On the 2026 Emmy ballot, there are 68 submissions in the Best Limited/Movie Directing category, which will result in just five nominees, the fewest since 2013. But what will make the cut?
Notable in this category is that Beef submitted three episodes for consideration, and could risk vote-splitting. Both Lee Sung Jin and Jake Schreier were nominated three years ago for the anthology series’ first season, with the former winning for the season finale. This time, Schreier has the season finale (“It Will Stay This Way and You Will Obey”), a technically impressive episode with a one-take chaotic fight in a skin clinic, inspired by Park Chan-wook’s 2003 Korean action thriller Oldboy. This is Beef‘s likeliest bet to break in, as it delivers an unpredictable wrap-up of all the characters.
But don’t overlook Lee Sung Jin, who is up for the sophomore season’s fourth episode, “Oh, the Comfort, the Inexpressible Comfort,” which takes place in a hospital emergency room revolving around Ashley (Cailee Spaeny) and her strained relationship coupled with a medical crisis. Already a likely nominee for producing and writing the season, Lee also has an advantage of name recognition when it comes to the Television Academy’s Directors Branch. There is also the sixth hour, “Those Blue Remembered Hills,” by Japanese director Kitao Sakurai, with a hallucinogenic experience and an unexpected death.
Speaking of name recognition, Jason Bateman has been a staple in the directing category, having received three bids for the drama series Ozark, winning one, and is now on the ballot for the second episode of Black Rabbit (“The Black Rabbits”). It was cited at the Directors Guild of America Award and has an intense chase scene that results in a severed pinky finger.
Also nominated at the DGA Awards was the pilot of The Beast in Me (“Sick Puppy”) by Antonio Campos, which is the show’s sole submission featuring chilling scenes and tragic backstories, ending in an unexplainable disappearance. Similarly, All Her Fault also put forward the Minkie Spiro-helmed premiere that centers around a child disappearance.
Rounding out the top contenders is Half Man with the second episode by Alexandra Brodski, jumping through timelines to examine the toxicity of a dependent relationship and the internal struggles of coming out. The second installment features a number of humiliating and aggressive moments, ending in a brutal assault.
It is also important to look out for directors who are entered for the entirety of their series, including DTF St. Louis (Steven Conrad), Death by Lightning (Matt Ross), and Lord of the Flies (Marc Munden), each with varying degrees of likelihood for a nomination. The former two have a better shot either due to name recognition or their show having better odds to make the Best Limited Series lineup, but the story of Lord of the Flies is a pure directing magnet as it takes place on a deserted island with physically extreme moments.
Other shows to look out for would be Bait with the same episode they submitted for writing (“House or Home”) directed by Bassam Tariq, featuring a salah gathering and multiple video shots on smartphones, and Imperfect Women, by former DGA President and nine-time Emmy nominee Lesli Linka Glatter, who surprisingly got in last year for Zero Day.
There is also the question mark of Love Story: John F. Kennedy Jr. & Carolyn Bessette, as it leads the count with five episodes and a huge risk of vote-splitting. The pilot by Max Winkler and the penultimate hour by nominee Jesse Peretz (“Exit Strategy”) seem the likely contenders, both showcasing intimate scenes between the two title characters, with varying emotions.
And if any television movies were to make it in — which this category is more susceptible to historically — it would probably be the frontrunners in the top category, being Remarkably Bright Creatures by Olivia Newman, Deep Cover by Tom Kingsley, or Miss You, Love You by Oscar winner Jim Rash.
Here is how we see the 2026 Best Limited/Movie Directing category breaking down:
Front-runners
- Beef (Jake Schreier, “It Will Stay This Way and You Will Obey”)
- Half Man (Alexandra Brodski, “Episode 2”)
- Black Rabbit (Jason Bateman, “The Black Rabbits”)
- The Beast in Me (Antonio Campos, “Sick Puppy”)
- Beef (Lee Sung Jin, “Oh, the Comfort, the Inexpressible Comfort”)
Potential Spoilers
- DTF St. Louis (Steven Conrad)
- Death by Lightning (Matt Ross)
- Bait (Bassam Tariq, “House or Home”)
- Lord of the Flies (Marc Munden)
- All Her Fault (Minkie Spiro, “Episode 1”)
- Imperfect Women (Lesli Linka Glatter, “Louise”)
- Love Story: John F. Kennedy Jr. & Carolyn Bessette (Jesse Peretz, “Exit Strategy”)
- Love Story: John F. Kennedy Jr. & Carolyn Bessette (Max Winkler, “Pilot”)
Longshots
- Beef (Kitao Sakurai, “Those Blue Remembered Hills”)
- Love Story: John F. Kennedy Jr. & Carolyn Bessette (Anthony Hemingway, “Search and Recovery”)
- Love Story: John F. Kennedy Jr. & Carolyn Bessette (Crystle Roberson Dorsey, “Battery Park”)
- Remarkably Bright Creatures (Olivia Newman)
- Miss You, Love You (Jim Rash)
- Deep Cover (Tom Kingsley)
The 2026 Emmys nominations will be announced July 8.
