'Pitt' star had to 'self-submit' for Emmys nom. What does that mean?

How do you get an Emmy nomination? Sometimes you have to do it all on your own.

That was the case for Brittany Allen, who generated acclaim this year for her guest-starring role on HBO Max's "The Pitt" as Roxie Hamler, a terminally ill cancer patient who chooses to die in the hospital during the endless 4th of July shift that makes up the show's second season.

The actress, known for roles on "The Boys" and "Dexter: Original Sin," might seem like an obvious Emmy nominee from an outsider perspective: She only appeared in a few episodes of "The Pitt" but made a lasting impression as her character contemplated life, death, marriage and motherhood.

But the politics of getting an Emmy nomination aren't as simple as giving a good performance and waiting for the accolades to roll in.

“As a working-class actor, I have become very familiar with being overlooked in my career, and you toughen your skin, and you just keep your head down, and you keep working, and you keep bettering yourself. And then you reach a point where you go, you know what? I don’t want to get overlooked anymore,” Allen recently told "The Hollywood Reporter," describing how she submitted herself for the Emmy for outstanding guest actress in a drama series. "I felt a calm sense of accomplishment when I saw my name on the list."

But for people outside Hollywood's complicated ecosystem, what does "self-submitting" for an award even mean?

Here's how Emmy nominations really work

Perhaps in a perfect world, the members of the TV Academy, the group of television luminaries who vote on the Emmy Awards each year, would watch every TV show and pick the best ones to nominate and award for every fall's ceremony. But even back when there weren't a dozen streaming services in addition to traditional TV, that was simply logistically impossible.

Instead, individuals, production companies and networks who believe they've made Emmy-worthy television submit themselves for the awards. They choose the category, pay a processing fee and send in a reel that represents the work. Academy members sort through all the submissions to choose nominees, and eventually a winner.

Submitting for awards is not perfect

Don't blame the TV Academy for the fact that FX and Hulu's "The Bear" is constantly in the comedy categories despite all the drama and trauma on the series − it's the decision of the network and creators to submit it as a comedy.

Ever thought an actor was the lead in the show but suddenly they're up for best supporting actor instead? That was a deliberate choice by the people behind the "for your consideration" campaign for the performer.

Why would shows and people be submitted for seemingly the wrong categories? Well, the reason is simply that most people think they have a better chance of winning. Comedy is usually seen as less competitive than drama. In years when the lead acting race is full of heavy hitters, some actors choose to compete in supporting instead.

There have been many cases of what awards-watchers like to call "category fraud." Dramatic shows like HBO's "Barry," Netflix's "Russian Doll" and Amazon's "Fleabag" all have competed (and won) as comedies in recent years. But you might be hard-pressed to laugh at the finale of "Barry." And as of now, there's no system in place to regulate or discourage those decisions.

However, the TV Academy has stepped in to arbitrate some category submissions when it comes to form, not genre. In 2019, it ruled that shows including FX's "American Horror Story," USA's "The Sinner" and Netflix's "American Vandal" weren't allowed to compete in the "limited and anthology series" categories anymore, "due to continuing story threads, characters and actors reprising those same character roles from previous seasons," according to Deadline. They had to compete in the drama and comedy categories instead.

Another reason people and shows are submitted to certain categories − or not at all − is that bigwigs don't want anyone competing against their corporate cousins. In 2024, when "The Bear" received a particular amount of backlash for dominating the comedy categories, another FX show dominated drama: "Shogun." With "Bear" safely ensconced, FX had double the chance of bringing home awards for the network (they did very well that year).

Similarly, some networks choose not to submit too many actors for a single category, so as not to split potential votes, putting all their weight behind a campaign for a single performer (that's not always necessary, considering how many actresses from "The Pitt" were nominated in supporting this year).

Or, a network simply is not invested in an actor or show enough to mount an awards campaign. In Hollywood, as in life, there are favorites who get more attention than others.

You don't need help to get an Emmy nomination: Enter the self-submission

Allen was one of those actors without support from her own show, which is not atypical for a guest star who is not a big name like Jamie Lee Curtis or Shailene Woodley (nominated for "The Bear" and "Paradise," respectively). That meant she had to do the work of selecting her clips and paying the fees (about $225) – processes that were covered for most of her "Pitt" co-stars (Jeff Kober, another guest star on the drama, also successfully self-submitted this year).

"'The Pitt' has hundreds of performers and we simply, just strategically, can’t submit everybody. It’s just the reality. But we encourage people to self-submit and I love that she got nominated," Casey Bloys, HBO and Max Content Chair and CEO, said to The Hollywood Reporter regarding Allen's nomination.

Including Allen and Kober's nods, "The Pitt" led the total for the 2026 awards, with 25 nominations.

After you submit, you have to campaign

Getting submitted (or submitting yourself) is only the first hurdle to getting on the coveted nominations list. You have to get noticed by the members who vote. Allen took on her own "FYC campaign" as they are called in the biz, posting on social media with graphics highlighting praise for her performance and the show.

Emmy campaigns run by studios, networks, streamers and highly paid consultants and publicists typically include social media, as well as print ads in Hollywood trade magazines and sites, in-person events, special screenings and interviews in major publications. It's a complex machine that also runs every year for the Golden Globes, Grammys, SAG Awards, Tonys and Oscars.

Grassroots campaigns like Allen's aren't always welcome in such a closed system: In 2023, indie actress Andrea Riseborough drew controversy from a word-of-mouth Oscar FYC campaign for her performance in "To Leslie," which bucked tradition and drew critics, who claimed it might be breaking Academy rules. She got the nom but not the trophy.

Allen has steep competition for the outstanding guest actress in a drama award, too. Two "Pitt" actresses are also in the running: Tal Anderson and Tina Ivlev, as well as movie star Woodley and TV Academy favorites Miriam Shore ("Pluribus") and Merritt Wever ("The Gilded Age").

And even though Allen has miles to go before she sleeps, she's grateful.

"So thankful to have gotten this audition one year ago around this time, and for everything that has followed since, she posted on Instagram after the nominations were announced on July 8. "Thank you [HBO Max] for bringing me into the world you’ve created."