Los Angeles, United States (AFP)-Apple TV+’s dark sci-fi office drama Severance on Tuesday led the contenders for the Emmy Awards, television’s version of the Oscars, with a whopping 27 nominations.

The Penguin, HBO Max’s Batman villain spinoff series, came in second with 24.

Two satires — HBO Max’s skewering of the rich, The White Lotus, and Apple’s new Hollywood cringe fest, The Studio— tied for third with 23 nominations each.

In the comedy categories, behind The Studio were two past winners: Hacks at 14 and The Bear at 13.

The announcement from the Television Academy marks the official start of the race to the 77th Emmy Awards, set for September 14 in Los Angeles.

After last year’s record-breaking 18 Emmy Awards for Japan-set historical epic Shogun, this year’s drama competition looks to be more nuanced.

Severance, in which employees of biotech company Lumon have their memories surgically separated between their “innie” work lives and their “outie” personal lives, is clearly the early favorite, with star Adam Scott a nominee for best actor.

But he will compete with ER veteran Noah Wyle, who leads The Pitt— HBO Max’s take on the travails of a Pittsburgh emergency room team during one 15-hour shift, effectively filmed in real time.

“It’s ER on steroids!” Deadline awards expert Pete Hammond told AFP of the show, which earned 13 nods.

Also competing for best drama honors are Disney+’s Star Wars offshoot Andor, Netflix’s The Diplomat, HBO’s apocalyptic video game adaptation The Last of Us, Hulu political thriller Paradise, Apple’s spy drama Slow Horses, and The White Lotus.

Scott and Wyle have stiff competition for best actor: Oscar winner Gary Oldman in Slow Horses, Pedro Pascal (The Last of Us) and Sterling K. Brown (Paradise).

Scott’s co-star Britt Lower is a nominee for best drama actress, alongside Bella Ramsey (The Last of Us) and Keri Russell (The Diplomat).

The White Lotus earned a slew of acting nominations in the supporting categories.

The Penguin is competing for best limited series honors against Dying for Sex (FX) and three Netflix efforts: buzzy teen murder saga Adolescence, Black Mirror, and true-crime saga Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story.

Adolescence breakout star Owen Cooper, who plays a 13-year-old British boy accused of murdering a female classmate, earned a nomination for supporting actor.

Monsters, the story of a pair of California brothers in prison for killing their parents after what they say was years of sexual and physical abuse, earned acting nods for Cooper Koch, Javier Bardem and Chloe Sevigny.

– Comedy newcomer –

In the comedy categories, new series The Studio, a satire starring Seth Rogen that eviscerates the film industry, emerged as a clear favorite.

Rogen also wrote and produced the show, which earned acting nominations for Ike Barinholtz, Kathryn Hahn, Catherine O’Hara and six guest performers.

Hacks — starring Jean Smart as a stand-up comedian who locks horns with her dysfunctional millennial assistant — won for best comedy and best actress in September last year, and is nominated again in those categories.

The Bear, a dark satire set in the Chicago restaurant world, took the top prize at the previous ceremony (held in January 2024 due to Hollywood strikes), and its star Jeremy Allen White has two trophies for best actor.

Beyond those three, other nominees for best comedy series are ABC’s mockumentary-style sitcom Abbott Elementary, rom-com Nobody Wants This (Netflix), Hulu’s Only Murders in the Building, Apple’s Shrinking, and FX’s vampire laugh riot What We Do in the Shadows.

Harvey Guillen (What We Do in the Shadows) and Brenda Song (Running Point) unveiled the key nominations in a livestreamed ceremony.

Voting members of the US-based Television Academy will then have a month to catch up on their viewing before final-round voting begins in mid-August.

The September 14 gala will be hosted by comedian Nate Bargatze.