Ron Howard earned his first-ever acting Emmy nomination Tuesday when he was recognized for his guest-starring role on “The Studio.”

Being recognized for acting "never even crossed my mind because it was so beyond the realm of feasibility," Howard tells PEOPLE in an exclusive interview after learning of his Emmy nomination

Yes, the series nabbed five out of six nominations in the Outstanding Guest Actor in a Comedy Series category, with only Jon Bernthal sneaking in from another series (he’s of course representing FX and Hulu’s “The Bear”). “The Studio” also snagged a guest actress nominee as well.