOTIONAL DAMAGE" meme. Jesus Nalgas (Jesusnalgas), a Mexican TikTok content creator and social media figure, is known for his jokes about human resources and for posting pictures of his meals on the app. He is from Mexico City, and on TikTok alone, he has more than 4.4 million followers and more than 97 million views. Italian social media star Khabane "Khaby" Lame, who was born in Senegal, is well-known for his TikTok films in which he silently mocks too complex life hack videos. Lame, who has more than 153 million followers and billions of views as of October 2022, is the most popular user on TikTok.

Ken Leung, Marisa Abela and Alex Alomar Akpobome - Industry (HBO / BBC 2 / Bad Wolf)

Nyma Tang is an American beauty vlogger who also campaigns against prejudice based on skin tone. She is best known for her self-titled YouTube channel. Her YouTube series The Darkest Shade, in which she analyzes the darkest shades of cosmetics from various makeup brands and draws attention to the underrepresentation of darker skin tones in the beauty business, helped her become well-known online in 2017. Tang, whose parents are from South Sudan, was born in Ethiopia. As of November 2022, Tang had more than 1.34 million YouTube followers and had accumulated more than 159 million views over more than 280 videos. American YouTuber Safiya Nygaard rose to fame by developing the LadyLike series for BuzzFeed. After a video of her explaining why she left the network went viral, she continued to post content on her solo YouTube channel, containing programs such as her Bad Makeup Science series. Nygaard’s YouTube channel boasts over 9.6 million subscribers with more than 1.68 billion views.

Michelle Yeoh (Film) and Shonda Rhimes (Television) are the inaugural lifetime achievement award honorees, as chosen by AHS’s journalists and editors. The AHS Awards’ Lifetime Achievement Award nominates two POC within the film and television industry in front of or behind the scenes with 20 or more years of industry experience. The most nominated individual in each category becomes the honoree. Malaysian actress Michelle Yeoh (born Michelle Yeoh Choo Kheng) became well-known in the 1990s after appearing in several action movies in Hong Kong where she also performed her stunts. Her performances in the 1997 James Bond movie Tomorrow Never Dies and the martial arts movie Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon (2000) brought her widespread acclaim. Yeoh recently received a Golden Globe nomination for Best Actress in 2022 for her role as the lead in the film Everything Everywhere All at Once, which was universally praised by critics. Shonda Lynn Rhimes is an African American television producer, screenwriter, and author best known for being the creator, head writer, and executive producer of the political thriller Scandal and the medical drama Grey's Anatomy on television. Rhimes has also served as the executive producer of the ABC television series Off the Map, How to Get Away with Murder, The Catch, and the spin-off Station 19.

The winners will be revealed in February 2023 via the A Hot Set platform. View the inaugural nominations below.

FILM

N. T. Rama Rao Jr. and Ram Charan - RRR (Pen Studios / Lyca Productions / KVN Productions / HR Pictures

Best Documentary

• Aftershock

• Jennifer Lopez: Halftime

• Say Hey, Willie Mays!

• Sidney

• The Territory

Best Standup Comedy Special

• Jerrod Carmichael: Rothaniel

• Gabriel Iglesias: Stadium Fluffy

• Marlon Wayans Presents: The Headliners

• Atsuko Okatsuka: The Intruder

• Ali Wong: Don Wong

Best Leading Actress

• Danielle Deadwyler, Till

• Viola Davis, The Woman King

• Taylor Russell, Bones and All

• Letitia Wright, Black Panther: Wakanda Forever

• Michelle Yeoh, Everything Everywhere All At Once

Best Supporting Actress

• Angela Bassett, Black Panther: Wakanda Forever

• Stephanie Hsu, Everything Everywhere All At Once

• Zoë Kravitz, The Batman

• Janelle Monáe, Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery

• Keke Palmer, Nope

Best Film

• Black Panther: Wakanda Forever

• Emancipation

• Everything Everywhere All At Once

• Nope

• The Woman King

Best Foreign Film

• Argentina, 1985 (Argentina)

• Decision To Leave (Korea)

• Holy Spider (Iran)

• RRR (India)

• Saint Omer (France)

Best Leading Actor

• Diego Calva, Babylon

• Idris Elba, 3000 Years of Longing 

• Daniel Kaluuya, Nope

• Jonathan Majors, Devotion 

• Will Smith, Emancipation

Best Supporting Actor

• Brian Tyree Henry, Causeway

• James Hong, Everything Everywhere All At Once

• Tenoch Huerta Mejía, Black Panther: Wakanda Forever

• Ke Huy Quan, Everything Everywhere All At Once

• John David Washington, Amsterdam

Best Director

• Chinonye Chukwu, Till

• Ryan Coogler, Black Panther: Wakanda Forever

• Daniel Kwan & Daniel Scheinert, Everything Everywhere All At Once

• Jordan Peele, Nope

• Gina Prince-Bythewood, The Woman King

Television - Scripted

Jenna Ortega - Wednesday (Netflix / MGM Television / Millar Gough Ink / Tim Burton Productions / Toluca Pictures)

Best TV Series - Comedy

• Abbott Elementary

• Atlanta

• Lopez vs Lopez

• Never Have I Ever

• Wednesday

Best Actor - Comedy     

• Donald Glover, Atlanta

• Brian Tyree Henry, Atlanta

• Keegan-Michael Key, Reboot

• George Lopez, Lopez vs Lopez

• Tyler James Williams, Abbott Elementary

Best Actress - Comedy

• Zazie Beetz, Atlanta

• Quinta Brunson, Abbott Elementary

• Selena Gomez, Only Murders in the Building

• Jenna Ortega, Wednesday

• Maitreyi Ramakrishnan, Never Have I Ever

Best TV Series - Drama

• Andor

• Bel-Air

• Industry

• Pachinko

• Queen Sugar

Best Actor - Drama

• Jabari Banks, Bel-Air

• Oscar Isaac, Moon Knight

• Diego Luna, Andor

• Michael Mando, Better Call Saul

• Steve Toussaint, House of the Dragon

Best Actress - Drama

• Simone Ashley, Bridgerton

• Zendaya, Euphoria

• Myha'la Herrold, Industry

• Niecy Nash, Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story

• Aubrey Plaza, The White Lotus

Best tv sERIES - Soap or telenovela

(Domestic or International)

• Cabo (MX)

• EastEnders (UK)

• Hollyoaks (UK)

• Imbewu (SA)

• The River (SA)

Television - unScripted

Trevor Noah - The Daily Show with Trevor Noah (Comedy Central)

BEST TV SERIES - News Program       

• Breaking Points 

• CBS This Morning

• Good Morning America

• NBC Nightly News

• Today

Best News Anchor

• Yamiche Alcindor, Washington Week

• Saagar Enjeti & Krystal Ball, Breaking Points

• Lester Holt, NBC Nightly News

• Gayle King, Tony Dokoupil, and Anthony Mason, CBS This Morning

• Robin Roberts, George Stephanopoulos, and Michael Strahan, Good Morning America

Best Game/Competitive Series Host

• Ton Bell, Drink Masters

• Wayne Brady, Let’s Make A Deal

• Nick Cannon, The Masked Singer

• Steve Harvey, Family Feud

• RuPaul, RuPaul’s Drag Race

BEST TV SERIES - Docusoap

• Bling Empire

• Designing Miami

• London Lit

• Real Housewives of Atlanta

• Young, Rich & African 

BEST TV SERIES - Talk Show

• The Daily Show with Trevor Noah

• Jennifer Hudson Show

• Sherri

• The View

• Ziwe

Best Talk Show Host 

• Adrienne Bailon, Garcelle Beauvais, Loni Love, and Jeannie Mai, The Real

• Jennifer Hudson, Jennifer Hudson Show

• Trevor Noah, The Daily Show

• Sherri Sheppard, Sherri

• Ziwe Fumudoh, Ziwe

BEST TV SERIES - Game Show/Competitive Series

• Dancing With The Stars

• Family Feud

• Lizzo's Watch Out for the Big Grrrls

• The Masked Singer

• RuPaul’s Drag Race

BEST TV SERIES - Docuseries

• Heavenly Bites: Mexico

• Legacy: The True Story of the LA Lakers

• Take Out with Lisa Ling

• Untold: The Girlfriend Who Didn't Exist

• We Need to Talk About Cosby

Media

Steven he - Youtube / Tiktok

Best Social Media Content Creator

• Steven He (YouTube / TikTok)

• Jesusnalgas (TikTok)

• Khaby Lame (TikTok)

• Nyma Tang (YouTube)

• Safiya Nygaard (YouTube)

LIFETIME ACHIEVEMENT AWARD

• Akira Kurosawa Film Award: Michelle Yeoh

• Ethel Waters TV Award: Shonda Rhimes