‘Ponies’ Emmys comedy entry, Emilia Clarke in lead actress
Peacock hopes the Emmys will ride the “ponies.”
Peacock and Universal Television’s “Ponies” Will Launch a Full Emmy Awards Campaign in Comedy Series, Variety only learned. The spy drama will be nominated in 20 categories for the 2026 Primetime Emmy Awards, including Emilia Clarke’s Lead Actress and Haley Lu Richardson’s Supporting Actress.
Four-time Emmy nominee Clarke will be nominated for her role as Bea, an overeducated, Russian-speaking daughter of Soviet immigrants who becomes a CIA agent after her husband is murdered under mysterious circumstances in Moscow in 1977. Clarke is also eligible as part of the Outstanding Comedy Series entry in her capacity as the show’s executive producer.
Her co-star Richardson, who plays Twila, a small-town woman described as both abrasive and fearless, will seek consideration in the supporting actor category. Other series regulars Adrian Lester, Artjom Gilz, Nicholas Podany, Petro Ninovskyi and Vic Michaelis will also be entered in supporting artist categories.
Emmy-nominated co-creators Susanna Fogel and David Iserson will prepare the series premiere episode, “Second Hand News,” for the comedy writing race. Fogel will also direct the same episode.
In addition to the artist and creative categories, the series will campaign in production design, casting, cinematography, costumes, picture editing, hairstyling/makeup, music composition, main title theme music, music supervision, sound editing, sound mixing, stunt coordination and special visual effects. The official delivery and the artisans to be submitted will be announced at a later date.
“Ponies” premiered on Peacock on January 15. The series currently holds a Certified Fresh designation on Rotten Tomatoes with a score of 96%. Alison Herman, Variety main TV critic, in her review called it “an endearing spy caper.”
Set in Moscow in 1977, ‘Ponies’ centers on two women who work anonymously as secretaries at the US Embassy – ‘ponies’ being intelligence words for ‘persons of no interest’. When their husbands are murdered under mysterious circumstances, Bea and Twila are thrust into the world of Cold War espionage as CIA agents. They work together to uncover a vast conspiracy and solve the mystery that left them widows.
“Ponies” was co-created by Iserson (“Mr. Robot,” “New Girl”) and Fogel (“The Flight Attendant,” “The Spy Who Dumped Me”), both of whom serve as executive producers. Mike Daniels (“Fight Night: The Million Dollar Heist”) serves as executive producer and showrunner alongside Fogel and Iserson. Jessica Rhoades (“Black Mirror,” “Station Eleven”) also serves as executive producer. Co-executive producers include Katherine Bridle, Alison Mo Massey, Jared Ian Goldman and Rosa Handelman. The series is produced by Universal Television, a division of Universal Studio Group.
All eight episodes of Season 1 of “Ponies” are now streaming on Peacock.
