Mind you, he's made some bad choices when it comes to parts. Sean is always brilliant but often gets overlooked because the shows he's in are pretty so-so. The BAFTAS for telly go to big BBC-ish shows that receive a lot of coverage and have lots of major British stars in. Sean seems to have dropped out of that British loop. This is a great pity.
I would imagine that it can be hard to tell if the show is going to be a success or not in the beginning. But, I will say that Sean could possibly benefit from seeking some other people's advice about a script he's been offered. Airborne, anyone? '-)
I think TFC was brilliant. I also think Season 2 of Legends was very good, much better than season 1 but, both TV networks mishandled these shows. It was not Sean's fault acting wise or choosing a bad show that was the problem. I think he is getting better at choosing better shows and movies. Just because the shows were overlooked for awards, does not necessarily mean that Sean's performance or that his creative input into the production is not being noticed. Look at Red Riding - another really high quality show that did well but seemed to do even better after it was originally aired and it got Sir Ridley Scott to notice Sean again. So, you never know what may lead to what...a professional reputation and a consistent overall body of work is still very important in the entertainment industry.
I want Sean to get the awards because his performances always deserve them. I think he likes to be on the cutting edge, to be a rebel or Pioneer type which is why he doesn't play the suck up game. So because of this, he is willing to take risks as to what network and who is in charge, etc. For a while I was always lamenting him to grow up and just play nice to the BBC types but I think its more about his integrity than anything else now. He's just not comfortable playing the BBC popularity game. I mean come on, could you see him playing a role in Downton Abbey? What character? It's just not what he wants to do.