Canadian Screen Awards: Schitt’s Creek leads nominations for 3rd year running

Terry Paul
WowPlus

Well into its third year of topping awards shows, comedy Schitt’s Creek led the nominations for this year’s Canadian Screen Awards with 21 nods. 

The show, which saw its sixth and final season run last year, also topped the CSA nominations list in 2020 and shared the honour with Anne with an E in 2019. It swept the comedy category at the Emmys in September, and last month won the Golden Globe for best comedy while star Catherine O’Hara took home the award for best actress.

At the CSAs, the show is competing for best writing and best direction for a comedy, as well as best comedy series. Father-son duo Dan and Eugene Levy are up for best lead actor in a comedy, while Annie Murphy and Catherine O’Hara are up for best lead actress.

The Schitt’s Creek nominations were among a number of honours given to departing shows. CTV’s Cardinal, which broadcast its fourth and final season last year, had the second-most nods with 15 and tied with CBC’s ill-fated Trickster — which was cancelled earlier this year after its first season.

Best comedy series

Kim’s Convenience, the long-running Canadian sitcom, took home 11 nominations for the 2021 Canadian Screen Awards. (CBC Gem)

Slightly further down the list was Kim’s Convenience with 11 nods — it is also nominated for best comedy and best comedy writing and direction, while stars Paul Sun-Hyung Lee and Jean Yoon are up for best lead actor and actress. 

The sitcom is broadcasting its final season this year, though two of its other stars — Nicole Power and Andrew Phung — will appear in their own new, half-hour original comedies. Those are set to launch during the upcoming 2021-22 broadcast season.

Phung is nominated for best supporting actor in a comedy series for his work on Kim’s Convenience.

Best lead actress, TV comedy

Best lead actor, TV comedy

Also up for 11 awards, including best comedy, is Workin’ Moms, while Baroness Von Sketch Show is in the running for six. 

Blood Quantum, a horror flick about a zombie uprising on a First Nations reserve, topped the film nominations with 10 nods, including best original screenplay, best actor for lead star Michael Greyeyes and achievement in visual effects.

Despite that, the film was not nominated for best motion picture.

Forrest Goodluck, Michael Greyeyes and Kiowa Gordon appear in a scene from Jeff Barnaby’s sophomore feature film Blood Quantum. The film is up for 10 awards at the 2021 CSAs. (Elevation Pictures)

That honour did go to Funny Boy — director Deepa Mehta’s adaptation of the novel of the same name — about a Tamil young man coming of age during the Sri Lankan civil war. 

The film, which is nominated in nine categories at the CSAs, was originally Canada’s submission to the Oscars for best international film, though it was later rejected by the Academy for falling short of their language requirements.. 

Best motion picture

Best original screenplay

Before its rejection, the film stirred controversy for a lack of Tamil actors in its core cast, as well as what Mehta herself called a “dodgy” representation of the Tamil language. Mehta said the actors’ voices were later re-recorded, and the film showed up among 366 eligible for best picture at the Oscars — the highest number in 50 years.

Charles Officer’s crime drama Akilla’s Escape scooped up eight nods, though it was also left off the best motion picture list. It was followed by the Oka Crisis-inspired Beans and rape-revenge thriller Violation with five nods each.

The last two films garnered their directors — Tracey Deer and co-directors Madeleine Sims-Fewer and Dusty Mancinelli respectively — nominations for the John Dunning best first feature film award. 

Actors Saul Williams and Donisha Prendergast are shown in this undated handout photo from the film Akilla’s Escape. It is nominated for eight awards, including a best actor nod for Williams. (Toronto International Film Festival/The Canadian Press)

The awards moved to a digital format last year, as the COVID-19 pandemic forced awards shows to impose social distancing guidelines. The live gala events were cancelled and the announcement of winners postponed, in a move that organizers said would likely cause a “disastrous” financial fallout. 

This year’s awards will take place from May 17-20, as part of a seven-part, genre-based series of presentations streamed from www.academy.ca as well as the Canadian Academy Twitter and YouTube channels. 

The main event, which will feature a “curated selection of prominent awards,” will stream live on May 20 at 8:00 pm ET. 

Select 2021 nominees:

Best lead actress, drama series

Best lead actor, TV drama series

Joel Oulette, left, appears in a scene from Trickster. Though the show was cancelled after just one season, Oulette is up for an award for best lead actor in a drama series. (CBC)

Best performing arts program

Best documentary program

Best history documentary program or series

Baroness Von Sketch Show starring Carolyn Taylor, Aurora Browne, Meredith MacNeill and Jennifer Whalen in a witch sketch from the show’s final season. All four are nominated for the best sketch comedy show and ensemble performance category. (Jackie Brown)

Best sketch comedy show & ensemble performance

Best performance, children’s or youth

Best local newscast

Best news anchor, national

Best news anchor, local

Donald Brittain award for best social/political documentary program

Brandon Ingram, left, and Rehan Mudannayake appear in a scene from Funny Boy. The film is nominated for nine awards, including best adapted screenplay. (Vidur Bharatram)

Best adapted screenplay

Best performance by an actor in a leading role, film

Best performance by an actress in a leading role, film

Best national newscast

Best news or information program

A complete list of nominees in all categories is available at academy.ca.

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