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Tony Nominations: Michele, Reeves, Harris Snubbed!

The Tony nominations were announced on Tuesday morning.The Lost Boys and Schmigadoon! each earned 12 Tony Award nominations and June Squibb became the oldest To...

Tony Nominations: Michele, Reeves, Harris Snubbed!
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The Tony nominations were announced on Tuesday morning.

The Lost Boys and Schmigadoon! each earned 12 Tony Award nominations and June Squibb became the oldest Tony-nominated actor in history at 96 while Danny Burstein is now the most-nominated male actor in Tony history.

There were plenty of snubs too. 

Lea Michele was not recognized for her role as Florence Vassy in the latest Broadway staging of Chess. Bobby Cannavale, Neil Patrick Harris and James Corden were not nominated for a revival of Art.

Bill & Ted stars Keanu Reeves and Alex Winters were left off the list for reuniting for a revival of Waiting for Godot. Adrien Brody and Tessa Thompson were both snubbed for The Fear of 13, a true-life prison drama.

Laurie Metcalf was overlooked for Little Bear Ridge Road. 

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The Tony Awards will be The awards will air live on CBS and stream on Paramount+.

Lea Michele was not nominated for a Tony on Tuesday morning; seen in April 

Keanu Reeves was left off the list for his work on Waiting For Gadot

 The Lost Boys, an adaptation of a 1987 teen movie vampire thriller, and Schmigadoon!, an adaptation of an Apple TV series that gently mocks Broadway musicals, were followed by a revival of Ragtime, a big, soaring musical celebrating early 20th-century America, with 11 nominations.

Death of a Salesman, Arthur Miller´s masterpiece that looks at the unraveling of the American Dream, starring Nathan Lane, nabbed nine nods.

Twenty-four shows got at least one nomination across the 26 Tony categories, a revival of Chess, the Cold War-set love triangle between two chess grand masters and the woman who loved both, and Cats: The Jellicle Ball, which reimagines the 1980s classic feline musical into a celebration of queer ballroom culture.

'I'm over the Jellicle moon about this!' said Bill Rauch, who secured his first Tony nomination for co-directing the reimagined 'Cats.' 'I´ve spent my whole career trying to connect the dots between classics and the place and time we´re living in, and so to have `Cats´ have this life on Broadway right now just really feels like an affirmation of everything I´ve been trying to do for decades.'

The best new musical crown will be between 'The Lost Boys,' 'Schmigadoon!,' 'Titanique,' a camp musical comedy that reimagines the 1997 megahit movie 'Titanic,' and 'Two Strangers (Carry a Cake Across New York),' an opposites-attract rom-com set during a New York City weekend.

Ali Louis Bourzgui, nominated for best featured role in a musical playing a seductive vampire in 'The Lost Boys,' took a bite on why his show was so well received: 'I think that people, including myself, love a villain that they can care for,' he said. 'Some of my favorite performances are technically villains on paper, but the person who´s playing them actively makes them a full 3D person that you can root for. I think that´s the most interesting kind of character.'

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Adrien Brody (pictured) and Tessa Thompson were both snubbed for The Fear of 13, a true-life prison drama

The best new play nominees are the John Lithgow-led 'Giant,' which explores accusations of antisemitism against children´s author Roald Dahl; 'Liberation,' about a consciousness-raising women´s group in 1970s Ohio that won the Pulitzer Prize for drama on Monday; 'The Balusters,' a wry comedy about a small-town neighborhood association that descends into chaos over whether to install a stop sign; and 'Little Bear Ridge Road,' about a struggling writer who returns to his rural hometown to settle his dead father´s estate.

Playwright Mark Rosenblatt conceived of 'Giant' in 2018 and started writing it in 2020, and it seems remarkably relevant in 2026, following the fallout from the war in Gaza and the spotlight on antisemitism in America.

'The ideas in the play, the concerns in the plays, the pain in the play, is perennial,' he said. 'But I could never have imagined that it would, when it finally was produced, would be playing against the backdrop of what´s happening now.'

'The Fear of 13,' the true story of a man who spent more than two decades on death row, didn't get any acting nods, despite starring Adrien Brody and Tessa Thompson in their Broadway debuts. Former 'Glee' star will still be seeking her first Tony nomination after having missed out for her work on 'Chess.'

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L.J. Benet, left, and Ali Louis Bourzgui appear during a performance of The Lost Boys

The Broadway cast of The Lost Boys seen during a performance in New York in March

Squibb is now the oldest Tony-nominated actor in history, besting the record set by Lois Smith, who was 89 when she was nominated in 2020 for 'The Inheritance.' Squibb's Broadway resume reaches back to a stint in the original production of 'Gypsy' in 1960 with Ethel Merman.

Burstein becomes the most-nominated male actor in Tony history with nine nods after his work in 'Marjorie Prime,' beating the record set by Jason Robards. Kelli O´Hara got her ninth career nomination for a revival of the comedy 'Fallen Angels,' tying her with Rosemary Harris for third on the all-time acting nominations list.

A trio of actors from the hit TV series 'The Bear' struck out in their Broadway debuts this season - Ayo Edebiri in a revival of 'Proof' and Jon Bernthal and Ebon Moss-Bachrach who both appeared in 'Dog Day Afternoon,' an adaptation of Sidney Lumet´s 1975 bank robbing drama. Daniel Radcliffe secured a nomination for 'Every Brilliant Thing,' a one-person show that explores the antidotes to depression.

The best play revival category is stacked with well-received work: 'Every Brilliant Thing'; 'Death of a Salesman'; 'Oedipus,' a modern retelling of Sophocles´ classic tragedy set on election night in a modern campaign office; 'Becky Shaw,' Gina Gionfriddo´s dark comedy about a newlywed couple who decide to play matchmaker; and 'Fallen Angels,' Noël Coward´s alcohol-fueled competition between two upper-crust ladies over the attention of a former lover.

Rose Byrne, the 'If I Had Legs I´d Kick You' star who plays one of those upper-crust ladies in 'Fallen Angels,' secured a nomination for best actress in a play, to be Oscar- and Tony-nominated in the same year. Her co-star, Kelli O´Hara, also secured a nod, as did Lesley Manville for 'Oedipus,' Susannah Flood for 'Liberation' and Carrie Coon for her work in her husband Tracy Letts' play 'Bug.'

Lithgow, who has two Tonys already, will get his third if he beats leading actor in a play nominees Lane, Radcliffe, Mark Strong in 'Oedipus' and Will Harrison from 'Punch,' which looks at restorative justice following the death of a man from a physical punch.

Christiani Pitts, left, and Sam Tutty appear during a performance of Two Strangers

David Manis, left, and John Lithgow appear during a performance of Giant

Best actor in a musical nominees include Joshua Henry and Brandon Uranowitz, both from 'Ragtime,' Sam Tutty in 'Two Strangers,' Nicholas Christopher in 'Chess' and Luke Evans from 'The Rocky Horror Show.'

On the women´s side, the nominees are: Caissie Levy from 'Ragtime,' Marla Mindelle for 'Titanique,' Christiani Pitts from 'Two Strangers,' Sara Chase from 'Schmigadoon!' and Stephanie Hsu in 'The Rocky Horror Show.'

Others who missed out this year include , Byrne's partner, who starred in a revival of 'Art' with Neil Patrick Harris and that was snubbed by the nominators. 'Bill & Ted' stars Keanu Reeves and Alex Winters reuniting for a revival of 'Waiting for Godot,' were also left off, although Brandon J. Dirden was nominated for a featured role.

The Tony Awards will be handed out June 7 at Radio City Music Hall during a telecast hosted by Pink. The awards will air live on CBS and stream on Paramount+.

Last year´s show - hosted by 'Wicked' star Cynthia Erivo - drew 4.85 million viewers to CBS, its largest broadcast audience in six years, according to Nielsen.

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