The first two nights of the Primetime Emmys saw Kate O’Flynn won Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series for her role as “sassy broad” Patricia on Apple TV’s Widow’s Bay, and that was the signal that Apple’s walk away with 28 awards, and the show capped its comedy haul by winning the big prize on the final night. That total shattered the record for most statuettes a comedy series has claimed in a single year.
O’Flynn’s win set the tone for a haul that stretched across acting, directing, writing and production. The company entered the night with 19 wins (20 if you count its commercial win), and the final tally now stands at 28. Apple also submitted 31 shows compared to Netflix’s 125 and HBO’s 86, meaning it achieved its record with far fewer entries than its rivals.
The Record-Breaking Comedy Run
Widow’s Bay took home wins for Outstanding Comedy Series, Matthew Rhys for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series, Stephen Root for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series, creator Katie Dippold for Outstanding Writing for a Comedy Series and Hiro Murai for Outstanding Director for a Comedy Series. The show’s 14 wins make it the standout program of the night.
It is striking that Apple has set two comedy series records back to back. Last year’s record belonged to The Studio, and now both Widow’s Bay has done the same. The company landed its best-ever awards haul last year, and the two shows that helped it reach that — Seth Rogen’s comedy and Severance have done the same. The fact that neither of those two shows was eligible this time makes the accomplishment all the more impressive.
Apple Beats HBO and Netflix
For the first time since its launch in 2019, Apple beat HBO/HBO Max and Netflix to take the most gold back to Culver City (or Cupertino). The two streamers had shared the honors in recent years, but Apple’s quality-over-quantity strategy finally paid off. The company’s head of programming, Matt Cherniss, told Deadline last year that the approach was the “best path forward.”
“I believe we had 15 different shows nominated this year, we had 31 [show] submissions, so that kind of track record, and that kind of conversion, I think is rewarding in that it backs up sort of our strategy,” Cherniss said.
The company entered the night with 19 wins, which grows to 20 if you include its commercial win. Apple broke its own record of 30 wins from last year, and it accomplished this despite submitting fewer entries than before. The approach seems to be paying off.
The Full Apple Slate
The Widow’s Bay wins were not the only highlights for Apple. Pluribus also contributed significantly to the company’s awards stock. Rhea Seehorn won Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series, and creator Vince Gilligan won his first individual Emmy in a writing win.
The British spy drama Slow Horses added to its tally with a win for director Saul Metzstein. The company’s 28 wins across the first two nights last weekend and tonight’’s Primetime event was distributed across several categories and shows.
Seven wins came from the Apple Music Super Bowl LX Halftime Show Starring Bad Bunny, a result that pushed Apple to the lead among all competitors.
HBO’s Strong Second Place
HBO, owned by Warner Bros. Discovery, finished second with 21 wins across all three nights. Its total of 16 awards was built on the success of DTF St. Louis’s six wins and The Pitt’, which won four. The David Harbour/Jason Bateman drama added to that total with the Emmy for Outstanding Limited or Anthology Series, while The Pitt picked up two more wins, including the main drama prize and one for Noah Wyle.
Tom Pelphrey secured a victory for Task, while Hacks saw another win for Jean Smart. Those two wins gave the network 21 total victories, putting it comfortably ahead of Netflix, which finished third.
Netflix’s Strong Showing
Matthew Rhys took home two individual awards at the ceremony, winning the Emmy for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Limited Series for his role in The Beast In Me, while Netflix came into the night with 13 wins and walked away with three more. Allison Janney picked up the Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series award for her work on The Diplomat.
Remarkably Bright Creatures star Sally Field took home Outstanding Lead Actress in a Limited or Anthology Series or Movie, surprising many with her victory. That pushed the streamer’s tally of wins to 16, placing it in third position behind Apple and HBO.
Peacock and CBS Split the Late-Night Prize
CBS’ The Late Show with Stephen Colbert won the late-night category, while Peacock’s The Traitors picked up one win in the reality category.
The Comedy Category Closer
Matthew McConaughey and Woody Harrelson, both starring in Apple’s upcoming comedy series Brothers, were the ones who introduced the category. The show is expected to appear on this stage in some form next year.
“To paraphrase Vince Gilligan when he picked up his Emmy, there’s nothing weirder than the current reality.”
The Hard Numbers
- Apple’s total wins: 28 (29 if you include the commercials win)
- Record broken: Most statuettes a comedy has won in a year
- Shows submitted: 31 (Netflix: 125, HBO: 86)
- Nominations this year: 89 across 15 shows
- Last year’s nominations: 81
- HBO wins: 21
- Netflix wins: 16
- Peacock wins: 1
- CBS wins: 1
The Order of Winners
- Apple TV — 26 wins
- HBO Max — 19 wins
- Netflix — 16 wins
- NBC — 7 wins
- Peacock — 7 wins
- CBS — 6 wins
- MGM+/Prime Video — 5 wins
- Prime Video — 5 wins
- Disney+ — 4 wins
- FX/Hulu — 3 wins
- National Geographic — 3 wins
- Adult Swim — 2 wins
- Comedy Central — 2 wins
- PBS — 2 wins
- YouTube — 2 wins
What Comes Next
The company made its presence felt at the Emmys with a clear plan, carried out with strict control, and came out ahead of far larger rivals. Apple’s performance was a declaration. The comedy awards swept up by the Widow’s Bay was the centerpiece, but the breadth of the wins across the company’s slate prove the streamer can hold its own against the rest of the business.
The company chose quality over quantity, and it worked out well. It entered fewer shows than its rivals and came home with the most hardware as a result. That is a solid model for a young streamer.
The next few seasons will reveal if Apple can keep up this pace. It has shown it can hold its own against the largest players in the industry, yet steady quality across its full lineup is what will determine if it keeps coming out on top. The coming years will tell us whether this year marked a high point or the beginning of a longer winning streak for the streamer.
The company currently has reason for celebration. Last weekend saw a record-breaking comedy win for Widow’s Bay capped a night of unprecedented success. The streamer’s*, which brought home 28 Emmys across the first two nights, and tonight’s Primetime event has added to that tally. The combination represents a strong showing, proving that Apple belongs among the leaders in streaming.
Get the Notebook.
The day's best stories and every fresh verdict, in plain English, in your inbox by seven. One email a day, no more.