Matthew Rhys made history at the 78th Emmy Awards, held on September 14, 2026, by winning two Outstanding Lead Actor awards for different productions in one night, while “The Pitt,” “Widow’s Bay” and “DTF St. Louis” took the top prizes.
Matthew Rhys wins two major acting awards
Rhys won Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series for “Widow’s Bay,” as well as the top acting award in the Limited or Anthology Series or Television Movie category for “The Beast in Me.” He became the first performer in Emmy history to win two major acting awards in one ceremony for different productions.
Rhys also became the first man to collect the top acting awards in drama, comedy and limited series, following his previous win in 2018 for “The Americans.” In his winning productions, he played characters from different worlds, from spy Philip Jennings to Mayor Tom Loftis and businessman Nile Jarvis.
Jean Smart wins fifth Emmy for Hacks
Jean Smart won Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series for her role in “Hacks,” taking the award for the same character for the fifth time and becoming the first actress to win it for every season of her series. Rhea Seehorn won Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series for “Pluribus.” In the drama category, Noah Wyle won Outstanding Lead Actor for “The Pitt” for the second consecutive year, for his portrayal of Dr. Robby Robinavitch.
David Harbour and Linda Cardellini also won the supporting acting awards in the limited-series category for “DTF St. Louis.” Sally Field, 79, won Outstanding Lead Actress in a Limited or Anthology Series or Movie for “Remarkably Bright Creatures,” adding a fourth Emmy to her career.
Older generations of actresses make a strong showing
Her win came alongside Smart’s, at 75, marking a strong showing by actresses from older generations in the major categories. In writing and directing, Vince Gilligan won Outstanding Writing for a Drama Series for the “We Is Us” episode of “Pluribus,” while Sol Metzstein won Outstanding Directing for a Drama Series for the “Scars” episode of “Slow Horses.”
In comedy, the episode “Welcome to Widow’s Bay!” won awards for Outstanding Writing for Katie Dippold and Outstanding Directing for Hiro Murai. In reality television, “The Traitors” won Outstanding Reality Competition Program for the third consecutive time, after winning in 2024 and 2025. The program beat shows including “Dancing with the Stars,” “Survivor” and “Top Chef.”
The top awards concluded with “The Pitt” winning Outstanding Drama Series, “Widow’s Bay” winning Outstanding Comedy Series and “DTF St. Louis” winning Outstanding Limited or Anthology Series.
Mariska Hargitay presented segments during the ceremony while reprising her character Olivia Benson, days after winning two Emmys for her documentary “My Mom Jane,” which she directed about her mother, Jayne Mansfield.
