Here’s all you need to know about next week’s 2026 Emmy Award nominations. If you are an actor and part of the large ensemble series “The Pitt,” “Shrinking,” “Hacks,” and – maybe – “Pluribus,” you have an excellent shot at landing a nod. Like a statistically through-the-moon chance. And we’re not just talking lead and supporting performances. No, these series are gonna fill up the guest actor and actress categories too. In fact, so many actors on “The Pitt” will earn Emmy recognition we already have sympathy for the two or three cast members who won’t make the cut. Especially as we’re predicting a staggering 10 acting nominations for “The Pitt” overall (the record is 14 by “Succession” in 2022).
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You’re also looking at an Emmy class where Colman Domingo, Laurie Metcalf, and Matthew Rhys have a very good chance at earning double nominations for different programs. Even Michelle Pfeiffer has an outside shot at two nominations (“The Madison” would have to surprise, but sure). And another long shot is last year’s Comedy Series Supporting Actor winner Jeff Hiller joining the two-fer club.
Series-wise? Well, far fewer surprises. And, sadly, some likely disappointments, but we dig into those with our annual predictions….
OUTSTANDING COMEDY SERIES
“Hacks”
“The Comeback”
“Abbott Elementary”
“The Bear”
“Only Murders in the Building”
“Margo’s Money Troubles”
“Shrinking”
“Widow’s Bay”
ALMOST THERE: “Nobody Wants This,” “The Chair Company”
LOWDOWN: “The Bear” is borderline here, and we’re a little concerned “Margo” lost momentum when “Widow’s” hit. That being said, “Wonder Man” not making the cut is gonna be genuinely depressing.
OUTSTANDING DRAMA SERIES
“Pluribus”
“A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms”
“The Gilded Age”
“The Pitt”
“Slow Horses”
“Task”
“The Diplomat”
“Paradise”
ALMOST THERE: “The Testaments,” “Industry,” “Fallout,” “Euphoria”
LOWDOWN: HBO has four of the eight nominees in this lineup. That might not hold. Any of the “almost there” class could easily make the cut. And we may never understand why “Fallout” is snubbed considering its viewership. Maybe that’s a show that just needs to screen closer to voting season? Are some series just “out of sight, out of mind”?
OUTSTANDING LIMITED OR ANTHOLOGY SERIES
“Beef”
“Half Man”
“The Beast In Me”
“All Her Fault”
“Love Story”
ALMOST THERE: “Death by Lightning,” “DTF St. Louis,” “Lord of the Flies,” “Monster: The Ed Gein Story”
LOWDOWN: Still trying to figure out why members didn’t watch “Bait.” One of the best shows of the year. Among this class, however, “All Her Fault” is the question mark. If it makes it, that’s a big, big win for Peacock. Also, “Death by Lightning” likely being snubbed is already an embarrassment.
OUTSTANDING REALITY COMPETITION SERIES
“The Traitors”
“RuPaul’s Drag Race”
“The Amazing Race”
“Survivor”
“Top Chef”
ALMOST THERE: “Dancing with the Stars,” “The Voice”
LOWDOWN: Remember when “Lizzo’s Watch Out For The Big Grrrls” won this category four years ago because everyone loved Lizzo’s hit single “About Damn Time” and then a second season never happened? This category needs some new blood. Maybe two “Traitors” series will get nominated next year.
OUTSTANDING TV MOVIE
“Remarkably Bright Creatures”
“People We Meet On Vacation”
“Swiped”
“Mike and Nick and Nick and Alice”
“Deep Cover”
ALMOST THERE: “Pizza Movie,” “The Best You Can,” “Miss You Love You”
LOWDOWN: “Remarkably,” “People” and “Swiped” are pretty safe. The rest is a pick ’em. This is always a strange category, and this year felt like few contenders were actually campaigning hard. If only more Netflix “films” submitted for this category instead of pretending to be Oscar plays that will never happen. That would make things much more interesting.
OUTSTANDING VARIETY SERIES
“The Daily Show”
“Late Show with Stephen Colbert”
“Saturday Night Live”
“Jimmy Kimmel Live”
“Last Week Tonight with John Oliver”
ALMOST THERE: “The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon,” “Late Night with Seth Meyers,” “Hot Ones”
LOWDOWN: Back to a combined category, there is genuine intrigue about who will win this year. That being said, if there are any surprises among the nominees, it’s “Hot Ones” knocking someone out. The eleven-year-old (yes, it’s been around that long) YouTube series actually campaigned this year. Whether it can make the cut remains to be seen.
OUTSTANDING LEAD ACTOR IN A COMEDY SERIES
Martin Short, “Only Murders in the Building”
Matthew Rhys, “Widow’s Bay”
Jeremy Allen White, “The Bear”
Adam Brody, “Nobody Wants This”
Jason Segel, “Shrinking”
ALMOST THERE: Steve Carell, “Rooster,” Steve Martin, “Only Murders in the Building,” Ethan Hawke, “The Lowdown,” Tim Robinson, “The Chair Company”
LOWDOWN: In a perfect world, Ethan Hawke and “Wonder Man’s” Yahya Abdul-Mateen II would be easy nominees, but sadly, no. It’s a flip ’em between longtime Emmy favorite Carell and Brody, who was nominated last year and is the only consistent nominee for the show across guild and critic awards the past two years.
OUTSTANDING LEAD ACTRESS IN A COMEDY SERIES
Jean Smart, “Hacks”
Quinta Brunson, “Abbott Elementary”
Ayo Edebiri, “The Bear”
Lisa Kudrow, “The Comeback”
Elle Fanning, “Margo’s Got Money Troubles”
ALMOST THERE: Kristen Bell, “Nobody Wants This,” Kristen Wigg, “Palm Royale,” Carrie Preston, “Elsbeth”
LOWDOWN: Preston did a ton of heavy lifting to try and make the five this year. If it worked, Fanning or Edebiri might be in trouble.
OUTSTANDING SUPPORTING ACTOR IN A COMEDY SERIES
Paul W. Downs, “Hacks”
Ebon Moss-Bachrach, “The Bear”
Tyler James Williams, “Abbott Elementary”
Nick Offerman, “Margo’s Got Money Troubles”
Michael Urie, “Shrinking”
Stephen Root, “Widow’s Bay”
Harrison Ford, “Shrinking”
ALMOST THERE: Marcello Hernandez, “Saturday Night Live,” Bowen Yang, “Saturday Night Live,” Ben Kingsley, “Wonder Man,” Colman Domingo, “The Four Seasons,” Jeff Hiller, “Widow’s Bay”
LOWDOWN: We’re already starting the #JusticeForBenKingsley campaign.
OUTSTANDING SUPPORTING ACTRESS IN A COMEDY SERIES
Hannah Einbinder, “Hacks”
Michelle Pfieffer, “Margo’s Got Money Troubles”
Sheryl Lee Ralph, “Abbott Elementary”
Janelle James, “Abbott Elementary”
Jessica Williams, “Shrinking”
Megan Salter, “Hacks”
Kate O’Flynn, “Widow’s Bay”
ALMOST THERE: Ashley Padilla, “Saturday Night Live,” Liza Colon-Zayas, “The Bear,” Carol Burnett, “Palm Royale”
LOWDOWN: This is genuinely one of the more competitive categories this year. Colon-Zayas won this trophy in 2024 and was nominated a year ago. “The Bear” has fallen in stature, but will she really miss the cut? Will two “Hacks” stars earn noms? Will both “Abbott” standouts, including 2022 winner Ralph, make it? The annual snubs and surprises list might start right here.
OUTSTANDING LEAD ACTOR IN A DRAMA SERIES
Walton Goggins, “Fallout”
Noah Wylie, “The Pitt”
Mark Ruffalo, “Task”
Gary Oldman, “Slow Horses”
Sterling K. Brown, “Paradise”
ALMOST THERE: Peter Claffey, “A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms,” Rufus Sewell, “The Diplomat,” Billy Bob Thornton, “Landman”
LOWDOWN: Is the fantastic Goggins really going to make it if “Fallout” isn’t nominated for series? Is Oldman really a given? Ponder.
