Ahead of the Emmys, which will take place on September 12, YouGov polled Americans to ask which nominees they have seen, what they thought of this year’s slate of shows, and which ones they think should take home the Best Comedy and Best Drama wins. The most-viewed nominees are the most popular award picks.
No nominee for best comedy or drama has been seen by half of Americans. The most-viewed nominee from the 2022 slate is the drama nominee Stranger Things, which 44% of Americans have seen at least one episode of. Fewer have seen the dramas Better Call Saul (30%), Ozark (30%), or Squid Game (29%). Less than one in five have watched each of Euphoria (18%), Succession (14%), Yellowjackets (11%), or Severance (10%).
The nominated comedies generally have lower viewership. The most-viewed nominee is The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, at 22%. A similar percentage (21%) have tuned into at least one episode of Curb Your Enthusiasm, while fewer have watched Only Murders in the Building (19%), Abbott Elementary (16%), Ted Lasso (14%), What We Do in the Shadows (14%), Barry (12%), or Hacks (10%).
The 24% of Americans who are somewhat or very interested in the Emmys are more likely to have seen each of the nominees in both the drama and comedy categories.
Among viewers of each show, Ozark appears to be the most-loved drama nominee, with 49% of Americans who have seen at least one episode saying they love it. Stranger Things is close behind, with 46% of viewers saying they love the show, followed by Squid Game (42%), Euphoria (41%), and Better Call Saul (40%).
The most-loved comedy nominee of 2022 is Ted Lasso, with 47% of viewers saying they love the show. It’s trailed by What We Do in the Shadows (43%), The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel (39%), Barry (39%), Hacks (39%), and Only Murders in the Building (38%).
But what shows do Americans think should take home the Emmy statues?
Stranger Things tops Americans' pick for which show should win Best Drama, at 15%. It’s followed by Ozark (8%), Better Call Saul (8%), Squid Game (7%), and Euphoria (5%). Among people who say they’re somewhat or very interested in the Emmys, 23% think Stranger Things should be the winner, while 12% say the honor should go to Squid Game, and 11% say Ozark should win. Half of Americans — but just 23% of those who are interested in the Emmys — are unsure which show should take home Best Drama.
Adults under 30 (18%) and Americans between 30 and 44 (22%) are particularly likely to say Stranger Things should take home the win. Fewer 45- to 64-year-olds (13%) think this show should take home the win, and just 6% of Americans 65 and older. Euphoria also is more popular with young adults: 15% of adults under 30 think the HBO show should win Best Drama, compared to 5% of Americans overall.
As for the comedies nominated this year, 7% say The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel should win; equal percentages say it should go to Only Murders in the Building (7%) or Ted Lasso (7%). They're trailed by Abbott Elementary (6%), What We Do in the Shadows (4%), and Curb Your Enthusiasm (4%). However, most Americans (60%) are not sure which show should win.
Among Americans who are interested in the Emmys, 14% say that The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel should take home the win. A similar percentage (12%) say Ted Lasso should win, 11% think it should be Abbot Elementary, and the same percentage pick Only Murders in the Building (11%). Only 29% of this group are unsure.
- Carl Bialik, Linley Sanders, and Taylor Orth contributed to this article
Related: Measuring the Mandela Effect: Polling finds that many Americans misremember history and culture
The poll about television comedy shows was conducted among 2,000 U.S. adult citizens in two waves on two separate surveys conducted from August 22 - 25, 2022 and August 24 - 28, 2022, with each survey conducted among 1,000 U.S. adult citizens. The poll about television drama shows was conducted among 2,000 U.S. adult citizens in two waves on two separate surveys conducted from August 23 - 26, 2022 and August 25 - 29, 2022, with each survey conducted among 1,000 U.S. adult citizens. Explore more on the methodology and data for these polls.
Image: Getty (Frazer Harrison / Staff)
