"Widow's Bay" swept the 78th Primetime Emmy Awards, with the Apple TV+ series taking six trophies on the night to bring its season total to 14, a new record for a comedy series in a single season. The horror-comedy had already picked up eight awards at the two Creative Arts Emmy ceremonies the previous weekend.
The show's dominance capped a night that turned into another showdown between Apple and HBO Max, with "The Pitt" taking the top prize for best drama series.
The 78th Primetime Emmy Awards were held on Monday, September 14, 2026, at the Peacock Theater in Los Angeles, hosted by Mariska Hargitai. The Creative Arts Emmys, which cover technical and other categories, had already taken place on September 5 and 6.
Matthew Rhys makes Emmy history
Matthew Rhys made history as the only actor to have won Emmys in all three major acting categories.
Rhys won best actor in a comedy series for "Widow's Bay," in which he plays the mayor of a haunted island town, and best actor in a limited series for his role in the Netflix thriller "The Beast in Me." He had previously won the lead actor in a drama series award in 2018 for FX's "The Americans."
"Widow's Bay" also won awards for writing and directing, plus both supporting actor categories in comedy, going to Stephen Root and Kate O'Flynn. Betty Gilpin also won an award for the series.
The Pitt tops best drama
"The Pitt," from HBO Max, was named best drama series, while Noah Wyle, who plays veteran emergency room doctor Michael "Robby" Robinavich, won the Emmy for lead actor in a drama.
Accepting his award, Wyle said it was the only thing he had ever wanted to do and the only team he had ever wanted to belong to.
The success of "The Pitt" confirmed the show's momentum. It was the most-watched series among the nominees in the main drama and comedy categories, drawing close to 400 million hours of viewing, according to Nielsen figures. HBO Max received 122 nominations in total, more than any other network or platform, while "The Pitt" alone earned 25 nominations, more than any other series.
Jean Smart's fifth consecutive Emmy
In the comedy categories, Jean Smart won the lead actress award for the fifth consecutive year for her role as Deborah Vance in HBO Max's "Hacks."
It was the eighth Emmy of her career. "Hacks" received 24 nominations, the most ever collected by a comedy series in a single year. Rhea Seehorn won best actress in a drama for Apple TV's "Pluribus," whose creator, Vince Gilligan, won the writing award for drama series.
Netflix and Warner Bros. in the spotlight
Netflix collected 111 nominations in total, including for "The Diplomat," "Nobody Wants This" and "Beef." Allison Janney won the Emmy for supporting actress in a drama for "The Diplomat."
This year's ceremony took place amid significant upheaval in streaming and entertainment. The future of Warner Bros. and HBO Max remains uncertain as a $110 billion deal for Paramount Skydance to acquire the company continues to move forward.
The deal has already drawn legal challenges from 12 state attorneys general and the Writers Guild, who argue the merger would create excessive concentration in film and television production and lead to thousands of job losses.
Full list of winners
- Best drama series: The Pitt
- Best comedy series: Widow's Bay
- Best limited or anthology series: DTF St. Louis
- Lead actor, drama series: Noah Wyle, The Pitt
- Lead actress, drama series: Rhea Seehorn, Pluribus
- Lead actor, comedy series: Matthew Rhys, Widow's Bay
- Lead actress, comedy series: Jean Smart, Hacks
- Supporting actor, drama series: Tom Pelphrey, Task
- Supporting actress, drama series: Allison Janney, The Diplomat
- Supporting actor, comedy series: Stephen Root, Widow's Bay
- Supporting actress, comedy series: Kate O'Flynn, Widow's Bay
- Lead actor, limited series, anthology series or TV movie: Matthew Rhys, The Beast in Me
- Lead actress, limited series, anthology series or TV movie: Sally Field, Remarkably Bright Creatures
- Best competition reality series: The Traitors
- Best variety series: The Late Show with Stephen Colbert
- Directing, drama series: Slow Horses, episode "Scars," Saul Metzstein
- Directing, comedy series: Widow's Bay, episode "Welcome to Widow's Bay!," Hiro Murai
- Writing, drama series: Pluribus, episode "We Is Us," Vince Gilligan
- Writing, comedy series: Widow's Bay, episode "Welcome to Widow's Bay!," Katie Dippold
