'Orange Is the New Black' Season 3 Release: Emmys Force Series To Compete As Drama, Denying Appeal [VIDEO]
The Emmys are forcing Netflix's Orange Is the New Black to compete as a drama rather than a comedy series in 2015.
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After petitioning to stay in the Comedy Series categories at this year's Emmys, Orange Is the New Black was denied, according to new reports. The Netflix dramedy will have to compete in Drama Series categories for the 2015 ceremony.
Orange Is the New Black earned 12 Emmy nominations last year when it entered as a comedy series for its debut season. They were showered with five acting nominations, writing and directing nods and a Comedy Series nomination.
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This year, the Emmys decided to make a ruling that one-hour shows must compete in Drama categories while half-hour shows are in Comedy. However, different shows were allowed to appeal to be in the alternate category. A nine-member panel voted that OITNB is a drama and now it will enter into all Drama categories.
"'Orange is the New Black' is a truly pioneering series and an iconoclast which has always defied genre or easy categorization," Ted Sarandos, Netflix's chief content officer, said in a statement. "While we're disappointed in the committee's decision, we believe that 'Orange' represents the best of television in either category."
This news comes after the TV Academy allowed The CW's Jane the Virgin, Fox's Glee and Showtime's Shameless to compete in Comedy categories despite being one-hour shows. As it stands now, Orange Is the New Black is the only show affected by the new rule.
Emmy nominations will be announced on July 16 while the ceremony itself airs Sept. 20.
