Matthew Rhys made Emmy history by becoming the first actor to win two leading acting awards in a single night.
The 51-year-old Welsh star took home Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series for Widow’s Bay and Outstanding Lead Actor in a Limited or Anthology Series or Movie for The Beast in Me.
Rhys prevailed in the comedy category against a formidable lineup: Yahya Abdul-Mateen II for Wonder Man, Steve Carell for Rooster, Jason Segel for Shrinking, Martin Short for Only Murders in the Building and his Widow’s Bay co-star Dale Dickey.
Turning his attention to his second victory, Rhys used his acceptance speech to joke about creator Katie Dippold, saying: “My apologies to the women who had to stand again.”
He continued: “Stephen Root is right, this is purely because of the depraved and twisted mind of Katie Dippold, and her genius really does live in the recesses of her disturbed brain. It is also because of my hero, Hiro Murai, so beautifully, as did all of them.”
In the Apple TV series, Rhys plays Tom Loftis, the mayor of Widow’s Bay. A mainlander who initially doubts the islanders’ superstitions about a supposed curse, Tom is also a widower and the father of Evan, his son with his late wife, Lauren.
Matthew Rhys made Emmy history as the first actor to win two leading acting awards in one night.
The 51-year-old Welsh actor won Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series for Widow’s Bay.
He also claimed Outstanding Lead Actor in a Limited or Anthology Series or Movie for The Beast in Me.
Earlier in the evening, Rhys won for The Beast in Me after overcoming competition from Riz Ahmed for Bait, Jason Bateman for Black Rabbit, Charlie Hunnam for Monster: The Ed Gein Story and Oscar Isaac for Beef.
Rhea Seehorn also delivered one of the night’s biggest upsets, defeating major contender Zendaya to claim her award.
The 54-year-old actress won Lead Actress in a Drama at the 2026 Emmy Awards for her performance in Pluribus.
Her fellow nominees included 30-year-old Zendaya, recognized for the third and final season of Euphoria, as well as Carrie Coon for The Gilded Age, Chase Infiniti for The Testaments and Keri Russell for The Diplomat.
The nominees appeared to share a warm sense of camaraderie, with Seehorn taking time during her speech to acknowledge her fellow contenders, including Russell.
Seehorn said: “And I also just want to say congratulations and thank you for the performances to my fellow nominees in my category. All brilliant, brilliant performances.”
‘Keri Russell among them, who sent us a lovely gift and a card, quoting — sadly we didn’t know we would lose her so soon, but quoting Gloria steinem saying, “we are linked, not ranked.” And I feel that way about all you women. So, thank you for that.’
Rhea Seehorn earned one of the biggest wins of television’s biggest night and beat one of the biggest stars in Zendaya to earn the honor
Zendaya clapped for Seehorn despite losing out
American journalist and social movement activist Steinem passed away earlier this month at 92-years-old.
In the ambitious project created by Breaking Bad’s Vince Gilligan, Seehorn’s character Carol Sturka is one of the immune few who live in a world overtaken by a mysterious wave of forced happiness and must uncover what is really going on in order to save humanity from artificial bliss.
Noah Wyle was the first to be awarded for The Pitt on a night where they earned 25 nominations which was the most from any single series.
The 55-year-old actor earned the win in the coveted Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series category as he beat out: Sterling K. Brown for Paradise, Gary Oldman for Slow Horses, Mark Ruffalo for Task, and Rufus Sewell for The Diplomat.
On the series he portrays Dr. Michael ‘Robby’ Robinavitch who is the main protagonist of the show as he deals with trauma and PTSD alongside unresolved post-COVID stress.
The Pitt is centered around the daily lives of healthcare professionals in a Pittsburgh hospital as they juggle personal crises, workplace politics, and the emotional
toll of treating critically ill patients, revealing the resilience required in their noble calling.
Jean Smart earned her fifth Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy win in a row at the Emmy Awards 2026 on a night that featured a star-studded red carpet.
The 54-year-old actress triumphed in the Lead Actress in a Drama category at the Emmy Awards 2026 as she was recognized for her work in Pluribus
She beat out an impressive field including 30-year-old Zendaya for the third and final season of Euphoria along with Carrie Coon for The Gilded Age, Chase Infiniti for The Testaments, and Keri Russell for The Diplomat
There seemed to be a real camaraderie between the nominees as she recognized her fellow competitors including Russell
In the project created by Breaking Bad’s Vince Gilligan, Seehorn’s character Carol Sturka is one of the immune few who live in a world overtaken by a mysterious wave of forced happiness and must uncover what is really going on in order to save humanity from artificial bliss
The 75-year-old talented actress was recognized for her work on Hacks which just had its fifth and final season.
Smart – who earned her eighth total Emmy in her 15th total nomination – was obviously emotional as her name was called and she was presented the honor by Zendaya.
During her acceptance speech she thanked her children Connor and Forrest before recognizing the creators of her highly-popular HBO Max series.
She said: ‘But this one I am dedicating to Jen Statsky, Lucia Aniello, and Paul W. Downs.
‘It all begins and ends with them. I love you guys so much. Thank you. Thank you all so much.’
Noah Wyle was the first to be awarded for The Pitt on a night where they earned 25 nominations which was the most from any single series
The 55-year-old actor earned the win in the coveted Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series category as he beat out: Sterling K. Brown for Paradise, Gary Oldman for Slow Horses, Mark Ruffalo for Task, and Rufus Sewell for The Diplomat
On the series he portrays Dr. Michael ‘Robby’ Robinavitch who is the main protagonist of the show as he deals with trauma and PTSD alongside unresolved post-COVID stress
Jean Smart earned her fifth Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy win in a row
The 75-year-old talented actress was recognized for her work on Hacks which just had it’s fifth and final season
Smart – who earned her eighth total Emmy in her 15th total nomination – was obviously emotional as her name was called and she was presented the honor by Zendaya
During her acceptance speech she thanked her children Connor and Forrest before recognizing the creators of her highly-popular HBO Max series
Kate O’Flynn earned the first award of the night in the Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy category.
The 40-year-old British actress earned the honor for her work in Widow’s Bay.
She beat out: Hannah Einbinder for Hacks, Janelle James for Abbott Elementary, Michelle Pfeiffer for Margo’s Got Money Troubles, Megan Stalter for Hacks, and Jessica Williams for Shrinking.
The 78th annual Primetime Emmy Awards are taking place at the Peacock Theater in downtown Los Angeles on Monday night.
Law & Order: SVU executive producer/star Mariska Hargitay served as host of the gala event which marks the first time a woman has hosted the show in 15 years.
She kicked off the event with a prerecorded intro featuring New York Knicks NBA Finals MVP Jalen Brunson and a parody version of 1981 Joan Jett & The Blackhearts hit I Love Rock ‘n’ Roll turned into ‘I love TV screens’ before jumping into a monologue.
Nominations for television’s biggest night were announced back in July as Euphoria’s Sydney Sweeney, The Bear’s Jeremy Allen White, and Stranger Things as a whole were among the most shocking snubs.
The Pitt earned the most nods with the hit HBO Max medical drama earning a whopping 25 nominations, which was nearly double the 13 the show had last year.
Kate O’Flynn earned the first award of the night in the Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy category
The 40-year-old British actress earned the honor for her work in Widow’s Bay
She beat out: Hannah Einbinder for Hacks, Janelle James for Abbott Elementary, Michelle Pfeiffer for Margo’s Got Money Troubles, Megan Stalter for Hacks, and Jessica Williams for Shrinking
Law & Order: SVU executive producer/star Mariska Hargitay served as host of the gala event which marks the first time a woman has hosted the show in 15 years
The series earned 13 acting nods including Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series for star Noah Wyle and top honor Outstanding Drama.
The Pitt was followed closely by another HBO Max awards show darling, Hacks, which earned 24 nominations for its fifth and final season.
It is the most ever for a comedy as it beat out previous record holders The Bear and The Studio which had previously earned 23.
Nominations for television’s biggest night were announced back in July as Sydney Sweeney was one of the most shocking snubs for her work on the third and final season of Euphoria
The Pitt earned the most nods with the hit HBO Max medical drama earning a whopping 25 nominations including one for leading man Noah Wyle
The Pitt was followed closely by another HBO Max smash, Hacks, which earned 24 nominations for its fifth and final season (Hannah Einbinder and Jean Smart are pictured)
Leading lady Jean Smart now has the chance to earn her fifth Emmy for the show and her eighth overall, which would put her in a tie for the actress with the most Emmy acting wins in history.
Apple TV comedy horror series Widow’s Bay had a strong showing for a newcomer as it earned 19 nods. The streamer also earned 18 nominations for drama Pluribus.
When it came to the limited/anthology series categories it was the second season of Netflix’s Beef which led the way with 16 nominations.
Streamers didn’t have all the success, however, as the most nominations on the broadcast network side went to iconic variety series Saturday Night Live which earned an impressive 11 nominations.
Apple TV comedy horror series Widow’s Bay had a strong showing for a newcomer as it earned 19 nods (Matthew Rhys is pictured)
Streamers didn’t have all the success, however, as the most nominations on the broadcast network side went to Saturday Night Live which earned an impressive 11 nominations
HBO Max earned the most nominations for any platform this year with an impressive 122 nods including 13 for DTF St. Louis.
This year, 555 programs were submitted across the 14 program categories, down 7.5% from last year’s 600 entrants.
That included 110 dramas, 71 comedies, 31 limited/anthology series, 34 movies, 18 variety series and 45 reality competition shows.
The two Creative Arts Emmy Awards ceremonies took place on Saturday, September 5, and Sunday, September 6.
