Jared Harris says his 'Chernobyl' Emmy nomination is "pretty amazing".
Jared Harris
The 47-year-old actor portrayed Valery Legasov - the deputy director of the Kurchatov Institute brought in to aid cleanup efforts following the Chernobyl nuclear disaster of April 1986 - in the programme and he and his spouse Allegra Riggio think he's a "lucky man" to have been shortlisted for the Lead Actor in a Limited Series or Television Movie honour alongside Mahershala Ali ('True Detective'), Benicio Del Toro ('Escape at Dannemora') Hugh Grant ('A Very English Scandal'), Jharrel Jerome ('When They See Us') and Sam Rockwell ('Fosse/Verdon').
When asked by ET Canada how he learned of his nomination, he said: "My wife told me. She said, 'You're a very lucky man.'"
Reflecting on the show racking up 19 nods, Jared admitted that although it's "pretty amazing", he thinks the nominations reflect the overall quality of the production on the show.
He explained: "When you review social media, people were calling out set design, production design, sound music. People were aware of the impact that every single element of the show had."
The 'Crown' actor previously received a nomination for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series back in 2012 for his performance as Lane Pryce in 'Mad Men' and insisted that each nod is its own "unique experience".
He said: "I don't compare it to the time before. It's its own unique experience, with a different group of people."
Despite the dark tone of 'Chernobyl', things stayed light on set thanks to the efforts of series creator Craig Mazin and co-stars such as Stellan Skarsgard and Emily Watson.
He said: "Craig [Mazin], he cracks jokes, he makes fun of himself. He's got a good sense of humour. Stellan is just one of the most glorious spirits you've ever met. Emily, she's got a really great sense of humour. But you have to.
"You can't keep touching on that nerve all day because it goes numb. And when you need it to be there and the cameras are rolling, you've exhausted it. You have to go somewhere else."
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