Entertainment

11 Reasons Why Gina Rodriguez Deserves An Emmy

by Rosie Narasaki

June 29, 2015

Lead Actress in a Comedy Series is going to be a tough category for the Emmy Awards this year, sure, but I still have a ton of confidence in Jane the Virgin star Gina Rodriguez. I mean, first of all, she picked up the Golden Globe in a surprise win, and second, she's just generally brilliant. Jane the Virgin has a lot going for it (baby kidnapping, a killer love triangle, and a scene-stealing telenovela star/long-lost father/accidental husband, for example), but it's Rodriguez's central performance as the titular Jane that really brings it all together to make the show click.

Plus, have you seen the The CW's For Your Consideration Emmy campaigns for Jane the Virgin ? Rodriguez's features her posing in front of her pitch-perfect Golden Globes acceptance speech, and her on-screen father Jaime Camil's (who's looking to get nominated in the Supporting Actor in a Comedy category) features accolades from critics overlaid onto a tasteful nude photo with a baby leopard. If that's not enough to convince Emmy voters that these two deserve trophies, I don't know what is.

It's definitely a tough climb to the top, but I think Rodriguez has what it takes to take home the big prize — or any prize, really — and here's why.

1. She's A Killer Actress

First things first, I think we can all agree that Gina is ridiculously talented.

2. She's Mastered The Art Of Comedy

Well, if this is the Lead Actress in a Comedy Series category, Gina has it all down.

3. Especially The Art Of Physical Comedy

Come on, that's some Emmy-deserving material right there.

4. She Can Make You Cry Like A Baby

She has comedy chops, she has dramatic chops, she can rap like nobody's business — what can't this lady do?

5. She's Paid Her Dues

You know how some people hit it big, and you're really glad they hit it big, because they've always kind of deserved to hit it big? Well, there's Gina Rodriguez for you. Before she took on Jane the Virgin, she wowed audiences at the Sundance Film Festival with her breakout role in Filly Brown, and she's had her eye on the prize ever since she got her BFA from NYU's prestigious Tisch School of the Arts.

6. She & Her On-Screen Counterpart Are Both Super-Inspirational

Her Golden Globes acceptance speech says it all (and I bet her Emmys acceptance speech would be even better — if that's even possible).

7. Her Positive Attitude Is Something We Can All Look Up To

Rodriguez is kind of the poster-girl for positive thinking (she's even writing a book about it, inspired by both her father and The Power of Now author Eckhart Tolle), which makes her a great role model for all the aspiring actors out there.

8. She Stands Up For What She Believes In

Did you read Rodriguez's recent roundtable interview with The Hollywood Reporter ? She basically skewered the racist and sexist aspects of the industry in one fell swoop, and she's never been afraid of speaking her mind. She's the kind of celeb who puts her star power to good use, and it would sure be nice to see her rise even higher in the Hollywood pantheon. Speaking of which...