‘Game of Thrones,’ ‘Russian Doll’ Get Snubbed by Golden Globes

The television nominations for next year’s Golden Globes went largely according to form, with just one truly quirky choice among the shows (see “Catch-22” below) and a paucity of the usual get-a-celebrity-to-come-to-our-party picks (though Reese Witherspoon’s acting nod for “Big Little Lies” might fit into that category). Here are a few of the less expected nominations.

Surprise: ‘Catch-22’ and Christopher Abbott

Hulu’s limited-series adaptation of the Joseph Heller novel truly came out of nowhere — no one talked about it very much when it was released in May, and no one was setting aside photos of it for their Golden Globes roundups. The best explanation for this and for the equally surprising nomination of Christopher Abbott, the show’s Yossarian, for best actor may be the likelihood that George Clooney, an executive producer of the series, will now show up for the awards.

Snub: ‘When They See Us’ and Jharrel Jerome

The most surprising omissions — also in the limited-series and movie area — were Ava Duvernay’s Netflix mini-series about the Central Park Five case, which was considered a lock, and its star, Jharrel Jerome, who didn’t receive a nomination after winning the category at the Emmys. A smaller but also significant upset in the category: the nomination of the coolly received Showtime mini-series “The Loudest Voice” rather than Netflix’s “El Camino: A Breaking Bad Movie.”

Surprise: Kaitlyn Dever and Toni Collette

Merritt Wever’s best-actress nomination for Netflix’s “Unbelievable” was widely predicted, but the highly regarded mini-series had longer coattails than expected. Dever’s best-actress nod may have come at the expense of Niecy Nash in “When They See Us” or Kathryn Hahn in HBO’s “Mrs. Fletcher,” while Collette’s supporting-actress nomination prevented Olivia Colman of “The Crown” from snagging a second nod for “Fleabag.”

Snub: ‘Game of Thrones’ and ‘Watchmen’

Despite the negative reactions of many fans and critics to the final season of HBO’s bellwether, “Game of Thrones,” the massive ratings and general cultural hegemony were expected to bring it a best-drama nomination. And another HBO series, “Watchmen,” was thought to have a chance in the same category — and a better chance in best actress for its star, Regina King — despite starting late in the year. HBO still received plenty of Globes love for “Big Little Lies,” “Barry,” “Succession” and “Chernobyl.”

Surprise: Kit Harington, ‘Game of Thrones’

His show didn’t get a nod, but Harington broke through, getting his first Globes nomination after being nominated twice at the Emmys for playing the noble Jon Snow. He probably aced out his HBO colleague Jeremy Strong, who was expected to give “Succession” a second best-actor nomination alongside Brian Cox.

Snub: ‘Russian Doll’ and Tony Shalhoub

Why pair the time-jumping Netflix comedy “Russian Doll” (which drew an acting nomination for its star, Natasha Lyonne) and the veteran performer Shalhoub, a five-time Globes nominee for “Monk” who was expected to finally get some recognition for his supporting role in “The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel”? (He won a supporting-actor Emmy in September for the performance.) Because both may have been victims of the Globes’ confounding love for the middling Netflix sitcom “The Kominsky Method,” which received a second comedy-series nomination (after winning last year) and an unanticipated repeat supporting-actor nod for Alan Arkin.