Widow's Bay scores, Stranger Things whiffs, and other snubs and surprises from the 2026 Emmy nominations

Surprise: The Amazing Race, out of the race

If there were an Emmy for Most Predictable Award, Outstanding Reality-Competition Program and the recently re-merged Outstanding Variety Series would be the perennial frontrunners. So credit due to the former, which presented nomination morning with its first shocker, via an early announcement on Today: A field of stalwarts—Dancing With The Stars, RuPaul’s Drag Race, Survivor, Top Chef, and The Traitors—but not the award’s all-time champion, 10-time winner, 22-time nominee The Amazing Race. It’s a history-making snub that requires an asterisk: There was one previous, Amazing Race-less Outstanding Reality-Competition competition, but that was in 2020, when delays caused by the COVID-19 pandemic pushed the show out of the eligibility window for that year’s ceremony. So, to be extremely pedantic, this is the first time in the history of the award that The Amazing Race could qualify for a nomination, but didn’t. [Erik Adams]

Snub:Industry blanked again

It’s a shame that Industry (co-produced with BBC Two) is at the bottom of the list when it comes to HBO/HBO Max originals. While peers like The Pitt, Hacks, and DTF  St. Louis earned nods, Industry continues to be ignored when it should be at the top of everyone’s viewing list. For some reason, one of TV’s most gripping dramas was snubbed once more by the TV Academy, which is especially galling after its post-Pierpoint season made for such sharp, eerily timely, and distressing stories. Not only did creators Mickey Down and Konrad Kay’s work on the series go unrecognized, but so did the top-notch performances from actors like Myha’la, BAFTA winner Marisa Abela, Ken Leung, and Kit Harington. Let’s hope voters do better for the drama’s upcoming final season. [Saloni Gajjar]

Surprise: Welcome to the show, Chase Infiniti

The Handmaid’s Tale and its leading lady, Elisabeth Moss, were once Emmy darlings. Even though the Hulu series’s final season was nearly shut out in 2025, it looks like its spin-off broke containment, at least when it comes to its own leading star. Chase Infiniti, whose well-received performance in One Battle After Another likely gave he a boost, walks away with a cool nomination for Outstanding Actress in a Drama Series, besting veterans like Matlock‘s Kathy Bates and The Morning Show‘s Jennifer Aniston and Reese Witherspoon. [Saloni Gajjar]

Snub:The Fall And Rise Of Reggie Dinkins sacked

Look, it’s not an easy time to be a network sitcom trying to get the attention of Emmy voters—in the 2020s, only Abbott Elementary and Black-ish have managed to squeeze through the grip streaming and cable shows have on Outstanding Comedy Series. Given the TV Academy’s appreciation of 30 Rock and Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt, we figured they might go for the latest sitcom in that creative lineage—but like the Pro Football Hall Of Fame selection committee, they couldn’t be swayed by Reggie’s comeback story. Hey: He’s got our vote. [Erik Adams]

Surprise:Your Friends & Neighbors? In this economy?

The Outstanding Drama Series category doesn’t have any shortage of worthy contenders, most of whom pop in as nominees, including fun surprises like The Gilded Age. On the opposite side of that spectrum is Apple TV’s Your Friends & Neighbors, which is more of an unpleasant shocker, especially when you consider that other, worthier programs like Industry and AMC’s Dark Winds continue to be stonewalled by the voters. Evidently, YF&N has more eyeballs on it: It is led by Jon Hamm after all—and, in season two, James Marsden joined the ensemble. Their goodwill likely sailed the show to the top, beating another Apple TV favorite at the Emmys, The Morning Show, as well as previous nominees like Fallout and Euphoria. [Saloni Gajjar]

Surprise: Nice to see you, Yahya Abdul-Mateen II and Riz Ahmed

No offense to Jeremy Allen White, but it’s so refreshing to see Academy voters recognize Wonder Man star Yahya Abdul-Mateen II for Outstanding Actor In A Comedy Series. Yes, the show being part of the Marvel Cinematic Universe brings attention to it in general, but even for that megafranchise, Wonder Man was a relatively smaller-scale (and smaller stakes!) effort, so it’s nice to see Abdul-Mateen’s lead performance was magnetic enough to pull some attention in. Voters expanding the scope of this category beyond The Bear is also, well, lovely. Similarly, how great is it that Bait‘s Riz Ahmed sneaked in a nomination for Outstanding Actor In A Limited Series? The Prime Video series flew under the radar upon its March release, but clearly, Ahmed’s star power—and previous win for The Night Of—has left a mark. [Saloni Gajjar]

Surprise: “I said to my dog, ‘How do you like these Chair Company nominations?'”

We didn’t expect to see Tim Robinson and Zach Kanin’s surreal, gut-busting HBO comedy to get anywhere near the Emmys, so it’s a delight to see nominations for the inimitable dialogue, twisty (and hilariously small-potatoes) shaggy-dog mystery, and conspiracy thriller-indebted direction of its series premiere. It feels a little bit like when an artistically bold, relatively noncommerical Best Picture nominee winds up with the consolation prize of a screenplay win—but the way things are going for Ron Trosper, he should take his victories where he can get them. Robinson just better do a careful inspection of whatever chair he winds up sitting in at the Peacock Theater. [Erik Adams]

Surprise: Brittany Allen successfully self-submits for The Pit

Always bet on yourself. That’s the lesson we all need to learn from Brittany Allen, whose heartbreaking portrayal of Pittsburgh Trauma Medical Center patient Roxie Hamler earned her a spot on the Outstanding Guest Actress In A Drama Series lineup. It’s particularly noteworthy because Allen self-submitted in the category (which isn’t entirely unusual) after HBO seemingly refused to put her up for it. Allen, who won a Daytime Emmy in 2011 for All My Children, certainly deserves it—raise your hand if she made you cry during The Pitt. [Saloni Gajjar]