Connie Britton has deservedly been nominated four times for Emmys for her indelible roles on "Friday Night Lights" and her current show "Nashville."
She didn't win any of them. But SCAD on Saturday bestowed the beloved actress an Icon Award at its second annual aTVFest that involved no competitors. She just had to go up on stage at the 14th Street Playhouse (which SCAD recently took over) and accept the trophy, no fuss, no muss.
"Every time I get nominated," Britton said Saturday night before the event, "the moment they announce the winner, I feel complete and utter trepidation. What if they call my name? I wouldn't know what to say!"
Britton has never prepped for any potential victory speech. "It creates so much anxiety," she said. "I figure if you speak from your heart, it's better than anything you write down." (I'm certain folks remember the spontaneous comments on the awards dais, not those which involve thanking everyone from their agent to their hairdresser.)
I was supposed to have a decent chunk of time with Britton, but her assistant didn't realize there was a time change between Nashville, where she shoots "Nashville," and Atlanta. So she lost an hour. I had more than enough questions to take up at least 15 minutes. Alas, I only had five at the Four Seasons Hotel. But she's Connie Britton. Five minutes is better than zero minutes, right?
Here's what else I got besides her comments about nominations:
Q: How's season two of "Nashville" going for you?
Britton: We're deep in. It's good. We're on the home stretch of the second season. I think we have five more to shoot. It feels good. We're starting to get our ground underneath us. I think the second season of any show is tricky. You can kind of go in a lot of different directions. You experiment a bit. The second season is a good opportunity to learn what's really working and what isn't working.
Q: So are you happy with how Rayna is developing as a character?
Britton: I love the idea of Rayna as a real businesswoman, as a creative businesswoman. I think it's a very interesting character to put out to the world. The woman is self made - and an artist. She can run her own show. That's more and more the model these days.
Q: The show is critically acclaimed but based on tvbythenumbers.com, which tracks this type of stuff, "Nashville" is on the fence for renewal for season three. [This past week's episode drew 5.1 million viewers, third among the three networks behind NBC's "Chicago PD" and CBS's "CSI."] Does that sound familiar given you were on "Friday Night Lights"? [That was a cult classic show that struggled to get renewed every year it was on and needed help from DirecTV to air its final season.]
Britton: It's very interesting. I know it's unusual but I pay very little attention. I always get into a habit of ignoring the ratings. I just don't think of my life that way. I enjoy coming to work. I don't feel the numbers reflect the audience of the show, the passion of that audience. I just want them to appreciate what we do and get something from it.
[This is when I got the signal to wrap up.]
Q: Okay. Have you ever been to Atlanta?
Britton: No! This is my first time. I'm really excited to be here. I've heard so many great things from people in Nashville.
Q: Who would you love to perform or work with on "Nashville"?
Britton: There are some amazing ones I have in mind. Dolly Parton would be a dream. The other one I would always talk about is Bonnie Raitt. Last year, I got to duet with Brad Paisley. That was pretty awesome!
I didn't have time to talk to her about her country singing skills and nitty gritty plotlines on the show (including her character's father's heart attack this past week.) I also wanted to ask her about Kyle Chandler's work on "Wolf on Wall Street," Michael J. Fox's sitcom cancellation [she was on "Spin City" back in the day] and whether "Friday Night Lights" will ever become a film again. Oh, well. She was very gracious. I hope to talk to her again someday.
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