Emmys FYC calendar gets pushed by TV Academy due to COVID-19 pandemic

The Television Academy announced changes to the awards-season calendar for the Primetime Emmys on Friday (local time) with the coronavirus pandemic having brought TV production to a near standstill. The new schedule shifts deadlines back roughly 1-3 weeks and condenses the voting periods.

According to Variety, the deadline for submissions moved to June 5 from May 11. The first-round voting period will now take place July 2-13, back from June 15-29; nominations will be announced July 28 rather than July 14. Round two of voting will take place Aug. 21-31 instead of Aug. 17-31, as originally planned.

No changes have been made by the Academy to the date of the Primetime Emmy Awards telecast, which is still scheduled to take place September 20, or the Creative Arts Emmy ceremony, still slated for September 12 and 13.

Likewise, the cut off for Emmy eligibility remains May 31, the same date by which a series must premiere to be considered for this year's Emmys.

However, the Academy has added a bit of flexibility. For series, so-called "hanging episodes" -- episodes that debut after the May 31 deadline -- must air by June 30. For the limited series category, the show must premiere by May 31, and all episodes must air by June 30 for the limited series to be eligible this year. If any episode debuts after June 30, the limited series will move into eligibility for next year's Emmys.

The changes in the calendar shorten the voting periods by five days in phase one and four days in phase two, and follow calls this week between Academy officials and execs at the major networks, studios and streamers, in which the latter group pushed for a plan to move the calendar later in the year.

The hope is that pushing deeper into late spring and summer will allow awards marketers the opportunity to more effectively campaign, as concerns related to the coronavirus outbreak have effectively ended the ability to put on the live events that are the staples of awards season.