How Hollywood’s Veterans Are Chasing Emmy History: Sally Field, Harrison Ford, Martin Short and More

Awards season loves a fresh face, but this one also loves a weathered one. When the Television Academy announced its nominations in July, the story wasn’t about the ingenues. It was about the lifers, the character actors, the movie stars and the beloved figures we lost along the way.

Voters have handed us a September ceremony where nearly every envelope could contain a piece of Emmy history. Harrison Ford, 84 on Emmy night, is back for Apple TV’s “Shrinking” — still chasing the first major acting trophy of a 60-year screen career. The oldest winner in the category’s history is Henry Winkler, who was 72 when he won for the first season of “Barry” in 2018.

Ford would shatter that record. He would also supplant Bob Newhart — 84 when he finally won for “The Big Bang Theory” in 2013 — as the oldest man ever to win a comedy acting Emmy, by a matter of weeks. And here’s the beautiful part: If Ford doesn’t do it, Stephen Root might.

The 74-year-old, nominated for the freshman horror-comedy “Widow’s Bay” after some 250 credits and zero wins, would top Winkler’s mark. Two men older than the standing record, in the same category, in the same year, is pitch perfect. The lead comedy actor race carries the same energy.

Martin Short, 76, lands his fifth consecutive nomination for Hulu’s mystery romp “Only Murders in the Building” — his eighth acting nod overall, but still without an acting win. A victory would make him the oldest lead comedy actor champion ever, sailing past Eugene Levy, who was 73 when “Schitt’s Creek” swept in 2020. His competition includes a fellow member of the 0-fer club: Steve Carell, 64, whose pivot to the dark comedy “Rooster” brings his career acting ledger to 0-for-7 — six straight losses for “The Office,” one for “The Morning Show.” Will he ever win?

The women’s races are just as historic. Sally Field, 79, returns to the limited series/TV movie field in the film adaptation of the acclaimed novel “Remarkably Bright Creatures,” finally getting the kind of showcase that may remind voters what she’s capable of. Her last Emmy came in 2007 for the ABC drama “Brothers and Sisters”; a win here would make her, by a matter of months, the oldest winner in the category’s history, something Kathy Bates missed last year with “Matlock.” Jessica Tandy was also 79 when she won for “Foxfire” in 1988.