Natasha Lyonne received three Emmy nominations on Tuesday morning, but she’s hoping they result in her getting one more thing: respect from her dog.
Netflix’s Russian Doll, on which Lyonne is a writer, director, co-creator, and star, landed 13 total nominations, including Outstanding Comedy Series, Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series, and Outstanding Writing for a Comedy Series.
“It’s not a bad way to wake up,” Lyonne told EW shortly after the announcement, which she was in bed for after spending the night directing on Hulu’s High Fidelity series. “It was me and Root Beer, my beloved dog, who now finally is going to show me a little respect — I hope.” Trying not to focus on the forthcoming news, Lyonne and Root Beer kept busy, first with a game of solitaire, and then with a book about Albert Einstein. “I was reading things that — I’ll be honest with you — I can’t say I fully understood. I was thinking, ‘Oh, this is not my natural skill set,’ and, also, ‘Am I older now and need bifocals?’ Those were the two things in my head when I glanced at my phone like a millennial and saw that this new device that the kids are into was blowin’ up.”
Joking that she’s just grateful not to be in Chernobyl‘s category, Lyonne discussed why this recognition means so much more to her than if she was just a hired actor on Russian Doll.
“The actor will always have a complex relationship to public approval, they are wired to be in self-doubt all the time,” she shared. “As a producer, writer, director, and creator, it’s probably closer to the pure joy of… I’m not a parent, and I’d say I have almost no maternal instinct to think of, and yet, here I am, feeling a great sort of pride in all the people and work we’ve done together. It was able to fill me with a very pure feeling that was beyond just ego stuff and actually became about our team effort, which delights me and feels healthy. But, I will say that my ego is also having a good day, and for that I’m grateful. Some days are not so hot for it. It’s a pretty decent day to be a person, all things considered.”
While Lyonne reveals that she’s currently in idea mode for Russian Doll season 2 after a recent brainstorm with co-creator Amy Poehler (who got two Emmy nominations Tuesday: a shared writing nomination with Lyonne and series co-creator Leslye Headland for Russian Doll; and Outstanding Host For A Reality Or Competition Program, along with Nick Offerman, of NBC’s Making It), she only has one thing on her mind at the moment. “I’m not lying when I tell you I’m actually opening a giant cake right now that someone has sent here and I’m literally about to just put a spoon in it and eat it,” she admits. “This is my Emmys diet, just eating this cake in one long loop until I get there.”
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