The 2026 MTV VMAs wrapped Sunday night, and the show spent most of its two-hour runtime doing exactly what everyone expected. Madonna won best long-form video for Confessions II — The Film, capping her unparalleled run at the awards. BTS collected three wins to cap a big comeback year. Those results were predictable. The surprises came elsewhere.
LISA Wins Best Pop Over Ariana Grande and Taylor Swift
A Japanese actor named Kentaro Sakaguchi stars in the video for LISA’s best pop winner, “Dream,” topping Ariana Grande and Taylor Swift, who have each claimed the category three times. Grande was shortlisted for “Hate That I Made You Love Me,” while Swift was up for “The Fate of Ophelia.” Both tracks reached No. 1 on the Hot 100 chart. Despite that ranking, “Dream” never became a hit in the United States, even though it did perform well in many other countries worldwide.
A Thai rapper, singer, dancer, and actress has become the second Asian pop act to take home the best pop award. The prize previously went to BTS in 2020, which was for “On.”
Bruno Mars Loses the Big One Again
Bruno Mars was nominated for video of the year for “I Just Might,” but lost to Swift for “The Fate of Ophelia.” Mars has now gone 0-8 in the VMAs’ top competitive category. Runner-up for having the worst track record in that category is Drake, who has gone 0-6.
This is the second time Swift has topped Mars in this category. In 2015, she won her first award in this category for “Bad Blood,” featuring Kendrick Lamar. Mars was nominated that year as the featured artist on Mark Ronson’s “Uptown Funk!” Mars did win best R&B for “I Just Might.” It’s his second win in that category. Silk Sonic’s “Leave the Door Open,” on which he teamed with Anderson .Paak, won in the category in 2021.
Madonna Beats Swift in Four Categories
In the four categories where they faced off, Madonna came out ahead over Swift in three of them. She took home artist of the year, and her Confessions II bested Swift’s The Life of a Showgirl for best album. Confessions II — The Film also beat Swift’s “The Fate of Ophelia” for both best cinematography and best choreography. Swift did manage to take the upper hand in two categories of her own — video of the year and best direction. She directed her own video herself, while TORSO handled the direction on Madonna’s video, though the VMAs attribute those technical category wins to the artists themselves.
She marked a milestone in her own field, becoming the first person to take home best dance, an award that dates back to 1989. She had been nominated in this category six times before, so this was her seventh nod. Better late than never!
Bad Bunny Finally Wins Best Latin
Bad Bunny’s “NUEVAYOL” won best Latin. The surprise here is not that he won, but that he hadn’t won previously in the category. This was his ninth nomination.
Michael Jackson Gets Left Out
Nirvana received the video vanguard award, an honor bestowed on a band that broke up after the death of its lead singer and guitarist, Kurt Cobain. During the ceremony, Jackson’s name never came up. Instead, the prize was called the Video Vanguard Award, without using the longer title that sometimes includes his name.
Only Six Awards Were Presented On-Air
Just six of the 23 competitive awards were presented in the two-hour show. The other 17 were simply announced in a press release after the conclusion of the show. The show, hosted by Snoop Dogg, aired live from Los Angeles on CBS (7:30-9:30 p.m. ET/4:30-6:30 p.m. PT), simulcast on MTV and streaming on Paramount+ (Premium) in the U.S. It will also be available globally the next day on Paramount+ and MTV.
Gunpowder & Sky handled production of the VMAs, with Van Toffler serving as producer.
What the Show Actually Did
Madonna opened the VMAs for the fifth time, setting a new record after being absent from the show for 23 years. Two acts paid tribute to late artists during the ceremony:
- Kacey Musgraves sang in honor of Dolly Parton
- RAYE, SOMBR, Teddy Swims and Adam Lambert came together to pay tribute to George Michael
The VMA Artist Director award was given to Taylor Swift for the first time, and her new single, “Patient Zero,” was premiered during the ceremony.
The program prioritized its performances over its awards, and that decision had been deliberate from the start. Even so, the degree to which this priority was carried out still came as a surprise.
There were some earned and some baffling snubs and surprises at the 2026 VMAs, and all of them were worth watching.
Source material: “Snubs & Surprises at the 2026 VMAs,” Billboard.
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