Widow's Bay leads 78th Emmy Awards with 14 wins as The Pitt takes best drama

Top series winners

The 78th Emmy Awards ceremony took place at the Peacock Theater in Los Angeles, with Mariska Hargitay serving as host, marking the first time in 15 years that a woman hosted the ceremony alone. Apple TV comedy horror series Widow's Bay led the overall tally, collecting 14 trophies from 19 nominations across the main telecast and technical categories. The series won best comedy series, with Katie Dippold winning for writing and Hiro Murai for directing. In the acting categories for the series, Kate O'Flynn won best supporting actress and Stephen Root won best supporting actor. Matthew Rhys won best lead actor in a comedy series for Widow's Bay, alongside a second win as best lead actor in a limited series, anthology, or television movie for Netflix's The Beast in Me.

Drama and limited series honors

HBO Max medical drama The Pitt entered the ceremony with 25 nominations, the highest total of the edition, after receiving 13 nominations the previous year. The production secured seven awards, including best drama series, with Noah Wyle winning best lead actor in a drama series for the second consecutive year. In the limited series field, HBO Max production DTF St. Louis collected seven wins. Series creator Steven Conrad won both the directing and writing awards, while David Harbour and Linda Cardellini won the supporting acting categories for limited series.

Widow's Bay14

The Pitt7

DTF St. Louis7

Widow's Bay

14

The Pitt

7

DTF St. Louis

7

Data from the article text

Acting records and humanitarian honor

Jean Smart won best lead actress in a comedy series for her role as Deborah Vance in the fifth season of Hacks on HBO Max. The victory established Smart as the first woman to win the category for every season of a single comedy series.

“Only the men stay standing. Women can sit down.”

The Television Academy presented Michael J. Fox with the Bob Hope Humanitarian Award, a distinction conferred periodically to recognize sustained philanthropic work. Fox reflected during his acceptance speech on his public disclosure of his Parkinson's diagnosis.

“At first, I kept my Parkinson's diagnosis hidden. I feared it would affect my work and my relationship with the audience. Would they laugh if they knew I was sick?”

Industry context and ceremony remarks

Stephen Colbert accepted the award for best variety program for The Late Show following CBS's decision to cancel the broadcast after an 11-year run. Colbert used his acceptance speech to note that the 200 former members of his production staff are available for new employment. Alan Cumming, who won for the competition series The Traitors, called on the audience to register to vote in the upcoming midterm elections. The ceremony took place following an industry contraction, with 212 series submitted across drama, comedy, and limited categories, representing a 7% decline from 2025 and a 39% drop compared to 2022. On the red carpet, Zendaya debuted a short pixie hairstyle, while Colman Domingo appeared in a Chinese Tangzhuang jacket with an ivory sash.