LOS ANGELES, CA (July 10, 2014) – Driven by The Trip to Bountiful, Bonnie & Clyde, Flowers in the Attic, Project Runway, Return to Zero, Anna Nicole, House of Versace and Betty White’s Off Their Rockers, Lifetime this morning set a new network record of 17 Emmy® Award nominations, marking the second year in a row it has received the most Emmy nods in its history (up from 12 last year) and tying FX among basic cable networks for having the most individual projects nominated (eight) this year.
Headlining Lifetime’s record five performer nominations are Cicely Tyson of The Trip to Bountiful and Minnie Driver of Return to Zero for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Miniseries or a Movie; Flowers in the Attic’s Ellen Burstyn for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Miniseries or a Movie; and Heidi Klum and Tim Gunn of Project Runway and Betty White of Betty White’s Off Their Rockers for Outstanding Host for a Reality or Reality-Competition Program.
“I am so proud of our record 17 Emmy nominations this morning” said Rob Sharenow, Executive Vice President and General Manager of Lifetime. “To have such recognition from our friends and colleagues in the Academy is deeply meaningful to all of us at Lifetime. It’s thrilling and gratifying to see so much of our talent, including our actresses and hosts in the major categories, receive the recognition they deserve as we together make Lifetime one of the most popular destinations for premium entertainment.”
Lifetime’s hit reality-competition series Project Runway received five nominations, including Outstanding Reality-Competition Program (it’s tenth straight nod in the category), last year’s winners Heidi Klum and Tim Gunn for Outstanding Host for a Reality or Reality-Competition Program, Outstanding Cinematography for Reality Programming, Outstanding Directing for Nonfiction Programming and Outstanding Picture Editing for Reality Programming. Project Runway will return for its 13th season in two weeks on Thursday, July 24, at 9:00pm ET/PT.
The network’s miniseries event Bonnie & Clyde, starring Emile Hirsch and Holliday Grainger in the title roles of the Depression-era outlaw couple Clyde Barrow and Bonnie Parker, secured a total of four nominations, including Lifetime’s first-ever Outstanding Miniseries nomination, Outstanding Hairstyling for a Miniseries or a Movie, Outstanding Makeup for a Miniseries or a Movie (Non-Prosthetic) and Outstanding Sound Editing for a Miniseries, Movie or a Special. Produced by Sony Pictures Television and from executive producers Craig Zadan and Neil Meron, Bonnie & Clyde was
written by John Rice and Joe Batteer and directed by Bruce Beresford. It was watched by 43 million viewers during its two-night simulcast on Lifetime, A&E and History last December.
A television adaptation of American playwright and screenwriter Horton Foote’s Tony Award® nominated play, The Trip to Bountiful’s two nominations include Outstanding Television Movie and Cicely Tyson for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Miniseries or a Movie. Tyson’s nomination today is her tenth ever. Her first two nominations (and wins) came 40 years ago in 1974 (Best Lead Actress in a Drama and Actress of the Year – Special for The Autobiography of Miss Jane Pittman). Produced by Ostar Productions, The Trip to Bountiful was executive produced by Bill Haber, Cicely Tyson, Hallie Foote and Jeff Hayes. Michael Wilson, who directed the celebrated play, made his television directorial debut with the project.
Based on V.C. Andrews’ controversial novel that weaves the twisted story of the troubled Dollanganger family, Flowers in the Attic’s Ellen Burstyn received a nomination for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Miniseries or a Movie. In its January 18th world premiere, Flowers in the Attic brought in 6.1 million Total Viewers.
Return to Zero’s nomination includes Minnie Driver for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Miniseries or a Movie. Based on the true story from writer, director and producer Sean Hanish’s personal experiences, the film follows the story of a couple who are eagerly awaiting the arrival of their first child but just a few weeks before their son’s due date, receive devastating news a heartbeat is no longer detectable in the womb. Lifetime will encore Return to Zero this Saturday at 2:00pm ET/PT.
Lifetime’s additional Emmy nominations include Betty White of Betty White’s Off Their Rockers for Outstanding Host for a Reality or Reality-Competition Program; Anna Nicole for Outstanding Makeup for a Miniseries or a Movie (Non-Prosthetic) and Outstanding Prosthetic Makeup for a Series, Miniseries, Movie or a Special; and House of Versace for Outstanding Costumes for a Miniseries, Movie or a Special.
ABOUT LIFETIME
Lifetime is a premier female-focused entertainment destination dedicated to offering the highest quality original programming spanning scripted series, non-fiction series and movies. As a result of the network’s aggressive programming strategy that has doubled the hours of its original programming, 2013 marked Lifetime’s second straight year of growth among Total Viewers. Lifetime Television®, LMN®, Lifetime Real Women® and Lifetime Digital™ are part of Lifetime Entertainment Services, LL0C, a subsidiary of A+E Networks. A+E Networks is a joint venture of the Disney-ABC Television Group and Hearst Corporation.
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