Uzo Aduba is nominated for her first Emmy—but she'll have to go through family to get it!
The actress who plays Suzanne "Crazy Eyes" Warren on Orange Is the New Black is up against two cast mates for Outstanding Guest Actress in a Comedy Series, but it sounds as if a win for one would really be a win for all—especially since they could have never guessed that the Netflix show would become such a phenomenon.
"Sometimes we joke about it being Survivor-like," Uzo laughed today during her E! News sit-down with Giuliana Rancic and Terrence Jenkins.
"But we are totally excited and we love each other and are just happy by the idea that there are three of us in a single category. It's just humbling, truly humbling."
Fellow scene-stealers Laverne Cox and Natasha Lyonne are also nominated in Uzo's category, and the show overall scored a whopping nine nominations, including Outstanding Comedy Series.
"We're just, like, loving each other right now...We have dinner together still," Uzo continued, noting that the idea of being so recognized on TV's biggest night "wasn't even a part of the conversation." It was "not even in the realm of discussion."
But the classically trained singer, who made her Broadway debut in 2007 but is relatively new to television, says that she sensed something special on the page when she first read the script for Orange Is the New Black.
"There's definitely no way of predicting anything like this at all," said Uzo, who, looking stunning in a bright pink dress by Shoshanna, was practically unrecognizable from her Crazy Eyes character. "When I was reading the script I was thinking, ‘Wow, this is really good.'...Remember pop-up books?...It had that level of dimension to it."
She thought to herself at the time, "I would love to be a part of something about that."
And the much-talked-about show has obviously attracted some big-name celebrity fans, such as the Scandal crew—"Orange Gladiators!" Uzo exclaimed—and earned its stars more visibility than ever. Which is why the actress wasn't so sure she should come right out and name her celebrity crush, when asked by Giuliana who in Hollywood had caught her decidedly not-crazy eye?
"I don't even know [if I should say]...he's got a girlfriend..." Uzo waffled for a bit.
But then she told us!
Watch the clip to find out (hint: she's got great taste) and see Uzo tonight on E! News at 7 p.m. and 11:30 p.m. talking about picking out an Emmy dress, season three secrets and whether or not Giuliana would make it on the inside.