Hamilton’s Martin Short, D’Pharaoh Woon-A-Tai, Ryan Gosling among Canadian Emmy nominees

After two decades as a composer in Hollywood, Jeff Toyne says it feels “surreal” to receive his first two Emmy nominations for his work on the Apple TV Plus dramedy “Palm Royale.”

The 49-year-old Ontario native was nominated Wednesday for best music composition for a series and best original main title theme music.

“It really hasn’t sunk in yet. It’s thrilling and it’s an honour,” Toyne said over the phone from his home in Sault Ste. Marie.

“It feels like a recognition of the work that I did, but not just me. I worked with a fantastic team of musicians and an amazing group of filmmakers on a show that is really great.”

Toyne said he worked with “80 or 90 musicians” on the main theme for “Palm Royale,” which is a sweeping, big band-style piece with some Latin flair speaking to the series’ Florida setting. The show stars Kristen Wiig as a woman determined to start a new life and find her place in Palm Beach high society in the late 1960s.

“We wanted the music to be something that grabbed you right away and let you know, ‘Buckle up, you’re in for a ride.’ It’s an all-singing, all-dancing piece of music that doesn’t lean on subtlety,” said Toyne, whose resume includes music for films including the 2010 comedy “Dirty Girl” and shows including Fox’s 2020 dramedy “Filthy Rich.”

Toyne is among a slew of Canadians up for Emmy Awards this year, including Ryan Gosling, Sandra Oh and Lorne Michaels, with veteran star Martin Short and relative newcomer D’Pharaoh Woon-A-Tai set to face off in the Sept. 15 race for best lead actor in a comedy.

Short was nominated for his turn as grandiose theatre director Oliver Putnam in “Only Murders in The Building,” available in Canada on Disney Plus and CTV, while Woon-A-Tai earned his first Emmy nomination for portraying Bear Smallhill on FX’s “Reservation Dogs,” which also airs on Disney Plus in Canada, about a group of Indigenous teenagers in rural Oklahoma.

It’s the biggest TV role to date for the 22-year-old, who grew up in Toronto and is of Oji-Cree, Anishinaabe and Guyanese descent. He previously played smaller parts on series including CBC’s “Murdoch Mysteries” and APTN’s “Tribal.”

Woon-A-Tai and Short are up against Matt Berry from FX’s “What We Do In The Shadows,” Larry David from HBO’s “Curb Your Enthusiasm,” Jeremy Allen White for “The Bear” and Short’s “Only Murders” co-star Steve Martin.

Disney Plus’ historical saga “Shōgun” leads the drama category with 25 nominations while Disney Plus’ culinary dramedy “The Bear” scored a record 23 nods among the comedies, including for best comedy series. “The Bear” notably claimed that trophy at the most recent ceremony in January when Canadian celebrity chef-turned-actor and executive producer Matty Matheson stole the show with an onstage kiss with co-star Ebon Moss-Bachrach.

Gosling of London, Ont. received his first Emmy nod for outstanding guest actor in a comedy series thanks to his April stint hosting NBC/Global’s “Saturday Night Live,” where he and Mikey Day dressed as the iconic characters from “Beavis and Butt-Head.”

Ottawa’s Oh scored her nom as a producer and star of “Quiz Lady,” which is up for best TV movie. The comedy, which also stars Awkwafina and Jason Schwartzman, is about a game show-obsessed woman and her estranged sister who work together to help cover their mother’s gambling debt.

Hamilton’s Eugene Levy got a nod for best hosted non-fiction series or special for “The Reluctant Traveler With Eugene Levy.” The Apple TV series follows host and executive producer Levy as he visits some of the world’s top hotels, exploring the people, places and cultures that surround them.

Among those nominated for best talk series are Toronto’s Lorne Michaels, executive producer of NBC’s “Late Night With Seth Meyers,” and Montreal’s Barry Julien, co-executive producer of CBS’ “The Late Show With Stephen Colbert.” Michaels is also up for best scripted variety series as executive producer of “Saturday Night Live,” best writer for a variety series and best short form non-fiction or reality series for “Saturday Night Live Presents: Behind The Sketch.”

Montreal’s Kevin O’Leary and Toronto’s Robert Herjavec are nominated for best reality show host for their roles on ABC’s “Shark Tank,” along with fellow sharks Daymond John, Barbara Corcoran, Mark Cuban and Lori Greiner.

Meanwhile, a viral commercial starring Brampton, Ont.’s own Michael Cera was nominated for outstanding commercial. The campaign, “Michael CeraVe,” saw the film and TV star try to take credit for developing skincare brand CeraVe.

Some of the Canadians who worked behind the scenes on “Shōgun” are up for best production design for a narrative period or fantasy program, including Toronto art director Chris Beach and British Columbia set decorators Jonathan and Lisa Lancaster.

Calgary’s Amber Humphries, who worked on FX’s “Fargo” is nominated in the production design category for an hour-long narrative contemporary program, while Toronto’s Shayne Fox, Jody Clement, Aaron Noel and Kerri Wylie, who worked on “What We Do in the Shadows,” are up for outstanding production design for a half-hour narrative program.

Toyne said he’s excited to be going to the Emmys for the first time.

“It’ll be a nice excuse to buy some new Fluevogs,” he quips.

— With files from Nicole Thompson in Toronto.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published July 17, 2024.

Alex Nino Gheciu, The Canadian Press