Justice was not served when Game of Thrones received no Emmy nominations in the lead acting categories.

Game of Thrones is heading into the 2018 Emmy Awards with 22 nominations, more than any other television series. Their nominations include major categories like Outstanding Drama Series, Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series, and Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series.

Despite such impressive recognition, the show was snubbed in the categories of Outstanding Lead Actress and Actor in a Drama Series.

Let’s examine how this was a mistake and why the series deserves to at least have been nominated for the lead acting awards.

At this point in the story, Kit Harington and Emilia Clarke are considered the show’s “lead” actor and actress for their portrayals of Jon Snow and Daenerys Targaryen.

Neither Harington nor Clarke were nominated, though, leaving Game of Thrones with no nominations in the categories. Around since the very beginning, audiences have had the privilege of watching Harington and Clarke mature as actors, arguably delivering their best performances in season 7.

A palpable chemistry formed as soon as their characters met and remained present in all their scenes throughout the season, whether the focus was politics, brewing romance, or both. Daenerys toed the line of becoming the Mad Queen as she tried to win the war, navigating a path where she could defeat Cersei without becoming a monstrous tyrant, a path where she could still uphold the unique and positive values that made her worthy to sit the Iron Throne in the first place.

Jon sacrificed his own well-being and challenged the beliefs held dear by the same people who made him King in the North, all in the name of survival against an enemy worse than death. On Dragonstone with Daenerys and later in King’s Landing with Cersei, Jon found himself having to play more of a political game than in the past. His core traits remained, but he had to adjust considering how the nature of the game and of his allies and opposition had changed from his days in the Night’s Watch or from taking the North back from Ramsay Bolton. All the while, Jon found himself opening up to love for the first time since losing Ygritte at the end of season 4.

These are extensive and at times difficult nuances to navigate, but Harington and Clarke nailed them. Many of season 7’s best scenes feature Jon, Daenerys, or both. It’s a shame they were not recognized by the Emmys for their compelling performances.

While it’s fair to say Jon and Daenerys are the most important characters at this juncture — and for the show’s Emmy-eligible season 7 — Game of Thrones has always had a massive cast and ongoing cast of core characters. Lena Headey, Peter Dinklage, and Nikolaj Coster-Waldau — playing Lannister siblings Cersei, Tyrion, and Jaime — have been series regulars and portrayed main characters since the pilot episode. They are as much leading actors as Harington and Clarke.

Westworld is similar to Game of Thrones in the sense of featuring an extensive group of core characters. Ed Harris and Jeffrey Wright — playing two of Westworld‘s leading male characters the Man in Black and Bernard — were both nominated for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series.

If both Harris and Wright can be nominated in this category, then there’s no reason that Headey, Dinklage, and Coster-Waldau couldn’t have been nominated in the leading acting categories. For shows like Game of Thrones and Westworld, there’s little separation between leading and supporting actors and actresses. The quality of their acting is generally superior to most other shows, meaning as many should be recognized as possible.

Hopefully Game of Thrones will still walk away with several Emmys, including wins in the major categories where they were nominated. With only season 8 remaining, this is the second-to-last opportunity for the Emmys to honor the stellar acting on Game of Thrones.