The singer-actress talks to ET about being a first-time nominee.
Mandy Moore was at a SoulCycle spin class early Tuesday morning when the Emmy nominees were revealed, delaying the good news that she had just earned her very first career nomination for This Is Us just a little longer.
"It's pretty bonkers!" Moore, 35, told ET's Nischelle Turner hours after the nominations, still in awe over being a newly minted Emmy nominee for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series. "I was just like, 'I'm going to go and just take a class and have my fingers crossed the show gets recognized, but I'll just find out when I get out.'"
Moore recalled leaving her class and receiving dozens of messages on her phone, thinking the worst had happened. It wasn't until she scrolled to read a succinct text from her husband, Dawes frontman Taylor Goldsmith, that told her everything she needed to know.
"I had, like, 65 text messages and I thought, 'Oh no, did the show not get nominated and people are bummed out and they're reaching out to say I'm sorry?' I opened the first one from my husband and it just said, 'You did it.' And there were, like, 10 exclamation points," she said. "I think I just looked at it and was like, 'Wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait...' I called him because I was like, 'I don't understand what this means.' I could not wrap my head around it."
Moore isn't the only This Is Us cast member to be a first-time Emmy nominee this year; Chris Sullivan and guest star Michael Angarano also broke through. Fellow stars Sterling K. Brown, Milo Ventimiglia, Ron Cephas Jones and Phylicia Rashad were also nominated. The show also earned two more nominations, including its third straight for Outstanding Drama Series.
"It's bananas," Moore marveled, adding that the individual recognition for her co-stars is "so, so, so deserved." "I'm pretty biased because I think everyone on our show is absolutely phenomenal and deserves to be recognized at any given opportunity. This show is the greatest gift to all of us that are a part of it. We love getting to work with one another. We love the work that we get to do. It really is an honor [and] it's not lost on us. We're just thrilled to get to do this every single day."
Moore became an Emmy contender for her peerless work as matriarch Rebecca Pearson. Though she's been in the business for nearly two decades, she never imagined that her peers or the Television Academy would deem her Emmy worthy.
"Honestly, it's never something I've dreamed about. It's beyond my wildest comprehension," she confessed. "I never, ever thought I'd be a part of something that was recognized to this degree, especially 54 episodes in during peak television. I'm really proud of the work we do, but I'm not the new kid on the block anymore and just, again, to be in that conversation and our whole family to get to be there... that's what I'm most excited about."
While Moore wasn't scheduled to work Tuesday (production on season four kicked off last week), she was itching to head to set to congratulate the cast and crew anyway.
"I almost want to go in and give everybody a hug because this is just a bizarre moment!" she exclaimed. "I feel like I should go and bring a couple of bottles of champagne!"
And when asked if she'll be starting a new Emmy tradition this time next year when nominations roll around again, Moore didn't hesitate. SoulCycle will be at the top of the list. "I know! Right now, it's my good luck charm," she mused.
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The 71st Primetime Emmy Awards will be handed out live from the Microsoft Theater in Los Angeles on Sunday, Sept. 22 on Fox. Check out the full list of nominees below and check out ET Live and ETonline for ongoing coverage of the awards.
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