Emmy nominations 2015: Nominees react

On inching towards diversity: “I loved ‘The Brady Bunch’ when I was growing up; but life, families, people, we know more now. People of color should be included in the narrative. And people are finally getting that.”

On his character’s coming-out scene: “My hands were shaking. … You know, Jill’s [Jill Soloway] first sentence to us was, ‘This is about making the world safer.’ And that is a huge responsibility. We never forget that. Even with the deepest laugh, that’s still what we’re throwing out in this series.”

Was today a surprising turn for “Shameless” since it’s not often nominated? “I was, indeed, surprised. For some reason, Joan [Cusack] has gotten some nominations and I have a few, but they have been pretty rare in our six years [for the show], despite the fact that our numbers are pretty good. I think we’re a little rough trade for Emmy voters – they don’t call it ‘Shameless’ for nothing. It may be a touch on the shocking side. So I am surprised a bit, but very gratified. I’ll take it!’

On the state of race representation among Emmy nominees and TV generally: “It’s an improvement. ... Audiences are demanding new stories. It’s always going to be less representative than the general population. It moves at a glacial pace. But it continues to move.”

On being nominated for a show that had a nine year hiatus: “It has been very strange. First when we talked to HBO about coming back it was terrifying. Then Michael [Patrick King] and I put our heads down and got to work. Then it was about to go on the air and it got terrifying again.”

On the show: “This is my love letter to our generation of people raised with parents who were TV shows, those raised by TV shows. I think this show, in many ways, feels like a classic American TV show. I think that’s as much of a reason to watch it as anything else.”

On the show’s success and nomination: “It just goes to show if you wait long enough and do what you are supposed to do on the way up the ladder, maybe the scale will tip in your favor.”

On being nominated: “It always feels great to be nominated for an award. There’s nobody who doesn’t like that. But when you’re nominated for something that you feel really proud of, it feels even better because you put something out into the world that’s a piece of yourself – that really cost you something.”

On fan reaction to “Bessie”: People have really, really responded, “Wow, you knocked it out of the park.” For people who’ve watched me through the years, even some people who were even jaded, they said, “This is your best work.”

On diversity: “I really have no criticism of TV right now. Film needs to take a leaf out of the TV book especially with diversity and women starring, directing and producing. There is a far more representative view of what it is to be in America from TV [than film].”

Was there something different that voters were responding to this year? “Every good show and every good season is a miracle, in my opinion. It’s hard to identify anything except that we got lucky. ... We did our research and set the show in a part of the world that was very current.”

On his recurring nomination: “I’m always so excited... to have a job that I’m so proud of and love. That’s the cake, and this is the icing on top. It is mindblowing. I don’t even know how to comprehend it.”