Henry Winkler poised to win Emmy bookend for ‘Barry’

Henry Winkler will look to make it four nominations out of our four seasons with his final turn as Gene Cousineau in Bill Hader‘s acclaimed black-comedy series “Barry.” Hader wrote, directed, produced, created, and starred in the HBO hit, which has now come to an end. The beloved show followed Hader as the titular Barry, a hit man who moves to Los Angeles and becomes entangled in the local theatre arts scene. He tries to put his violent past behind him as he falls in love with acting and becomes drawn to human connection, but that doesn’t prove so easy for the former US Marine.

Winkler shines in the supporting role of Gene, an acting coach whose own days as a performer is well behind him but who becomes Barry’s mentor. Winkler, who was previously best known for playing the Fonz in “Happy Days,” dials down the cool and ramps up the eccentricity. As Gene, Winkler has a ball bringing the dangerous weirdo to life and enjoys a status as a semi-cult leader among his acting students. Winkler also gets some more tender moments, however, as he becomes something of a father figure to Barry. His performance is possibly the best in season four, critcs have noted.

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Eric Deggans (NPR) explained: “Winkler’s Cousineau is drinking up the attention that’s come from getting Barry arrested, even as he frets that his former student might find a way to come after him… Winkler offers a deft depiction of Gene’s towering narcissism, fed by the plaudits he gets for helping catch his former student.”

Graeme Guttmann (Screen Rant) observed: “Winkler continues to do excellent work, making Cousineau all the more compelling in his ego with several turns that are both laugh-out-loud hilarious and heartbreakingly consequential.”

Emma Fraser (IGN) claimed that the fourth season featured “outstanding performances” and “hilariously bumbling comedy” from Winkler, writing: Any time Winkler shares a scene with Gene’s agent Tom (Fred Melamed), it is comedy dynamite and a reminder that, for all the darkness, there are still two old men trying to survive the current Hollywood landscape while making some very dumb choices. The most I laughed at this season (so far) features this duo proving they are no masterminds.”

And Liz Shannon Miller (Consequence) summarised: “Winkler continues to prove why he’s been nominated for an Emmy every season, finding a new depth to Gene as a character.”

As such, Winkler is very much in the running for another Emmy bid for “Barry” this year. In fact, he is in our lineup of predicted nominees for Best Comedy Supporting Actor: Ebon Moss-Bachrach (“The Bear”), Nick Mohammed (“Ted Lasso”), Tony Shalhoub (“The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel”), Harrison Ford (“Shrinking”), Anthony Carrigan (“Barry”), Brett Goldstein (“Ted Lasso”), and Tyler James Williams (“Abbott Elementary”).

There are plenty of reasons why Winkler is almost odds-on to be nominated, not least because they adore veterans of his stature. Tony Shalhoub has been nominated four times in this category for “The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel,” winning in 2019, while Paul Reiser was nominated in 2021 for “The Kominsky Method,” and Alan Arkin was nominated for the same show in 2020. Voters like rewarding veteran actors who have been around the block, and Winkler is absolutely one of them.

Winkler is a nine-time nominee — he’s a treasured peformer by the Emmys. His first three nominations came for Best Comedy Actor for “Happy Days” (in 1976, 1977, and 1978), while he was nominated for Best International Program in 1979 for “Who Are the DeBolts? and Where Did They Get Nineteen Kids?” He then picked up two guest-acting nominations in 2000 — one for drama (“The Practice”) and one for comedy (“Battery Park”). And then came those “Barry” bids — three in total, so far, one for each season in 2018, 2019, and 2022. He won in 2018 — his first-ever Emmy victory.

This shows that not only do Emmy voters love Winkler as an actor, they greatly admire him in this specifc role. He has been nominated for every season so far — it is very unlikely that the love will suddenly dry up this year. We fully expect him to go four for four and make it a 100% success rate, particularly because Emmy voters like the supporting actors in “Barry.” So far, the show has earned six Best Comedy Supporting Actor nominations.

Only “Ted Lasso” has earned more than that (seven) since “Barry” started airing. Anthony Carrigan and Stephen Root were nominated in 2019 and Carrigan picked up another nod last year. If both Winkler and Carrigan land bids this year, and we predict they will, then “Barry” will move level with “Barney Miller” and “Veep” in the list of shows that have been nominated the most in this category. We think “Barry” will make that history, particularly as Winkler has already proven that he has the awards credentials and support for this specific performance.

This year, he has already been nominated for a Golden Globe for Best TV Comedy/Musical Supporting Actress (losing to Williams for “Abbott Elementary”) and a SAG Award for Best Comedy Ensemble (losing to “Abbott Elementary,” again). Plus, he won the Critics Choice Award for Best Comedy Supporting Actor. He has had love for his role in “Barry” from season one and that is continuing right through to the end. And that’s it. This is Emmy voters’ last chance to nominate a performer they have enjoyed so much every season he has been on their screens. They won’t pass that up.

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