MichaeIa Coel's I May Destroy You deals with the aftermath of rape. Photo / Supplied
MichaeIa Coel's I May Destroy You deals with the aftermath of rape. Photo / Supplied
One of the writers on Emily In Paris has declared she was "stunned" by the series' Golden Globes nominations.
Deborah Copaken, who penned the Netflix series loosely based on her own life experiences, says her excitement over being nominated for two awards has been trumped by "rage" due to another show's snub.
HBO's I May Destroy You, starring the brilliant Michaela Coel, was a notable omission from the 2021 nominations announcement yesterday, while Copaken's fizzy Netflix comedy received two acknowledgements.
While Emily In Paris was certainly popular on the streaming platform, Copaken admitted she never dreamt the show would be nominated for awards.
"I don't live under a rock," she wrote in an editorial for The Guardian.
Copaken added: "Am I excited that Emily In Paris was nominated? Yes. Of course. I've never been remotely close to seeing a Golden Globe statue up close, let alone being nominated for one. But that excitement is now unfortunately tempered by my rage over Coel's snub.
"That I May Destroy You did not get one Golden Globe nod is not only wrong, it's what is wrong with everything.
"[It's] a work of sheer genius about the aftermath of a rape. That show, I told everyone who would listen, deserves to win all the awards.
"When it didn't, I was stunned. I May Destroy You was not only my favourite show of 2020. It's my favourite show ever.
"I had to watch it twice, just to understand how Coel did it."
Copaken said her fury stems from a wider issue of people of colour not being recognised at annual award shows.
"Yes, we need art that reflects all of our colours, not just some. But we also need to give awards to shows (and music and films and plays and musicals) that deserve them, no matter the colour of the skin of their creators," she wrote.
Emily in Paris' Golden Globe nomination came as a surprise to Netflix fans. Photo / AP
"Is Hamilton great because Lin-Manuel Miranda is Puerto Rican? No. It's great because it bangs.
"By that same token, how anyone can watch I May Destroy You and not call it a brilliant work of art or Michaela Coel a genius is beyond my capacity to understand how these decisions are made."
The BBC One and HBO comedy-drama focuses on writer Arabella Essiedu (Coel) who is considered a voice for millennials thanks to her popular debut book Chronicles Of A Fed-Up Millennial.
On deadline for her second book, Arabella heads out in London to ease her stress when her drink is spiked on a night out and she is raped.
What follows is Arabella's distressing journey of trying to piece together what happened to her, and the devastating impact of sexual trauma on victims.
