Mariska Hargitay took the stage on Monday night as the first woman in 15 years to host the Emmy Awards, presiding over the 78th Primetime Emmy Awards from the Peacock Theater in downtown Los Angeles as HBO Max’s medical drama The Pitt entered the ceremony as the most nominated series of the year.
The broadcast, which aired live on NBC and streamed on Peacock beginning at 8 pm ET, capped off a three-night Emmy cycle in which the Television Academy handed out more than 100 statuettes across craft and performance categories.
Hargitay, the longtime “Law & Order: Special Victims Unit” star and a three-time Emmy winner in her own right, told the Today show last month that she was “incredibly honoured” to take on the hosting role.
Her turn at the podium came in a year the Television Academy has described as one of significant structural change for the ceremony, alongside a field of nominees dominated by streaming platforms rather than traditional broadcast networks.
Which Shows Entered Emmys Ceremony With Most Nominations?
The Pitt led all programmes with 25 nominations, including nods in outstanding drama series and 13 acting categories, nearly double the 13 nominations the show received a year earlier. Hacks, wrapping its fifth and final season, followed with 24 nominations, a record for a comedy series that surpassed the previous joint record holders, The Bear and The Studio, both of which had earned 23 nominations in prior years.
Apple TV recorded its strongest nomination haul in the platform’s history, driven largely by two freshman titles. Widow’s Bay, a horror comedy from creator Katie Dippold, earned 19 nominations after a late surge of attention during the awards campaign season, while the science-fiction drama Pluribus, from Breaking Bad creator Vince Gilligan, collected 18. HBO and HBO Max led all networks and streamers combined, with 122 nominations across their slate of programming.
What Had Already Been Decided Before Live Broadcast Began?
A significant share of the night’s outcomes were determined in advance, during the Creative Arts Emmy Awards held over two nights, on 5 and 6 September, at the same Peacock Theater venue.
HBO’s limited series DTF St. Louis entered Monday’s broadcast with substantial momentum, having already secured wins for supporting actor David Harbour and supporting actress Linda Cardellini, along with a directing and writing sweep for series creator Steven Conrad and additional trophies for cinematography and picture editing.
Widow’s Bay similarly arrived with a string of confirmed wins, including a guest acting trophy for Betty Gilpin along with awards for casting, sound mixing, production design, cinematography, and music supervision and composition. Elsewhere in the drama categories, Ernest Harden Jr. won guest actor in a drama series for his role in The Pitt, while Shailene Woodley took the corresponding guest actress award for her turn in Paradise.
How Did Television Academy Reshape This Year’s Categories?
The Television Academy made several structural changes to this year’s ceremony. The outstanding scripted variety series and outstanding talk series categories were merged into a single outstanding variety series award, a decision the Academy attributed to a decline in submissions across both fields in recent years. The outstanding television movie category was also renamed outstanding movie, alongside adjustments to the short-form, sound mixing and music categories.
The Academy additionally introduced a new Legacy Award this year, intended to recognise television programmes that have made a lasting impact on audiences and remain culturally relevant. I Love Lucy became the first recipient of the honour, presented during the 6 September Emmy ceremony. Hargitay’s own documentary, My Mom Jayne, about her mother, actress Jayne Mansfield, had already won two Creative Arts Emmys heading into the primetime broadcast, for outstanding directing and outstanding documentary or nonfiction special.
Who Else Already Claimed Emmy Wins Heading Into Monday Night?
Beyond the drama and limited series categories, a number of variety and reality winners were confirmed ahead of the main broadcast. Alan Cumming won for hosting The Traitors, while Love on the Spectrum took outstanding unstructured reality programme.
The Muppet Show was named outstanding variety special in the pre-recorded category, with pop star Sabrina Carpenter picking up her first Emmy as both an executive producer and performer on the programme.
The late director and actor Rob Reiner was posthumously honoured with outstanding guest actor in a comedy series for his role as Albert on The Bear. Separately, Bad Bunny’s Apple Music Super Bowl LX Halftime Show collected seven Creative Arts Emmys in the variety special (live) categories, marking a first Emmy win for the musician. With those results already locked in, attention on Monday night turned to the ceremony’s marquee categories, including outstanding drama series, outstanding comedy series and the lead acting races, which were decided during the live broadcast.
