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EXCLUSIVE: The first season of Apple TV+’s courtroom drama series Presumed Innocent will be contending under the Limited or Anthology Series categories at the 2025 Emmy Awards. This decision has received approval from the TV Academy, according to reliable sources.
The series initially entered the awards scene as a drama series at both the Golden Globes and SAG Awards, where Jake Gyllenhaal earned a nomination for Best Performance by a Male Actor in a Television Series, Drama. Additionally, Presumed Innocent has been predicted to feature prominently in various drama categories for the Emmys.
The shift in category comes as Presumed Innocent has evolved significantly in recent months. Originally launched as a limited series based on Scott Turow’s popular novel, there was initially no plan for a follow-up season.
However, following the success of the first season, Apple TV+ decided to renew the show. The plan was to adopt a format similar to The White Lotus, introducing a new narrative and mostly new cast each season, potentially with some characters bridging the seasons.
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Considering this structure, Presumed Innocent was initially submitted as a drama series for its first round of award nominations, mirroring the approach taken by The White Lotus, which transitioned from a limited series to a drama series after its first season.
However, with no clear continuation from Turow’s original works for the second season, the producers, including executive producers David E. Kelley, J.J. Abrams, and season one star Gyllenhaal, along with co-executive producer Turow, chose a different path. Apple TV+ and Warner Bros. TV secured rights to Dissection of a Murder, a forthcoming legal thriller by Jo Murray. This new book will provide the foundation for the second season, featuring entirely new characters led by attorney Leila Reynolds, with casting currently in progress.
According to the Emmy Awards rules & procedures, for a series to qualify as a limited or anthology series, “the story arc must be completely resolved within its season, with no ongoing storyline and/or main characters in subsequent seasons.”
The first season stars Gyllenhaal as Rusty Sabich, the chief deputy prosecutor, and centers around a grisly murder that shakes the Chicago Prosecuting Attorney’s office when one of their own becomes a suspect.
The show boasts an impressive ensemble cast including Ruth Negga, who received a nomination for Best Supporting Performance in a New Scripted Series at the Film Independent Spirit Awards, Bill Camp, Elizabeth Marvel, Peter Sarsgaard, O-T Fagbenle, and Renate Reinsve, where the awards do not distinguish between genres.
Presumed Innocent is produced by Bad Robot Productions and David E. Kelley Productions in collaboration with Warner Bros. Television. The executive production team for season one included Kelley, Abrams, Rachel Rusch Rich, Dustin Thomason, Matt Tinker, Gyllenhaal, Anne Sewitsky, Greg Yaitaines, and Sharr White, with Miki Johnson and Turow as co-executive producers.
Although Presumed Innocent will transition from drama to limited series in most award shows, this change is not necessary at the WGA Awards. The Writers Guild of America has its own criteria, and the show’s first season was already nominated for a WGA Award for Limited Series this year. In 2023, The White Lotus won in this category, even though it had moved to the drama category in other major award competitions.
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