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2:55 PM PDT, September 13, 2013
The 2013 Emmys are closing in, and ET is breaking down your list of contenders! Today, we turn our attention to the Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama category.
Kerry Washington's performance as Olivia Pope -- Washington D.C.'s key player when it comes to fixing scandals -- has elevated ABC'sScandalto one of the most talked-about shows on television.
A newcomer to Emmy accolades, the Bronx-born New Yorker first got noticed on the big screen with her breakout role in 2001'sSave the Last Dance, with more notable performances in films ranging fromThe Last King of ScotlandtoDjango Unchained. Not limited to the screen, Washington made her Broadway debut in 2010 in David Mamet's thought-provoking playRace.
Kerry Washington's performance as Olivia Pope -- Washington D.C.'s key player when it comes to fixing scandals -- has elevated ABC'sScandalto one of the most talked-about shows on television.
A newcomer to Emmy accolades, the Bronx-born New Yorker first got noticed on the big screen with her breakout role in 2001'sSave the Last Dance, with more notable performances in films ranging fromThe Last King of ScotlandtoDjango Unchained. Not limited to the screen, Washington made her Broadway debut in 2010 in David Mamet's thought-provoking playRace.
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Kerry Washington - 'Scandal'
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The 2013 Emmys are closing in, and ET is breaking down your list of contenders! Today, we turn our attention to the Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama category.
Kerry Washington's performance as Olivia Pope -- Washington D.C.'s key player when it comes to fixing scandals -- has elevated ABC's Scandal to one of the most talked-about shows on television.
A newcomer to Emmy accolades, the Bronx-born New Yorker first got noticed on the big screen with her breakout role in 2001's Save the Last Dance, with more notable performances in films ranging from The Last King of Scotland to Django Unchained. Not limited to the screen, Washington made her Broadway debut in 2010 in David Mamet's thought-provoking play Race.
Kerry Washington's performance as Olivia Pope -- Washington D.C.'s key player when it comes to fixing scandals -- has elevated ABC's Scandal to one of the most talked-about shows on television.
A newcomer to Emmy accolades, the Bronx-born New Yorker first got noticed on the big screen with her breakout role in 2001's Save the Last Dance, with more notable performances in films ranging from The Last King of Scotland to Django Unchained. Not limited to the screen, Washington made her Broadway debut in 2010 in David Mamet's thought-provoking play Race.
Claire Danes - 'Homeland'
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Claire Danes has come a long way since her Best Actress in a Drama nomination for My So-Called Life back in 1995.
Now one of Hollywood's most critically acclaimed actresses with a resume filled with film, TV and stage roles, Claire took home an Emmy for Outstanding Lead Actress in 2012 for her compelling and complicated role as CIA officer Carrie Mathison on Showtime's award-winning Homeland, and she's up for another helping in the same category for that character.
That Homeland Primetime Emmy sits alongside her statuette for HBO's Temple Grandin, for which she earned the Outstanding Lead Actress in a Miniseries or Movie for playing the real-life autistic activist.
Now one of Hollywood's most critically acclaimed actresses with a resume filled with film, TV and stage roles, Claire took home an Emmy for Outstanding Lead Actress in 2012 for her compelling and complicated role as CIA officer Carrie Mathison on Showtime's award-winning Homeland, and she's up for another helping in the same category for that character.
That Homeland Primetime Emmy sits alongside her statuette for HBO's Temple Grandin, for which she earned the Outstanding Lead Actress in a Miniseries or Movie for playing the real-life autistic activist.
Connie Britton - 'Nashville'
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The fourth nomination could be the charm for Connie Britton, whose standout performance as aging "Queen of Country" Rayna Jaymes on ABC's Nashville shows off not only her acting chops, but her amazing singing ability.
The versatile, Boston-born actress broke out on NBC's Friday Night Lights after starring in the film that inspired the critically acclaimed show, receiving Emmy nominations in 2010 and 2011. She also received a Best Actress Emmy nomination in 2012 for Ryan Murphy's American Horror Story.
The versatile, Boston-born actress broke out on NBC's Friday Night Lights after starring in the film that inspired the critically acclaimed show, receiving Emmy nominations in 2010 and 2011. She also received a Best Actress Emmy nomination in 2012 for Ryan Murphy's American Horror Story.
Michelle Dockery - 'Downton Abbey'
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As Lady Mary Crawley, the eldest daughter at Downton Abbey who is fully capable of being both charming and conniving, Michelle Dockery has already been nominated once for a Lead Actress in a Drama Series statuette for her performance in 2012.
Also known for other Brit TV roles and her big-screen turns in Hanna and Anna Karenina, the Essex, England native is also a jazz singer and has played and recorded music with her on-screen Downton Abbey mother, Elizabeth McGovern.
Also known for other Brit TV roles and her big-screen turns in Hanna and Anna Karenina, the Essex, England native is also a jazz singer and has played and recorded music with her on-screen Downton Abbey mother, Elizabeth McGovern.
Vera Farmiga - 'Bates Motel'
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As the complicated and mercurial mother of young Norman Bates, Vera Farmiga brings humanity to the classic Psycho character in A&E's contemporary-set Bates Motel.
Nominated for an Oscar in 2010 for her memorable role opposite George Clooney in Up in the Air, Vera's gamble in taking a regular role in the television arena has clearly paid off in spades.
Previous to Bates Motel, the New Jersey-born Farmiga's film roles have included The Departed, Safe House, Source Code, The Boy In the Striped Pajamas and the horror thriller The Conjuring. She also made her directorial debut with Higher Ground in 2011.
Nominated for an Oscar in 2010 for her memorable role opposite George Clooney in Up in the Air, Vera's gamble in taking a regular role in the television arena has clearly paid off in spades.
Previous to Bates Motel, the New Jersey-born Farmiga's film roles have included The Departed, Safe House, Source Code, The Boy In the Striped Pajamas and the horror thriller The Conjuring. She also made her directorial debut with Higher Ground in 2011.
Elisabeth Moss - 'Mad Men'
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As the ambitious and competent, ladder-climbing ad copywriter Peggy Olson in Mad Men, Elisabeth Moss has been rewarded handsomely by the television Academy, with multiple and consecutive Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama nominations every year since 2009.
The Los Angeles native stretched her acting muscles this year by headlining Jane Campion's haunting miniseries Top of the Lake as a detective in New Zealand investigating the disappearance of a pregnant, 12-year-old girl.
The Los Angeles native stretched her acting muscles this year by headlining Jane Campion's haunting miniseries Top of the Lake as a detective in New Zealand investigating the disappearance of a pregnant, 12-year-old girl.
Robin Wright - 'House of Cards'
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Known for memorable roles in major movies ranging from Forrest Gump and The Princess Bride to Moneyball and The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, Robin Wright's turn as Claire -- the wife of Kevin Spacey's Congressman Francis Underwood who will stop at nothing to conquer Washington D.C. -- has once again earned the attention of the TV Academy.
Back in the '80s, Robin, a former model who worked in Paris and Japan while still in high school, was nominated three years in a row for a Daytime Emmy as Outstanding Ingenue in a Drama Series for the soap opera Santa Barbara.
Check out our other Emmy Spotlight galleries:
Lead Actor in a Drama
Lead Actress in a Comedy
Lead Actor in a Comedy
Supporting Actress in a Comedy
Supporting Actor in a Comedy
Supporting Actor in a Drama
Back in the '80s, Robin, a former model who worked in Paris and Japan while still in high school, was nominated three years in a row for a Daytime Emmy as Outstanding Ingenue in a Drama Series for the soap opera Santa Barbara.
Check out our other Emmy Spotlight galleries:
Lead Actor in a Drama
Lead Actress in a Comedy
Lead Actor in a Comedy
Supporting Actress in a Comedy
Supporting Actor in a Comedy
Supporting Actor in a Drama