Horror does not usually walk out of the Emmys with an armful of trophies. This year it walked out with fourteen.
Apple TV’s horror-comedy Widow’s Bay won 14 Emmy Awards in 2026. That is the most any comedy series has ever won in a single year. The previous record was 13 and The Studio had held it since 2025.
The haul came in two pieces. Widow’s Bay took eight awards at the Creative Arts Emmys and then added six more during the 78th Primetime Emmy Awards telecast. Outstanding Comedy Series was among them.
Matthew Rhys won Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series. He also won Lead Actor in a Limited or Anthology Series for The Beast in Me which gave him two lead acting wins at the same ceremony. Stephen Root won Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series and Kate O’Flynn won Outstanding Supporting Actress.
Series creator Katie Dippold won Outstanding Writing for a Comedy Series for the episode “Welcome to Widow’s Bay!” Hiro Murai won Outstanding Directing for a Comedy Series.
Why a haunted town just rewrote the comedy record book
The most decorated comedy season in Emmy history belongs to a show about a man trying to convince people his town is not haunted.
Widow’s Bay follows the mayor of an isolated New England island community. Local legends keep surfacing and events keep happening that look an awful lot like the supernatural. His job is public reassurance. The island is not cooperating.
Genre television has spent decades being treated as the fun thing that does not get called to the stage. Horror shows have often found more room in the craft categories than the marquee awards. Widow’s Bay picked up plenty of those too. It also took writing and directing, four acting awards and the top prize in its category.
That is not a small shift in what voters are willing to reward. A supernatural comedy beat every conventional comedy in the field and then beat the all-time record too. Whether that opens a door for the next haunted pitch is not something anybody can promise. It does mean the next showrunner walking into a room with a ghost story and a joke book has a very useful number to point at.
Fourteen. No comedy series has ever won more in a single year.
Looking for more to watch? See our picks for the best horror on Netflix, Shudder and Hulu, plus every upcoming horror movie on the calendar.
