2026 Emmy Awards Night 1 Winners: Bad Bunny Leads With 7 Emmys

The 78th Primetime Emmy Awards officially kicked off in Los Angeles with the beginning of the festivities on the first night at the Peacock Theatre, where many achievements in different sectors of television were celebrated.

The biggest winner of the night was The Apple Music Super Bowl LX Halftime Show Starring Bad Bunny, which collected seven Emmy Awards. The Traitors followed with six wins, while The Late Show With Stephen Colbert earned five awards during its final season.

Bad Bunny’s Super Bowl Halftime Show Dominates

The most noteworthy winner at the first Emmy Awards Night is the Super Bowl LX Halftime Show presented by Apple Music Starring Bad Bunny. It took home the award for Outstanding Variety Special (Live).

His total number of seven wins consisted of directing, lighting design, music direction, sound mixing, choreography, and technical direction/camerawork. With such a performance, he achieved yet another success within his very productive year.

The Traitors Scores Six Emmy Wins

Peacock’s The Traitors continued its impressive awards-season run with six victories. The reality competition series was recognized for directing, cinematography, picture editing and production design.

Host Alan Cumming also won Outstanding Host for a Reality or Reality Competition Program. His victory marked another Emmy recognition for his work on the popular series.

Stephen Colbert’s Final Season Gets Major Recognition

The Late Show With Stephen Colbert had an emotional and successful night, collecting five Emmy Awards. The CBS series won across several categories, including writing, directing, lighting, picture editing and technical direction.

The awards meant more since they were received in the final season of the show. It was yet another landmark in the show’s long career at the Emmy Awards.

Mariska Hargitay Wins Two Emmys

Mariska Hargitay was another major winner of the evening. She won two awards for My Mom Jayne: A Film by Mariska Hargitay, including Outstanding Documentary or Nonfiction Special and Outstanding Directing for a Documentary/Nonfiction Program.

Her wins were among the most emotional moments of the ceremony, adding another important achievement to her long Emmy history.

Octavia Spencer and Jimmy Kimmel Also Win

Octavia Spencer won Outstanding Narrator for Lost Women of Alaska, earning her first Emmy Award. Meanwhile, Jimmy Kimmel won Outstanding Host for a Game Show for Who Wants to Be a Millionaire.

Desi Lydic also received an Emmy for her performance in The Daily Show: Desi Lydic Foxsplains, while Antiques Roadshow made history by winning its first Emmy after 24 nominations.

Top Winners From Night 1

The Muppet Show Makes a Strong Comeback

The Muppet Show was another major success of the evening, winning four awards. The Disney+ production was recognized for its variety special, writing, picture editing and production design.

Other notable winners included Love on the Spectrum for Outstanding Unstructured Reality Program, Jeopardy! for Outstanding Game Show and RuPaul’s Drag Race for hairstyling.

What Happens Next?

Emmy Awards Night 1 is only the beginning of the 2026 celebrations. The second night will recognize additional creative, technical and performance categories before the main Primetime Emmy ceremony.

With the performances from Bad Bunny at the Super Bowl, The Traitors, and The Late Show With Stephen Colbert topping the list of winners, the first night has been full of exciting moments. It is now time for Night 2, which features the Primetime Emmy Awards Ceremony.