Scott D. Pierce: Disaster is almost certain to strike the Emmys on Sunday

The producers in charge of the Emmy Awards telecast on Sunday are warning that things will go wrong.

They’ll be at the Staples Center with host Jimmy Kimmel, but — because of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic — pretty much everybody else you’ll see on air (6 p.m., ABC/Ch. 4) will be at one of more than 130 locations across the United States and in 10 countries around the world. And that, executive producers Reginald Hudlin and Ian Stewart acknowledged, is a recipe for disaster.

“Things are going to go wrong,” Stewart said. “It’s never been done before, so things aren’t going to work perfectly all the time. … The good thing about that is that we’ve got Jimmy Kimmel, who loves live TV and loves chaos on live TV. I think he’s actually hoping things do go wrong, to tell you the truth.”

Odds are, Kimmel will get his wish. Equipment has been set up at those 130-plus sites — most at the homes of nominees and presenters — and all those feeds will be coming in to the arena that’s home to the Lakers, Clippers and Kings.

“If you start to think about those logistics,” Stewart said, “it’s sort of like trying to watch 130 sports matches at the same time.”

“That’s why we are in the Staples Center,” added Hudlin. “Because we have so many feeds coming in and going out, Staples was the only facility that had the resources to handle all of that signal going back and forth.”

The whole thing sounds like kind of a nightmare in the making, but that’s how an awards show has to work during a pandemic.

“What could possibly go wrong?” Stewart said. “Everything in the chain 130 times. So it’s not going to work properly all the time. It’s just not, and we’ve just got to embrace that.”

They’ll have the “best equipment” and “smartest technicians” at their disposal, but they’ll also be “pushing the technology to its absolute limits,” Hudlin said.

“But we said, ‘Let’s just experiment, and let’s have the audience a little more on the edge of their seats just to see how many tricks we can pull out of our sleeves.’”

As for the awards themselves, don’t be surprised if both HBO’s “Watchmen” and Pop TV’s “Schitt’s Creek” have big nights. Maybe REALLY big nights.

Here are the nominees in some high-profile categories, along with my predicted winners in ALL CAPS. And I’m predicting who I think will win, not necessarily who I think should win.

Comedy series • “Curb Your Enthusiasm” (HBO); “Dead to Me” (Netflix); “The Good Place” (NBC); “Insecure” (HBO); “The Kominsky Method” (Netflix); “The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel” (Amazon); “SCHITT’S CREEK” (Pop); “What We Do in the Shadows” (FX).

Actress, comedy • Christina Applegate and Linda Cardellini, “Dead to Me” (Netflix); Rachel Brosnahan, “The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel” (Amazon); CATHERINE O’HARA, “Schitt’s Creek” (Pop); Issa Rae, “Insecure” (HBO); Tracee Ellis Ross, “Black-ish” (ABC).

Actor, comedy • Anthony Anderson, “Black-ish” (ABC); Ted Danson, “The Good Place” (NBC); Michael Douglas, “The Kominsky Method” (Netflix); Don Cheadle, “Black Monday” (Showtime); EUGENE LEVY, “Schitt’s Creek” (Pop); Ramy Youssef, “Ramy” (Hulu).

Supporting actress, comedy • ALEX BORSTEIN and Marin Hinkle, “The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel” (Amazon); D’Arcy Carden, “The Good Place” (NBC); Betty Gilpin, “G.L.O.W.” (Netflix); Kate McKinnon and Cecily Strong, “Saturday Night Live” (NBC); Annie Murphy, “Schitt’s Creek” (Pop); Yvonne Orji, “Insecure” (HBO).

Supporting actor, comedy • Mahershala Ali, “Ramy” (Hulu); Alan Arkin, “The Kominsky Method” (Netflix); Andre Braugher, “Brooklyn Nine-Nine” (NBC); Sterling K. Brown and Tony Shalhoub, “The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel” (Amazon); William Jackson Harper, “The Good Place” (NBC); DAN LEVY, “Schitt’s Creek” (Pop); Kenan Thompson, “Saturday Night Live” (NBC).

Drama series • “Better Call Saul” (AMC); “The Crown” (Netflix); “The Handmaid’s Tale” (Hulu); “Killing Eve” (BBC America); “The Mandalorian” (Disney+); “Ozark” (Netflix); “Stranger Things” (Netflix); “SUCCESSION” (HBO).

Actress, drama series • JENNIFER ANISTON, “The Morning Show” (Apple TV+); Jodie Comer and Sandra Oh, “Killing Eve” (BBC America); Olivia Colman, “The Crown” (Netflix); Laura Linney, “Ozark” (Netflix); Zendaya, “Euphoria” (HBO).

Actor, drama series • Jason Bateman, “Ozark” (Netflix); Sterling K. Brown, “This Is Us” (NBC); Steve Carell, “The Morning Show” (Apple TV+); Brian Cox and JEREMY STRONG, “Succession” (HBO); Billy Porter, “Pose” (Netflix).

Supporting actress, drama series • HELENA BONHAM CARTER, “The Crown” (Netflix); Laura Dern and Meryl Streep, “Big Little Lies” (HBO); Julia Garner, “Ozark” (Netflix); Thandie Newton, “Westworld” (HBO); Fiona Shaw, “Killing Eve” (BBC America); Sara Snook, “Succession” (HBO); Samira Wiley, “The Handmaid’s Tale” (Hulu).

Supporting actor, drama series • Billy Crudup and Mark Duplass, “The Morning Show” (Apple TV+); KIERAN CULKIN, Matthew Macfadyen and Nicholas Braun, “Succession” (HBO); Ginacarlo Esposito, “Better Call Saul” (AMC); Bradley Whitford, “The Handmaid’s Tale” (Hulu); Jeffrey Wright, “Westworld” (HBO).

Limited series • “Little Fires Everywhere” (Hulu); “Mrs. America,” (FX); “Unbelievable” (Netflix); “Unorthodox” (Netflx); “WATCHMEN” (HBO).

Actress, TV movie/limited series • Cate Blanchett, “Mrs. America” (FX); Shira Haas, “Unorthodox” (Netflix); REGINA KING, “Watchmen” (HBO); Octavia Spencer, “Self Made” (Netflix); Kerry Washington, “Little Fires Everywhere” (Hulu).

Actor, TV movie/limited series • Jeremy Irons, “Watchmen” (HBO); Hugh Jackman, “Bad Education” (HBO); Paul Mescal, “Normal People” (Hulu); Jeremy Pope, “Hollywood” (Netflix); MARK RUFFALO, “I Know This Much is True” (HBO).

Supporting actress, TV movie/limited series • Uzo Aduba, Margo Martindale and Tracey Ullman, “Mrs. America” (FX); Toni Collette, “Unbelievable” (Netflix); JEAN SMART, “Watchmen” (HBO); Holland Taylor, “Hollywood” (Netflix).

Supporting actor, TV movie/limited series • Jovan Adepo, Yahya Abdul-Mateen II and Louis Gossett Jr., “Watchmen” (HBO); Tituss Burgess, “The Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt” (Netflix); Dylan McDermott and JIM PARSONS, “Hollywood” (Netflix).

TV movie • “American Son” (Netflix); “BAD EDUCATION” (HBO); “Dolly Parton’s Heartstrings: These Old Bones” (Netflix); “El Camino: A Breaking Bad Movie” (Netflix); “Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt: Kimmy vs. the Reverend” (Netflix).

Reality competition series • “Masked Singer” (Fox); “Nailed It” (Netflix); “RUPAUL’S DRAG RACE” (VH1); “Top Chef” (Bravo); “The Voice” (NBC).

Variety talk series • “Daily Show with Trevor Noah” (Comedy Central); “Full Frontal with Samantha Bee” (TBS); “Jimmy Kimmel Live” (ABC); “LAST WEEK TONIGHT WITH JOHN OLIVER” (HBO); “Late Show with Stephen Colbert” (CBS).