13 Shocking Snubs and Pleasant Surprises from the 2026 Emmy Nominations | Vanity Fair

The 2026 Emmy nominations bestowed much of their love onto The Pitt and Hacks, as Vanity Fair’s prognosticators had expected. But there were some very nice surprises in the nomination list as well—like Widow’s Bay, the genre-bending series that entered the race in the eleventh hour, winding up as the show with the third-most nominations.

The Emmy nominations, which were announced by The Bear star Liza Colón-Zayas and Somebody Somewhere actor Jeff Hiller on Wednesday, also gave extra adoration to unexpected acting breakouts like The Testaments’ Chase Infiniti and Wonder Man’s Yahya Abdul-Mateen II.

And then there were the glaring snubs, like Jeremy Allen White—the lead actor of The Bear, who this year missed out on a nomination for the first time since the show began. Several other popular series, including Nobody Wants This and Half Man (Richard Gadd’s much-anticipated follow-up to Emmy heavyweight Baby Reindeer), underperformed.

One show missing from these nominations but that wasn’t actually snubbed is the sensation known as Heated Rivalry. Emmy rules state that TV shows backed by production companies outside of the US are ineligible for the Primetime Emmy Awards; because that hit series is financed by Canadian companies, it was sadly left out in the cold. But if you’re a fan of the steamy hockey romance show, we still have some good news: One of its stars earned a surprise nomination anyway.

Read on to see which shows and performers made unexpected appearances on the nomination list—and which major reality show was shockingly snubbed for the first time.

Heated Rivalry is not eligible for any Primetime Emmy Awards, as stated above. We repeat: NOT ELIGIBLE. But Connor Storrie still has a chance to walk home with an Emmy, thanks to his nomination for guest actor in a comedy series for hosting an episode of Saturday Night Live. He’s actually the only guest host this year to be nominated, making this a coup for an up-and-coming actor who has become one of the most sought-after stars in Hollywood. Sadly, the guest-actor awards are presented during the Creative Arts Emmys and not during the regular broadcast. But if Storrie wins, we might see him present come Emmy night. —John Ross

In a huge upset, The Amazing Race didn’t make the cut in the reality-competition race. The popular CBS series has historically been the most dominant show in this category, ever since the prize was created in 2003. The show has never before missed out on a nomination and has won the award itself a total of 10 times. And even though those wins were in the fairly distant past—it hasn’t had a victory here since 2014—the show had been considered a forever nominee. Instead, this year, Dancing With the Stars made it back onto the list—earning its first nomination since 2016. —Rebecca Ford

This show was bound to peak either too late or right on time—and today’s Emmy nominations proved it was right on time. Matthew Rhys is now a double nominee for his work on both The Beast in Me and Widow’s Bay, the latter earning him a nod for lead actor in a comedy series. The horror comedy also received a coveted outstanding-comedy-series nomination, pushing out other hopefuls like HBO’s The Comeback and Rooster. Widow’s Bay earned 19 nominations overall, proving that being a late arrival on the scene with tremendous word of mouth can be key to getting recognition in a crowded field. —J.R.

This category held a few surprises, actually. Riz Ahmed received a nomination for his work in Amazon’s Bait, a series that was critically lauded but not widely seen. Likewise, Jason Bateman got a nomination for Black Rabbit, which premiered last September. Many people thought Bateman’s work in DTF St. Louis would overshadow his performance in this limited series, but it appears voters were happy to recognize him for both shows. Unfortunately, including both actors in this category left newcomer Paul Anthony Kelly empty-handed for his portrayal of John F. Kennedy Jr. in FX’s Love Story. Sarah Pidgeon received a nomination for her work as Carolyn Bessette, while Constance Zimmer earned a nod for portraying her mother. But sadly, the wildly popular series’ leading man was snubbed by the TV Academy. —J.R.

Saturday Night Live actors have a spotty record when it comes to getting nominated (they’re all submitted in the categories of supporting actor and actress in a comedy). Still, there’s often at least one nomination that makes it through. Bowen Yang earned an individual nomination for acting four times over the past five years; the last actress to be nominated was Kate McKinnon in 2022. It seemed likely this year that the show’s newest breakout, Ashley Padilla, would earn her first nomination, but she unfortunately didn’t make the cut. Yang, who wrapped up his stint on the show in December, was also surprisingly snubbed. —R.F.

Wonder Man was a well-reviewed Marvel TV series, but it wasn’t exactly expected to be an Emmy contender. Even so, Yahya Abdul-Mateen II’s performance as a struggling actor who secretly has powers was noticed by the TV Academy. The show itself is about show business, which probably gave it an added boost with this voting body. But all the credit goes to Abdul-Mateen for his superhuman performance. With the actor being the show’s only nominee, it’s clear that what voters really loved was his charming, comedic work. —R.F.

Kristen Bell, who was nominated for the debut season of Nobody Wants This, felt like an easy repeat nominee. But she surprisingly didn’t make the cut in the lead-actress category this year. Instead, the noms went to Quinta Brunson, Ayo Edebiri, Elle Fanning, Lisa Kudrow, and Jean Smart. The Netflix show received much less Emmy love this time around compared to its nomination haul for its first season, with previous nominee Adam Brody also missing out on a nod. The show landed just two nominations in total: for comedy series and music supervision. —R.F.

It felt like Chase Infiniti just missed out on an Oscar nomination last season for her incredible work in best-picture winner One Battle After Another. The TV Academy didn’t make the same mistake, giving Infiniti her first Emmy nomination for starring on the Hulu series The Testaments. It helped that most voters got to see her star rise during the Oscar race last season, but Infiniti has also been hitting the pavement to promote her Handmaid’s Tale spin-off. Need more proof that she’s a shining star? She’s now officially the show’s only Emmy nominee. —R.F.

Well, they didn’t get it. This season of The Comeback was by far the most palatable for general audiences, and it also tackled Hollywood’s most pressing issue: AI. Even so, The Comeback failed to receive a best-comedy-series nomination, with the TV Academy opting instead to give the show nominations for lead actress and writing. Yet again, the show failed to sneak into the biggest category—which feels very meta, as Lisa Kudrow’s Valerie Cherish is always desperately looking to find a better opportunity. They say this is the last season of The Comeback. But perhaps in another 10 years, we will check in on Valerie again—giving the show another opportunity to be nominated. —J.R.

The Apple TV series Your Friends & Neighbors went mostly unnoticed by Emmy voters in its first season, only nabbing one nomination for main title theme music. But this year the show, which stars Jon Hamm as a former hedge fund manager who funds his lavish lifestyle by turning to crime, nabbed a surprise drama-series nomination. It’s the show’s only nomination, but this is also the type of show that older TV Academy voters love. The drama-series category held a few other surprises, including snubs for Task and The Testaments, but it’s safe to say that no one saw Your Friends & Neighbors nabbing a spot. —R.F.

Richard Gadd received the sole nomination for this limited series, which was a major priority for HBO this Emmy season. Half Man was Gadd’s follow-up to the massively popular Baby Reindeer, and Gadd plays a very different role in the series: a volatile and often violent stepbrother to a character portrayed by Jamie Bell. This series was hard to watch. In fact, it appears it was too hard to watch, as voters didn’t nominate Half Man in any other category. —J.R.

The Bear once dominated the Emmys, with every one of its main actors receiving a nomination—and many of them winning. Jeremy Allen White actually won the comedy-lead-actor category twice for his work as Carmy. But The Bear had a rockier road this year when it came to nominations. Ayo Edebiri did score a nod for lead actress in a comedy, but she’s the only main actor in the series who earned recognition this go-around, as Ebon Moss-Bachrach and Liza Colón-Zayas were also snubbed. White is at a crossroads in his career as he segues into movie stardom. In the meantime, it seems like Emmy voters opted to reward newer shows in this category, with nominations given to Steve Carell for Rooster, Matthew Rhys for Widow’s Bay, and Yayha Abdul-Mateen II for Wonder Man. —J.R.

Beloved actor, director, producer, and writer Rob Reiner got a nomination for his role as Albert on The Bear—an upbeat

restaurant consultant who provided some levity on a show that sometimes doesn’t feel like a true comedy. Reiner’s tragic death last December shocked audiences and the industry alike, and voters seem eager to reward Reiner as a way to remember his everlasting legacy in film and television. —J.R.

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