TNT's The Closer has received critical acclaim throughout its five-year run -- the show's sixth season begins July 12 -- but most of the applause has been for its lead, Kyra Sedgwick. And while there's a lot of reason to love her portrayal of tough detective Brenda Leigh Johnson, she thinks she shouldn't get all the praise.

"I'd love the show to get nominated one year," she told Zap2it. "I think we deserve it. It's one of the best dramas on television, and we've been overlooked in that area."

She's hoping that The Closer gets a Best Drama nomination, especially since they're submitting a particularly powerful episode: "Strike Three", the one that featured Mary McDonnell. "[In that episode] a fellow LAPD officer has been murdered," Sedgwick explained. "At the end of it we're all in our dress blues and everybody in uniform; it's a really great episode."

But a nomination for herself would be nice, too. "It's almost even more of an exciting thing when it happens year after year," she said. "It still holds a place of esteem. For me, I'm always so thrilled to get the call. It's just as exciting every time, it's always a surprise. It's never an expectation on my part."

Well, as long as the series still gets praise at the Emmys, I'm all for it. The Closer returns to TNT on July 12.

(Image courtesy of TNT)