The Television Academy has revealed its first group of star presenters for this year's Emmy Awards, among them are "Empire" lead stars Taraji P. Henson and Terrence Howard.
Henson and Howard join the Golden Globe winner Maggie Gyllenhaal and ABC late-night host Jimmy Kimmel. Actress and comedienne Amy Poehler is also on the list, as well as LL Cool J from "NCIS: Los Angeles."
Henson is also nominated as Lead Actress in a Drama Series. This is the only nomination for the Fox hit series "Empire" which was initially expected to wipe the Emmys this year. In fact, "Empire" outshined "The Big Bang Theory" as it recorded the highest rating in the 2014-2015 television season, according to CBS News. Likewise, it was also a surprise the "The Big Bang Theory" was not included in the Outstanding Comedy Series Category.
"Jimmy Kimmel Live" is nominated under the Variety Talk Series, while Amy Poehler is nominated for the sixth time as Lead Actress in a Comedy Series for her role in "Parks and Recreation." "The Honorable Woman" star Maggie Gyllenhaal, meanwhile, is nominated as Lead Actress in a Limited Series category.
"Game of Thrones" has a staggering 24 nods and therefore has the biggest chance of triumphing. The fantasy drama series does not have lead actor or actress nominations, but Peter Dinklage, Lena Heady and Emilia Clarke are vying for supporting role awards.
Big contenders in this year's Emmy Awards include "Mad Men" of AMC, "House of Cards" of Netflix, and the new transgender comedy series "Transparent" of Amazon.
Andy Samberg is hosting the 67th Emmy Awards at the Microsoft Theater in Los Angeles which will air on Sept. 20 on Fox. The "Brooklyn Nine-Nine" star promises a wild ride during the show saying, "Buckle your seat belts, Emmy viewers!"
Additional names of star presenters are expected to be released in the coming days.
