The 78th Primetime Emmy Awards on Sept. 14 at the Peacock Theater in Downtown Los Angeles included repeat wins for Noah Wyle, a first Emmy for “Slow Horses” director Saul Metzstein and a record-setting posthumous award for Rob Reiner.
Wyle won Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series for playing Dr. Michael “Robby” Robinavitch on HBO Max’s “The Pitt.” It was his second consecutive win in the category. “The Pitt” also won Outstanding Drama Series, giving Wyle another Emmy as one of the show’s executive producers.
Wyle won the same two Emmys for “The Pitt” in 2025 after the first season.
“This is overwhelming,” Wyle said as he accepted the acting award. He thanked his fellow nominees and the people at HBO, Warner Bros. Television and the crew of “The Pitt,” who were due back at work the next morning. “I grew up in LA. I’m a Hollywood kid; I was raised on television and movie theaters were my place of worship. This is all I’ve ever wanted to do, and this is the only club I’ve ever wanted to join. Thank you for accepting.”
“The Pitt” entered the Emmys with 25 nominations, the most of any program, including 12 in major categories.
Wyle had another chance at an Emmy for directing the “Pitt” episode “12:00 p.m.” That award went to Metzstein for directing the “Slow Horses” episode “Scars.” The win was Metzstein’s first Emmy.
“I misread the invite. I thought it was an audition for a Bond villain,” Saul Metzstein said, while wearing a shaded lens over his left eye. Metzstein thanked “Slow Horses” showrunner Will Smith, the cast and the people who worked on the series. Metzstein is the son of architect Isi Metzstein, who was born in Poland and survived the Holocaust after escaping Nazi Europe on the Kindertransport.
Rob Reiner posthumously won Outstanding Guest Actor in a Comedy Series for his work on “The Bear” at the Creative Arts Emmys held the week before the main ceremony. The award was Reiner’s third career Emmy and came 48 years after his previous acting Emmy.
Reiner and his wife, Michele, were murdered on Dec. 14, 2025.
The In Memoriam segment opened with Macaulay Culkin speaking about his “Home Alone” co-star Catherine O’Hara, who died in January. Jewish singer-songwriter Noah Kahan performed “Bridge Over Troubled Water” on acoustic guitar as the ceremony remembered television figures who died over the past year.
Jamie Lee Curtis, in tears, closed the segment with a tribute to Reiner. “Last week, Robbie won an Emmy for guest actor in a comedy series for his beautiful work on ‘The Bear,’ and he now holds the record of 48 years for the longest gap between acting Emmys, which was previously held by his father, Carl Reiner, at 37 years,” Curtis said. “He was generous and kind, and funny as hell and a friend to all. We all miss Rob and Michele. And all those we lost this year.” Rob Reiner previously won two acting Emmys for playing Michael “Meathead” Stivic on “All in the Family” in 1974 and 1978.
Comedian Jon Stewart also added another Emmy to his career as an executive producer of “The Late Show with Stephen Colbert,” which won Outstanding Variety Series. “The Daily Show,” which Stewart hosts and is executive producer, was also nominated in the category.
Several prominent Jewish actors were nominated but did not win. Jason Segel was nominated for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series for “Shrinking.” Lisa Kudrow was nominated for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series for “The Comeback.” Kudrow had a second nomination for writing the “Comeback” episode “Valerie Does It All” with Michael Patrick King. Harrison Ford was nominated for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series for “Shrinking,” while Hannah Einbinder was nominated for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series for “Hacks.” Randall Einhorn was nominated for directing the “Abbott Elementary” episode “Ballgame.” Debora Cahn and Peter Ackerman were nominated for Outstanding Writing for a Drama Series for “The Diplomat” episode “Amagansett.”
Two programs about Jewish subjects were also among this year’s nominees.
Netflix’s “Nobody Wants This,” about a rabbi and a non-Jewish woman who fall in love, was nominated for Outstanding Comedy Series. The series received two Emmy nominations this year, including music supervision, but no acting nominations. Synagogue scenes in the series were filmed at Sinai Temple in Los Angeles. The show’s third season premieres in October.
HBO’s “Mel Brooks: The 99 Year Old Man!” received six Emmy nominations. The documentary about Brooks finished without a win.
