The 78th Primetime Emmy Awards wrapped up at the Peacock Theatre in Los Angeles. A television celebration hosted by Mariska Hargitay and aired live on Showcase on Binge in Australia. The show honoured programs that aired or streamed between June 1, 2025, and May 31, 2026.
See below for the full list of major winners from the telecast and Creative Arts ceremonies.
(A handful of additional technical and juried crafts (including some animation, costumes, and motion-design decisions) are listed only on individual Academy category pages. The full searchable index is here: https://www.televisionacademy.com/awards/nominees-winners/2026.)
Major winners (telecast plus top series, acting, writing, directing)
Series and programs
- Outstanding Drama Series: The Pitt (HBO Max)
- Outstanding Comedy Series: Widow’s Bay (Apple TV)
- Outstanding Limited or Anthology Series: DTF St. Louis (HBO Max)
- Outstanding Television Movie: Remarkably Bright Creatures
- Outstanding Variety Series: The Late Show with Stephen Colbert
- Outstanding Reality Competition Program: The Traitors
- Outstanding Variety Special (Live): The Apple Music Super Bowl LX Halftime Show Starring Bad Bunny
- Outstanding Variety Special (Pre-Recorded): The Muppet Show
- Outstanding Documentary or Nonfiction Special: My Mom Jayne: A Film by Mariska Hargitay
- Outstanding Documentary or Nonfiction Series: Mr. Scorsese
- Outstanding Animated Program: South Park
- Outstanding Structured Reality Program: Antiques Roadshow
- Outstanding Unstructured Reality Program: Love on the Spectrum
- Outstanding Game Show: Jeopardy!
Acting
- Lead Actor, Drama: Noah Wyle, The Pitt
- Lead Actress, Drama: Rhea Seehorn, Pluribus
- Supporting Actor, Drama: Tom Pelphrey, Task
- Supporting Actress, Drama: Allison Janney, The Diplomat
- Lead Actor, Comedy: Matthew Rhys, Widow’s Bay
- Lead Actress, Comedy: Jean Smart, Hacks
- Supporting Actor, Comedy: Stephen Root, Widow’s Bay
- Supporting Actress, Comedy: Kate O’Flynn, Widow’s Bay
- Lead Actor, Limited/Movie: Matthew Rhys, The Beast in Me
- Lead Actress, Limited/Movie: Sally Field, Remarkably Bright Creatures
- Supporting Actor, Limited/Movie: David Harbour, DTF St. Louis
- Supporting Actress, Limited/Movie: Linda Cardellini, DTF St. Louis
- Guest Actor, Drama: Ernest Harden Jr., The Pitt
- Guest Actress, Drama: Shailene Woodley, Paradise
- Guest Actor, Comedy: Rob Reiner, The Bear (posthumous)
- Guest Actress, Comedy: Betty Gilpin, Widow’s Bay
- Character Voice-Over Performance: Julie Andrews, Bridgerton
- Narrator: Octavia Spencer, Lost Women of Alaska
- Host, Reality or Reality Competition: Alan Cumming, The Traitors
- Host, Game Show: Jimmy Kimmel, Who Wants to Be a Millionaire
- Performer, Short Form Comedy or Drama: Desi Lydic, The Daily Show: Desi Lydic Foxsplains
Writing and directing
- Writing, Drama Series: Vince Gilligan, Pluribus
- Writing, Comedy Series: Katie Dippold, Widow’s Bay
- Writing, Limited/Movie: Steven Conrad, DTF St. Louis
- Writing, Variety Series: The Late Show with Stephen Colbert
- Writing, Variety Special: The Muppet Show
- Writing, Nonfiction Program: The Daily Show Presents: Jordan Klepper Fingers the Pulse
- Directing, Drama Series: Saul Metzstein, Slow Horses
- Directing, Comedy Series: Hiro Murai, Widow’s Bay
- Directing, Limited/Movie: Steven Conrad, DTF St. Louis
- Directing, Variety Series: Yvonne De Mare, The Late Show with Stephen Colbert
- Directing, Variety Special: Hamish Hamilton, The Apple Music Super Bowl LX Halftime Show Starring Bad Bunny
- Directing, Documentary/Nonfiction: Mariska Hargitay, My Mom Jayne
- Directing, Reality Program: Ben Archard, The Traitors
Minor and craft winners (Creative Arts)
Casting
- Drama Series: The Pitt
- Comedy Series: Widow’s Bay
- Limited/Movie: Love Story: John F. Kennedy Jr. & Carolyn Bessette
- Reality Program: Love on the Spectrum
Production design
- Narrative Contemporary (one hour or more): Pluribus
- Narrative Period or Fantasy (one hour or more): Fallout
- Narrative Program (half-hour): Widow’s Bay
- Variety or Reality Series: The Traitors
- Variety Special: The Muppet Show
Cinematography
- Series (half-hour): Widow’s Bay
- Series (one hour): Spider-Noir
- Limited/Movie: DTF St. Louis
- Nonfiction Program: Ocean with David Attenborough
- Reality Program: The Traitors
Picture editing
- Drama Series: Pluribus
- Single-Camera Comedy Series: Hacks
- Multi-Camera Comedy Series: Leanne
- Limited/Movie: DTF St. Louis
- Variety Programming: The Muppet Show
- Variety Programming (segment): The Late Show with Stephen Colbert
- Nonfiction Program: Sean Combs: The Reckoning
- Unstructured Reality: Love on the Spectrum
- Structured Reality or Competition: The Traitors
Sound
- Mixing, Comedy or Drama (half-hour) and Animation: Widow’s Bay
- Mixing, Comedy or Drama (one hour): Pluribus
- Mixing, Limited/Movie: Beef
- Mixing, Variety Series or Special: The Apple Music Super Bowl LX Halftime Show Starring Bad Bunny
- Mixing, Reality Program: Welcome to Wrexham
- Mixing, Nonfiction Program: Billy Joel: And So It Goes
- Editing, Comedy or Drama (half-hour): Widow’s Bay
- Editing, Comedy or Drama (one hour): Spider-Noir
- Editing, Limited/Movie or Special: Beef
- Editing, Nonfiction or Reality: Ocean with David Attenborough
Music
- Composition, Series: David Fleming, Widow’s Bay
- Composition, Limited/Movie or Special: Sean Callery and Sara Barone, The Beast in Me
- Composition, Documentary/Nonfiction or Reality: John Candy: I Like Me
- Music Supervision: Toko Nagata, Widow’s Bay
- Original Main Title Theme Music: Dave Porter, Pluribus
- Original Music and Lyrics: “Need Someone,” The Pitt
- Music Direction: The Apple Music Super Bowl LX Halftime Show Starring Bad Bunny
Costumes, hair, makeup
- Contemporary Costumes, Series: Margo’s Got Money Troubles
- Contemporary Costumes, Limited/Movie: Beef
- Period Costumes: Palm Royale
- Fantasy/Sci-Fi Costumes: Fallout
- Costumes, Variety/Nonfiction/Reality: The Masked Singer and The Traitors
- Contemporary Hairstyling: Margo’s Got Money Troubles
- Period or Fantasy/Sci-Fi Hairstyling: Bridgerton
- Hairstyling, Variety/Nonfiction/Reality: RuPaul’s Drag Race
- Contemporary Makeup (non-prosthetic): Margo’s Got Money Troubles
- Period or Fantasy/Sci-Fi Makeup (non-prosthetic): Palm Royale
- Prosthetic Makeup: The Pitt
- Makeup, Variety/Nonfiction/Reality: Saturday Night Live
Visual effects, stunts, titles, lighting, camera
- Special Visual Effects, Season or Movie: Stranger Things
- Special Visual Effects, Single Episode: Spider-Noir
- Title Design: Spider-Noir
- Stunt Coordination, Comedy: Spider-Noir
- Stunt Coordination, Drama: The Boys
- Stunt Performance: A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms
- Choreography, Scripted Programming: Brooke Lipton, Palm Royale
- Choreography, Variety or Reality: The Apple Music Super Bowl LX Halftime Show Starring Bad Bunny
- Lighting Design, Series: The Late Show with Stephen Colbert
- Lighting Design, Special: The Apple Music Super Bowl LX Halftime Show Starring Bad Bunny
- Technical Direction and Camerawork, Series: The Late Show with Stephen Colbert
- Technical Direction and Camerawork, Special: The Apple Music Super Bowl LX Halftime Show Starring Bad Bunny
Short form, commercial, emerging media, other
- Short Form Comedy, Drama or Variety Series: Colbert Before Air
- Short Form Nonfiction or Reality Series: Inside the Pitt
- Commercial: I’m Not Remarkable (Apple)
- Emerging Media Program: Uncanny Alley: A New Day
- Innovation in Emerging Media Programming: Crafting Crimes
- Hosted Nonfiction Series or Special: Tucci in Italy
- Exceptional Merit in Documentary Filmmaking: The Librarians
- Individual Achievement in Animation included Eyes of Wakanda, Genndy Tartakovsky’s Primal, and Star Wars: Visions (juried)
“Widow’s Bay” finished as the night’s overall leader. The Apple TV horror-comedy won Outstanding Comedy Series, then added lead actor, supporting actor, supporting actress, writing, and directing to eight Creative Arts trophies. “The Pitt” repeated as Outstanding Drama Series and sent Noah Wyle home with a second straight lead-actor win. “DTF St. Louis” took limited series. “The Traitors” won reality competition for a third straight year. Bad Bunny’s Super Bowl halftime show collected seven Creative Arts Emmys. Mariska Hargitay won two of her own for “My Mom Jayne” before hosting.
Hargitay, the first woman to host the ceremony in 15 years, opened with Joan Jett’s “I Love Rock ’n’ Roll” and a cameo from Knicks guard Jalen Brunson. She later sang a farewell to ended shows, including “Hacks” and “The Late Show with Stephen Colbert,” with Andrew Rannells. A pre-taped “Law & Order: SVU” sketch cast Taylor Swift as a skeptical rookie cop while she was actually at Travis Kelce’s game in Kansas City. Swift’s cat Olivia Benson appeared too. Nicole Kidman heckled Hargitay from the seats when the host borrowed the “we come to this place for magic” line. Nick Offerman got big laughs calling his first job an “erotic painter” of houses. John Mulaney’s presenter bit was bleeped on broadcast. Emilia Clarke and Emma D’Arcy presented Sally Field’s award. Reba McEntire sang a Dolly Parton tribute.
The speeches were the night’s pulse. Stephen Colbert accepted the variety-series trophy for the recently ended “Late Show” and dedicated it to his wife, Evie McGee. Tom Pelphrey, winning supporting actor in a drama for “Task,” thanked his sobriety and spoke to a crying, pregnant Kaley Cuoco in the audience. Field, 79, won for “Remarkably Bright Creatures” and said the arts cannot be silenced. Jean Smart took her fifth consecutive comedy-actress Emmy for the final season of “Hacks,” becoming the first woman to win the category for every season of her series, and joked about the standing ovation. Matthew Rhys made history as the first man to win two lead-acting Emmys in one night, for “Widow’s Bay” and “The Beast in Me.”
Were your Emmy predictions close?
