The 78th Primetime Emmy Awards aired live Monday, Sept. 14, 2026, from the Peacock Theater at L.A. LIVE. Mariska Hargitay hosted. NBC carried the telecast; Peacock streamed it. Creative Arts nights ran Sept. 5–6.
Apple TV’s freshman horror-comedy Widow’s Bay owned the night and the weekend. It finished with a record 14 Emmys for a comedy series in a single year — topping last year’s The Studio mark of 13 — including six on the main telecast: comedy series, lead actor, supporting actor, supporting actress, writing, and directing.
HBO Max’s The Pitt won Outstanding Drama Series for a second straight year. Noah Wyle repeated as lead drama actor. Apple TV’s Pluribus delivered Vince Gilligan a writing win and Rhea Seehorn her first Emmy. HBO’s DTF St. Louis took Limited or Anthology Series.
Official source: Television Academy — 78th Emmy Awards winners and the complete winners download.
Night-of headlines
- Widow’s Bay — most comedy-series wins in a single year (14 across all nights).
- Matthew Rhys — two lead-actor trophies in one year (Widow’s Bay comedy + The Beast in Me limited).
- Jean Smart (Hacks) — eighth career Emmy and fifth consecutive lead-comedy win for Deborah Vance; first woman to win lead comedy for every season of a series.
- Allison Janney (The Diplomat) — eighth career Emmy, tying Smart, Cloris Leachman, and Julia Louis-Dreyfus for most acting Emmys.
- The Late Show with Stephen Colbert — Outstanding Variety Series in its final season.
- The Traitors — Outstanding Reality Competition Program.
- Michael J. Fox received the Bob Hope Humanitarian Award.
Recaps: Vanity Fair live winners · Vulture full list · CNN winners · BBC winners and nominees
Series winners
Outstanding Drama Series
Winner: The Pitt (HBO Max)
Nominees: The Diplomat, The Gilded Age, A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms, Paradise, Pluribus, Slow Horses, Your Friends & Neighbors
Outstanding Comedy Series
Winner: Widow’s Bay (Apple TV)
Nominees: Abbott Elementary, The Bear, Hacks, Margo’s Got Money Troubles, Nobody Wants This, Only Murders in the Building, Shrinking
Outstanding Limited or Anthology Series
Winner: DTF St. Louis (HBO)
Nominees: All Her Fault, The Beast in Me, Beef, Love Story: John F. Kennedy Jr. & Carolyn Bessette
Outstanding Variety Series
Winner: The Late Show with Stephen Colbert
Nominees: The Daily Show, Jimmy Kimmel Live!, Last Week Tonight with John Oliver, Saturday Night Live
Outstanding Reality Competition Program
Winner: The Traitors (Peacock)
Nominees: Dancing with the Stars, RuPaul’s Drag Race, Survivor, Top Chef
Outstanding Television Movie (reported on the telecast list)
Winner: Remarkably Bright Creatures (Netflix)
Acting winners
Lead Actor, Drama — Noah Wyle, The Pitt
Nominees: Sterling K. Brown (Paradise), Gary Oldman (Slow Horses), Mark Ruffalo (Task), Rufus Sewell (The Diplomat)
Lead Actress, Drama — Rhea Seehorn, Pluribus
Nominees: Carrie Coon (The Gilded Age), Chase Infiniti (The Testaments), Keri Russell (The Diplomat), Zendaya (Euphoria)
Lead Actor, Comedy — Matthew Rhys, Widow’s Bay
Nominees: Yahya Abdul-Mateen II (Wonder Man), Steve Carell (Rooster), Jason Segel (Shrinking), Martin Short (Only Murders in the Building)
Lead Actress, Comedy — Jean Smart, Hacks
Nominees: Quinta Brunson (Abbott Elementary), Ayo Edebiri (The Bear), Elle Fanning (Margo’s Got Money Troubles), Lisa Kudrow (The Comeback)
Lead Actor, Limited or Anthology Series or Movie — Matthew Rhys, The Beast in Me
Nominees: Riz Ahmed (Bait), Jason Bateman (Black Rabbit), Charlie Hunnam (Monster: The Ed Gein Story), Oscar Isaac (Beef)
Lead Actress, Limited or Anthology Series or Movie — Sally Field, Remarkably Bright Creatures
Nominees: Claire Danes (The Beast in Me), Carey Mulligan (Beef), Sarah Pidgeon (Love Story: John F. Kennedy Jr. & Carolyn Bessette), Sarah Snook (All Her Fault)
Supporting Actor, Drama — Tom Pelphrey, Task
Nominees: Patrick Ball (The Pitt), Billy Crudup (The Morning Show), Shawn Hatosy (The Pitt), Gerran Howell (The Pitt), Jack Lowden (Slow Horses), Carlos-Manuel Vesga (Pluribus)
Supporting Actress, Drama — Allison Janney, The Diplomat
Nominees: Taylor Dearden, Fiona Dourif, Katherine LaNasa, Sepideh Moafi (The Pitt); Julianne Nicholson (Paradise); Karolina Wydra (Pluribus)
Supporting Actor, Comedy — Stephen Root, Widow’s Bay
Nominees: Colman Domingo (The Four Seasons), Paul W. Downs (Hacks), Harrison Ford (Shrinking), Nick Offerman (Margo’s Got Money Troubles), Michael Urie (Shrinking), Tyler James Williams (Abbott Elementary)
Supporting Actress, Comedy — Kate O’Flynn, Widow’s Bay
Nominees: Dale Dickey (Widow’s Bay), Hannah Einbinder (Hacks), Janelle James (Abbott Elementary), Michelle Pfeiffer (Margo’s Got Money Troubles), Megan Stalter (Hacks), Jessica Williams (Shrinking)
Limited-series supporting wins reported for DTF St. Louis: David Harbour and Linda Cardellini.
Writing and directing (main telecast)
Writing, Drama — Vince Gilligan, Pluribus, “We Is Us”
Writing, Comedy — Katie Dippold, Widow’s Bay, “Welcome to Widow’s Bay!”
Directing, Drama — Saul Metzstein, Slow Horses, “Scars”
Directing, Comedy — Hiro Murai, Widow’s Bay, “Welcome to Widow’s Bay!”
Creative Arts snapshot (Sept. 5–6)
Not every craft category belongs in a main-night recap, but these names kept coming up:
- Betty Gilpin — guest performer, Widow’s Bay
- Bridgerton — period/fantasy/sci-fi hairstyling
- Bad Bunny’s Apple Music Super Bowl LX Halftime Show — seven awards across the three nights
- The Traitors and The Late Show with Stephen Colbert also stacked craft wins before Monday
Night-one and night-two PDFs: Night 1 winners · Night 2 winners
How to watch the show now
Replay and clips: Peacock · NBC Emmys hub · Academy recap and thank-you cams: televisionacademy.com
Fashion and carpet: Vanity Fair red carpet
Quick FAQ
When were the 2026 Emmys?
Monday, Sept. 14, 2026, 8 p.m. ET / 5 p.m. PT. Creative Arts: Sept. 5–6.
Who hosted?
Mariska Hargitay.
What show won the most?
Widow’s Bay (14 total). The Pitt, DTF St. Louis, the Bad Bunny Super Bowl show, and The Traitors were the next cluster.
Did The Pitt three-peat acting and series?
Series and lead actor, yes. Supporting categories went elsewhere (Task, The Diplomat).
The Ticket News is an independent live-events and entertainment guide. This recap links official Academy pages and major news outlets for verification. Award tallies can be updated if the Academy issues a correction.