The Primetime Emmy Awards for 2026 have wrapped up today, with major wins and devastating losses for queer stories.
Most heartbreakingly, comedy favourite Hacks was robbed in its final season, with the vast majority of wins in the comedy categories going to breakout hit Widow’s Bay. However, Hacks still managed to make history, with lead actress Jean Smart breaking Emmy records.
Rhea Seehorn won Best Lead Actress in a Drama Series for her role as the cynical lesbian author in Pluribus, marking her long-awaited first Emmy win, while The Pitt faced serious disappointment with only two wins out of twenty-five nominations.
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Hacks makes history
Jean Smart won Best Lead Actress in a Comedy Series for Hacks, making her the only woman to win for every season of a multi-season show – but it’s Hacks’s one and only win for its fifth and final season!
Hannah Einbinder was robbed in the category of Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series. The award went to Kate O’Flynn for her role in Widow’s Bay. Fellow Hacks castmate Megan Stalter also lost in the category, though she dazzled as a life-size Emmy award on the red carpet with her “hot perfect girlfriend” Maddie Allen.
Hacks smashed previous records for the most Emmy nominations for a comedy this year with a total of 24, leading the charge on queer-centred TV, so its lone win tonight is particularly surprising.
Hacks was going up against heavy-hitter Widow’s Bay for comedy categories, which might help explain its losses.
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Pluribus
Rhea Seehorn won Best Lead Actress in a Drama Series, earning Emmy recognition for her role as the cynical lesbian writer Carol Sturka in Pluribus. Despite being nominated 4 times in the past, this is her first win, and one which has been long-awaited by Seehorn and fans.
Pluribus also won Outstanding Writing For A Drama Series, as well as a series of wins at the Creative Arts Emmy Awards last week, for its music, editing and production design.
Zendaya was among the nominees for Outstanding Lead Actress for the third and final season of Euphoria, but lost to Seehorn.
The Pitt
The Pitt has had a mixed bag of major wins and losses this year, with only two awards at the Primetime Emmys today.
The Pitt, which featured prominent queer storylines in its most recent season, saw major Emmy success for its premiere season last year.
If you’re including the Creative Arts Emmys from last week, The Pitt won six out of its twenty-five nominations – but with multiple cast members in almost every relevant Drama category, they were surely expecting more at the Primetime Emmys.
They had no less than four nominations for Best Supporting Actress for a Drama, and three for Best Supporting Actor, but lost out to Allison Janney for The Diplomat and Tom Pelphrey for Task.
Co-creator and leading man Noah Wyle won Best Lead Actor in a Drama Series for the second year in a row, and the show also scooped up its second Outstanding Drama Series win. Though there are only two awards this year, they’re in major categories, and can be counted as a triumph on their own.
Fans criticised the show this year for foregrounding its white male lead, played by Wyle, at the expense of its diverse casts of supporting characters.
The sudden announcement of cast member Supriya Ganesh’s departure in particular frustrated fans, who felt that their character had been undervalued by the show.
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Other queer wins and tributes
The Traitors won Best Reality Competition Program just a week after host Alan Cumming took home the Creative Arts Emmy for Outstanding Host for a Reality or Reality Competition Program. Cumming’s win in the Host category was his third in three years.
With the loss of so many icons this year, the ceremony was full of remembrances. Sally Field and Reba McEntire both paid tribute to Dolly Parton, with McEntire performing the beloved country star’s song, “Appalachian Memories.”
Field said of her longtime friend Parton, “There are truly angels on Earth, and we just lost one. Though we lived very far apart, I adored her from day one. How could you not?”
The Emmys also paid tribute to Bob Mackie, who passed away today at the age of 87. The legendary costume designer was honoured with a performance by Noah Kahan of Simon & Garfunkel’s ballad “Bridge Over Troubled Water.”
Mackie was renowned for his long career designing for icons including Cher, Marilyn Monroe, Diana Ross, Elton John, Tina Turner, Dolly Parton, and Liza Minelli.
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