WandaVision unexpectedly comes up short at the Primetime Emmys

It wasn't a marvelous night for WandaVision at the Emmys.

Marvel's first Disney+ original series, WandaVision, had an unexpectedly weak showing during Sunday's Emmys, contrary to what most pundits expected. The series, a tribute to the golden age of television that sees its lead character journey through sitcom history, didn't pick up a single win during Sunday night's ceremony.

This was despite the fact that the superhero show earned 23 Emmy nominations this year, and many experts expected Paul Bettany, who plays Vision, to win the Emmy for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Limited or Anthology Series or Movie. Additionally, Kathryn Hahn was a favorite to win Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Limited or Anthology Series or Movie for her performance as Agnes. But Ewan McGregor pulled off a surprise win over Bettany for Netflix's Halston, while Julianne Nicholson defeated Hahn for her Mare of Easttown performance. Netflix's The Queen's Gambit won Outstanding Limited or Anthology Series, though WandaVision hadn't been a frontrunner in that category.

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Had either Bettany or Hahn won, those would have been rare instances of actors earning major awards for their performances in a Marvel Cinematic Universe project. To date, no MCU film has ever earned an acting nomination at the Academy Awards or the Golden Globe Awards, though Black Panther did win Marvel its first Oscars in 2019 for costume design, production design, and score. While WandaVision came away empty-handed on Sunday, it still has some Emmys under its belt — at the Creative Arts Emmys, it won for Outstanding Fantasy/Sci-Fi Costumes, Outstanding Original Music and Lyrics, and Outstanding Production Design For A Narrative Program (Half-Hour). But when it comes to the acting categories that WandaVision looked set to win, it turns out it was Mare of Easttown and Halston all along.