Choreographer Nina McNeely talks about being nominated as the sole contestant on The Idol

When the Emmy nominations were announced last week, heads turned when Sam Levinson and The Weeknd The idol landed a nomination. And Nina McNeely, who got the nomination for choreography, thinks the canceled HBO series deserved more love at the Emmys.

“Definitely the cinematography,” she says. The Hollywood Reporter. “I thought Lily [Rose Depp]The acting was absolutely amazing. Even the makeup was fantastic on The idol. I would definitely say that Sam directed a movie. He’s really incredible to work with, and even watching him work with the other actors, he trusts them so much and really asks for their input, and you never know how creative people are in projects like film or television. And it was really cool to see how collaborative a director he is.

The idol The series starred Johnny Depp as a pop star who falls under the sway of a Hollywood club owner (The Weeknd) and was canceled after one season because it received mostly negative reviews from critics and its ratings were lower than other recent HBO series. “I feel like it could become a cult classic in the future, maybe a little bit ahead of its time or something,” McNeely reveals. “I think it was a really special show. And I think there aren’t a lot of shows on TV that have a neurotic thriller theme, at least not since the ’90s, so I say bring it back. I’m ready to see more of it.”

McNeely’s surprise nomination for best choreography for a scripted program — which Levinson Euphoria won in 2022 — pitting her against popular shows like There are only murders in the building (Jean Carrafa), Royal palm (Brooke Lipton) and Physical (Jennifer Hamilton). McNeely moved to Los Angeles at 18 to pursue her dancing career, and her resume is impressive: She’s worked with Rihanna, Björk, Sam Smith, Nick Jonas and Foo Fighters, earning a 2021 MTV Video Music Award nomination for Best Choreography for the rock band “Shame shame” music video. She has collaborated with The Weeknd on several occasions, helping him land his record deal The idol —and she has also worked as a creative director, visual artist, animator and music video director, directing the music video for Doja Cat’s Grammy-nominated hit “Paint the town red.”

Being nominated for an Emmy is a life-changing experience for the versatile performer. “The cool thing is that even though it’s just a nomination, that title can be in front of your name forever,” she says.

In an interview with THRMcNeely talks about his work on his first scripted series, hear The Weeknd and Levinson talk about their Emmy nominations and how dancing for Britney Spears (sort of) helped her prepare for The idol.

How does it feel to see your name among the Emmy nominees?

Honestly, I was very pleasantly surprised. But I’m just over…