TV series “Widow’s Bay” made Emmy history Monday, winning a record 14 awards, the most ever won by a comedy series in a single season, including Outstanding Comedy Series at the 78th Emmy Awards.
The Apple TV series is set in the fictional US New England island town of Widow's Bay, where the mayor resolves to turn it into the next tourist hot spot despite local warnings that it's afflicted with a centuries-old curse that brings supernatural evils upon the island.
The six wins added to the eight Emmys the series had received before the televised ceremony, bringing its total to 14 awards.
The series received 19 nominations for its debut season, the third-most of any series this year, and secured multiple nominations in some categories, including editing and supporting actress in a comedy.
In addition to winning Outstanding Comedy Series, Widow's Bay also took home golden statuettes for Outstanding Writing for a Comedy Series, Outstanding Directing for a Comedy Series, Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series (Stephen Root), Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series (Kate O'Flynn) and Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series (Matthew Rhys).
Rhys wins 2 categories
Rhys made Emmy Awards history at the 2026 Emmy Awards, becoming the first actor to win the Outstanding Lead Actor award in two different categories.
In addition to taking home the Emmy for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series for Widow's Bay, where Rhys plays the town's mayor, he also took home the golden statuette for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Limited or Anthology Series or Movie for The Beast in Me.
The Netflix psychological crime thriller miniseries follows a famous author who is pulled into a twisted mind game after beginning to write a book about her new rich and powerful next-door-neighbor, played by Rhys, who allegedly murdered his wife.
During his acceptance speech, Rhys thanked his family for his success.
"Obviously, my parents, they just kicked me onto the stage from a very early age. My sister, who's here tonight ... turns out, she was the brains of the outfit all along."
Other winners
Spoiling the clean sweep of the comedy categories was Jean Smart, who won the Emmy for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series for HBO Max's series Hacks.
Hacks is a dark comedy drama that follows a stand-up comedian, played by Smart, who navigates the contemporary comedy industry with her comedy writer after mistaken news reports of her death.
In the drama categories, The Pitt scored two big wins, including the Emmy for Outstanding Drama Series and Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series (Noah Wyle).
In the HBO Max series, Wyle plays a senior attending physician at a fictional Trauma Medical Center in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania who suffers from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) after the COVID-19 pandemic.
Rhea Seehorn won the Emmy for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series for Apple TV's Pluribus. The post-apocalyptic science fiction series follows a miserable novelist, played by Seehorn, who finds herself isolated after an alien virus transforms the rest of humanity into a peaceful hive mind, in which she must save the world from happiness.
Pluribus also received the Emmy for Outstanding Writing for a Drama Series.
Tom Pelphrey took home the Emmy for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series for HBO's Task.
The crime drama is set in the working-class suburbs of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, where an FBI agent heads a Task Force to put an ending to a string of violent robberies of drug houses. Pelphrey plays a garbage collector who robs the trap houses operated by drug gangs.
Janney wins for The Diplomat
Allison Janney claimed the Emmy for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series for Netflix's The Diplomat.
The political thriller is about a veteran US diplomat who is unexpectedly appointed as the ambassador to the United Kingdom amid an emerging international crisis. Janney plays the vice president of the United States who eventually becomes the president.
Slow Horses won the Emmy for Outstanding Directing for a Drama Series. The Apple TV spy drama follows a dysfunctional team of MI-5 agents as they navigate the espionage world's smoke and mirrors to defend England from sinister forces.
DTF-St. Louis took home the Emmy for Outstanding Limited or Anthology Series. The HBO dark comedy miniseries is about a love triangle between three adults experiencing mid-life crises, which leads to one of them ending up dead and detectives discovering that the crime is connected to a dating app.
Sally Field won the Emmy for Outstanding Actress in a Limited or Anthology Series or Movie for Remarkably Bright Creatures. The Netflix drama film, based on the book, follows a widow, played by Field, who bonds with an octopus and an adrift musician while working as a night janitor at an aquarium.
The Traitors received the Emmy for Outstanding Reality Competition Program and The Late Show with Stephen Colbert won the Emmy for Outstanding Variety Series.
Actor Michael J. Fox was honored with the Bob Hope Humanitarian Award for his advocacy work and for raising more than $3 billion for Parkinson's Disease research and awareness.
