It’s almost the biggest night of the year for the TV fans in your life… the 2026 Emmy Awards are here.
It’s been a truly excellent year in television once again, both in terms of returning icons like Hacks, The Pitt, The Traitors, Beef, and more, as well as original shows that came along and defined a new genre of television, a.k.a. Widow’s Bay and Pluribus — side note: does Emmy winner Jeff Hiller just have a sixth sense about a show’s award worthiness?!
So many incredible programs and performances graced our screens this year, and it’s nothing short of a miracle that, in a time when shows are popping up on streaming services daily, the best of the best broke through and found their way onto our screens. Although, in acknowledging that, we do have to note that some of the best shows on television have been snubbed once again — Industry hive, our day will come. That being said, there are still so many things to celebrate heading into TV’s biggest night, including some of the potentially monumental achievements that could come out of the ceremony. Whether it’s for an individual or a network, there are so many things to look forward to and we have just a few you should know about.
Here are just a few of the big things we are looking out for at the 78th Primetime Emmy Awards and why you should be watching for them, as well…
HBO’s Hopeful Hat Trick Across the Major Categories
HBO is coming into the 2026 Emmy Awards sitting pretty and already having won 16 awards from the first two nights of the program, formerly named the Creative Arts Emmys. 10 of those 16 statues come from DTF St. Louis and The Pitt, which are competing — and considered frontrunners — in the Outstanding Limited Series and the Outstanding Drama Series categories, respectively.
Current Emmy predictions would have Widow’s Bay sliding in for the win in Best Comedy Series on Monday — the Apple TV original took home eight wins over nights one and two of the Emmys — but many still are not counting out Hacks, a previous category winner and Emmy Awards darling. Given that it’s Hacks‘ final season, some believe TV Academy members are planning to send off the show with one final Best Comedy Series win, although the chances of that are slimmer now after Widow’s Bay‘s resounding triumph in some of the below-the-line categories last weekend.
Even so, if Hacks, The Pitt, and DTF St. Louis take home the individual awards for Best Comedy, Best Drama, and Best Limited Series, HBO would complete the elusive and unsurprisingly rare feat of winning the night’s biggest awards in each of the major categories. Of the three, Hacks is certainly the most vulnerable — although some would argue Beef Season 2 could help Netflix snag the win from DTF — but just like in the finale of the Jean Smart and Hannah Einbinder comedy series, you can never count out Deborah Vance.
Jean Smart Could Make History With Another Win
Speaking of Jean Smart: did you know that the Designing Women alum is nominated once again for playing the incomparable stand-up comedian and all-too-brief late-night host? The seven-time Emmy winner (and 15-time nominee) could make history on Monday if her name is called for the Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series category, as no woman has ever won the award for playing a character every single season the show aired. Notably, Julia Louis-Dreyfus came close with her groundbreaking performance as Selina Meyer in Veep, however, the Seinfeld actress famously lost the final award to Phoebe Waller-Bridge for Fleabag.
This year, the competition is steep, as Smart goes up against Lisa Kudrow for The Comeback and Elle Fanning for Margo’s Got Money Troubles, just to name a few, but most awards outlets and predictors are in agreement that it will be Smart who takes home the trophy again this year. Given that it’s Hacks‘ final season and that, by all accounts, the series stuck the landing (due in no small part to stellar performances from Smart and Einbinder), it feels as though this once hotly contested category is pretty solid for the TV icon… who literally became a TV icon just last month as she was inducted into the Television Hall of Fame.
And one more thing: if Smart does win the award for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series, she will tie Louis-Dreyfus and Cloris Leachman for the title of most wins for an actor or actress. A lot is on the line here, but if there’s anyone who is up for the challenge, it’s going to be Smart.
The Traitors vs. Dancing With the Stars Is a Ballroom Bloodshed Showdown
By all indications, Peacock is primed to win another award for Outstanding Reality Competition Program, even as they face off against shows like Top Chef, RuPaul’s Drag Race, and the landmark 50th Season of Survivor. Realistically, however, their biggest competition comes from a show that has been absent from the category for the last 10 years: Dancing With the Stars.
Heading into Monday night’s show, the Peacock series has already taken home six statues for Outstanding Host (Alan Cumming), Outstanding Cinematography, Best Production Design, Best Costumes, Best Directing, and Best Picture Editing, making it the clear frontrunner in the category. That said, ABC is not giving up the fight just quite yet, especially after experiencing its highest-rated season in years. So much of the argument behind The Traitors‘ Emmy campaign deals with the show’s culture-defining moments — i.e. the hilarious reveals, backstabs, and memes that come out of each episode — but DWTS has certainly crept up on The Traitors in that department.
In Season 34, Dancing With The Stars experienced a cultural resurgence unlike any other show currently on television. The show is so popular that Disney gave the fans a spin-off, Dancing With the Stars: The Next Pro, which yielded a new competitor to take the ballroom dance floor for Season 35. It’s safe to say that this show has a massive and devoted audience and could end up surprising everyone come Monday.
If we had to put money on it, we’re still putting it on The Traitors for now, but if Dancing With The Stars just so happens to quickstep up to the stage come Emmy night, our jaws would remain firmly in place.
The 78th Primetime Emmy Awards air live on NBC and Peacock on Monday, September 14, at 8 p.m. EST.
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