The 2026 Emmy Awards have delivered a night packed with major wins, career milestones and plenty of surprises across television’s biggest categories.
Among the evening’s standout stories was Matthew Rhys, who reached a rare milestone in Emmy history. With victories in both the comedy and limited-series acting categories, Rhys became the first performer to collect lead acting Emmys in drama, comedy and limited series during a career. His earlier drama win came in 2018 for The Americans, while this year he took home trophies for Widow’s Bay and The Beast in Me.
Meanwhile, The Pitt emerged as one of the night’s biggest drama winners, taking Outstanding Drama Series along with a lead acting victory for Noah Wyle. Widow’s Bay dominated the comedy side, winning Outstanding Comedy Series as well as several acting and creative awards.
Here is the updated list of major 2026 Emmy winners.
Outstanding Drama Series
Winner: The Pitt
The HBO medical drama claimed the top prize in the drama field, defeating a competitive lineup that included The Diplomat, The Gilded Age, Paradise, Pluribus, Slow Horses and Your Friends & Neighbors.
Other nominees were A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms and the remaining contenders in one of the year’s most closely watched categories.
Outstanding Comedy Series
Winner: Widow’s Bay
The horror-comedy Widow’s Bay had a particularly strong night, earning the night’s top comedy award and helping propel Matthew Rhys to a historic acting achievement.
The series competed against Abbott Elementary, The Bear, Hacks, Margo’s Got Money Troubles, Nobody Wants This, Only Murders in the Building and Shrinking.
Lead Actor in a Drama Series
Winner: Noah Wyle — The Pitt
Noah Wyle took the drama acting prize for his performance in The Pitt.
The category also featured Sterling K. Brown for Paradise, Gary Oldman for Slow Horses, Mark Ruffalo for Task and Rufus Sewell for The Diplomat.
Lead Actress in a Drama Series
Winner: Rhea Seehorn — Pluribus
Rhea Seehorn won the Emmy for lead actress in a drama for Pluribus, adding another major recognition to the Apple TV series.
She prevailed over Carrie Coon, Chase Infiniti, Keri Russell and Zendaya.
Supporting Actor in a Drama Series
Winner: Tom Pelphrey — Task
Tom Pelphrey earned the supporting actor trophy for his role in Task.
The nominees included several performers from The Pitt, as well as Billy Crudup from The Morning Show, Jack Lowden from Slow Horses and Carlos-Manuel Vesga from Pluribus.
Supporting Actress in a Drama Series
Winner: Allison Janney — The Diplomat
Allison Janney added another Emmy to her career collection with a supporting actress victory for The Diplomat.
The category included performers from The Pitt, Paradise and Pluribus.
Lead Actor in a Comedy Series
Winner: Matthew Rhys — Widow’s Bay
Matthew Rhys made Emmy history with his comedy acting victory for Widow’s Bay.
His win came against Yahya Abdul-Mateen II for Wonder Man, Steve Carell for Rooster, Jason Segel for Shrinking and Martin Short for Only Murders in the Building.
The victory was especially significant because Rhys had already won a drama Emmy for The Americans and would also win in the limited-series acting category for The Beast in Me.
Lead Actress in a Comedy Series
Winner: Jean Smart — Hacks
Jean Smart continued her impressive run with a lead comedy actress Emmy for Hacks.
She competed against Quinta Brunson, Ayo Edebiri, Elle Fanning and Lisa Kudrow.
Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series
Winner: Stephen Root — Widow’s Bay
Stephen Root took home the supporting comedy actor award for Widow’s Bay.
The nominees also included Colman Domingo, Paul W. Downs, Harrison Ford, Nick Offerman, Michael Urie and Tyler James Williams.
Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series
Winner: Kate O’Flynn — Widow’s Bay
Kate O’Flynn was another Widow’s Bay performer to celebrate, winning the supporting actress Emmy.
Hannah Einbinder, Janelle James, Michelle Pfeiffer, Megan Stalter and Jessica Williams were among the other nominees.
Outstanding Limited or Anthology Series
Winner: DTF St Louis
DTF St Louis captured the Emmy for outstanding limited or anthology series.
The series beat All Her Fault, The Beast in Me, Beef and Love Story: John F Kennedy Jr & Carolyn Bessette.
Lead Actor in a Limited or Anthology Series or Movie
Winner: Matthew Rhys — The Beast in Me
Rhys completed his extraordinary night by winning the limited-series lead actor award for The Beast in Me.
He faced competition from Riz Ahmed, Jason Bateman, Charlie Hunnam and Oscar Isaac.
The award was the final piece of his historic achievement across television’s drama, comedy and limited-series acting categories.
Lead Actress in a Limited or Anthology Series or Movie
Winner: Sally Field — Remarkably Bright Creatures
Sally Field won the lead actress Emmy for Remarkably Bright Creatures.
Claire Danes, Carey Mulligan, Sarah Pidgeon and Sarah Snook were among the other nominees.
Directing — Drama Series
Winner: Saul Metzstein — Slow Horses
Saul Metzstein earned the directing award for drama for Slow Horses.
Other nominees represented The Gilded Age, Paradise, The Pitt, Pluribus and Task.
Directing — Comedy Series
Winner: Hiro Murai — Widow’s Bay
Hiro Murai took the comedy directing trophy for Widow’s Bay, adding another major award to the show’s successful evening.
Writing — Drama Series
Winner: Vince Gilligan — Pluribus
Vince Gilligan won for Pluribus with the episode “We Is Us.”
The drama writing field also included episodes of The Diplomat, The Pitt, Slow Horses and Task.
Writing — Comedy Series
Winner: Katie Dippold — Widow’s Bay
Katie Dippold won the comedy writing Emmy for the Widow’s Bay episode “Welcome To Widow’s Bay!”
The category also featured writers from Abbott Elementary, The Chair Company, The Comeback, Hacks and Jury Duty Presents: Company Retreat.
Reality Competition Program
Winner: The Traitors
The Traitors won the reality competition prize, beating Dancing with the Stars, RuPaul’s Drag Race, Survivor and Top Chef.
Variety Series
Winner: The Late Show with Stephen Colbert
The Late Show with Stephen Colbert took the top variety series honor.
The nominees included The Daily Show, Jimmy Kimmel Live!, Last Week Tonight with John Oliver and Saturday Night Live.
2026 Creative Arts Emmy Winners
Several categories were already decided during the Creative Arts Emmy ceremonies held September 5-6. Those winners included:
Supporting Actor, Limited or Anthology Series or Movie
David Harbour — DTF St Louis
Supporting Actress, Limited or Anthology Series or Movie
Linda Cardellini — DTF St Louis
Guest Actress, Drama Series
Shailene Woodley — Paradise
Guest Actor, Drama Series
Ernest Harden Jr. — The Pitt
Guest Actress, Comedy Series
Betty Gilpin — Widow’s Bay
Guest Actor, Comedy Series
Rob Reiner — The Bear
Directing, Limited or Anthology Series or Movie
** DTF St Louis**
Writing, Limited or Anthology Series or Movie
** DTF St Louis**
Television Movie
** Remarkably Bright Creatures**
Variety Special, Live
** The Apple Music Super Bowl LX Halftime Show Starring Bad Bunny**
Variety Special, Pre-Recorded
** The Muppet Show**
Writing for a Variety Series
** The Late Show with Stephen Colbert**
Outstanding Animated Program
** South Park**
Biggest Takeaways From the 2026 Emmys
The 2026 ceremony produced several clear winners.
The Pitt led the drama conversation, taking the night’s biggest drama prize and earning Noah Wyle a lead acting Emmy. Widow’s Bay was one of the strongest comedy performers, winning Outstanding Comedy Series along with multiple acting, directing and writing awards.
But the defining individual story belonged to Matthew Rhys. His wins for Widow’s Bay and The Beast in Me, combined with his earlier Emmy for The Americans, gave him a distinction no other performer had previously achieved in the lead acting categories.
With major victories spread across established stars, breakthrough performers and some of television’s most talked-about shows, the 2026 Emmy Awards provided a broad snapshot of where the TV industry stands heading into the next awards season.2026 Emmy Winners.
Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes and is based on publicly available Emmy Awards information. Winner details may be updated as additional results are announced or corrected.
