10 Greatest TV Shows That Never Won An Emmy

Published Nov 11, 2026, 7:00 AM EST

Adrienne Tyler is a movies & TV features writer, with a focus on horror. She has written for Netflix, FanSided, & more. She was a regular guest on the Netfreaks podcast and was a YouTuber at some point. Guillermo del Toro said “hi” to her once.

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Winning an Emmy is widely considered the highest praise a TV show can get, but it has happened many times that some of the greatest shows never won an Emmy. There are different awards for TV, such as the Critics’ Choice Awards and the Golden Globes, but the most prestigious one is the Primetime Emmy Awards. The Emmys honor excellence in prime-time TV with different categories such as Outstanding Drama Series, Comedy, and a category for miniseries.

Of course, many of the best TV shows of all time have won at least one Emmy, such as Succession, The Pitt, Breaking Bad, and The West Wing, with others breaking specific records, as happened with Shōgun, The Bear, Hacks, and Widow’s Bay. However, and as happens with many other awards in other arts, the Emmys don’t always give the best TV shows the recognition they deserve, either through nominations or wins.

The Emmys are no strangers to controversy and the anger of the audience, who have rightfully called them out for not awarding shows and performances that were the most deserving or not even considering them for a nomination. This has led to some great TV shows across different genres not winning any Emmys during their runs, with some of them not being nominated at all.

My So-Called Life

My So-Called Life is a teen drama TV show created by Winnie Holzman. My So-Called Life takes viewers to the fictional Pittsburgh suburb of Three Rivers to follow 15-year-old high school student Angela Chase (Claire Danes). My So-Called Life explores the ups and downs of Angela's life as she deals with friendships, romances, school, and her family dynamic. My So-Called Life was canceled after just one season, despite being a critical success.

My So-Called Life has been praised for its realism, characters, tone, and how relatable it is, but that wasn’t enough for it to win an Emmy, even though it was nominated for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series (Claire Danes), Outstanding Directing for a Drama Series, Outstanding Writing for a Drama Series, and Outstanding Main Title Theme Music.

The Leftovers

The Leftovers is a supernatural drama TV show based on Tom Perrotta’s 2011 novel of the same name. The Leftovers is set three years after a global event called the “Sudden Departure”, which resulted in the simultaneous disappearance of 2% of the world’s population. The Leftovers follows police chief Kevin Garvey (Justin Theroux) and his family as they adapt to life after the Departure, after which various cults have emerged.

The Leftovers is widely regarded as one of the best TV shows of all time, with critics praising its concept, performances, directing, writing, and themes. Unfortunately, the Emmys didn’t recognize all this, and throughout its three-season run, The Leftovers was only nominated once (Outstanding Guest Actress in a Drama Series, for Ann Dowd) and lost.

BoJack Horseman

Created by Raphael Bob-Waksberg, BoJack Horseman is an adult animated tragicomedy set in a world where humans and anthropomorphic animals co-exist. BoJack Horseman follows the title character (voiced by Will Arnett), an anthropomorphic horse and washed-up star of the 1990s who is struggling with his career and his personal life, battling substance-use disorder, depression, and more.

BoJack Horseman is now one of the best animated TV shows of all time, with some of its biggest strengths being its animation, voice acting, tone, and the themes addressed in it, such as trauma, racism, addiction, self-destructive behavior, and more. BoJack Horseman received three nominations for the Creative Arts Emmy Awards (Outstanding Character Voice-Over Performance for Kristen Schaal, and Outstanding Animated Program in 2019 and 2020), but didn’t take any home.

Hannibal

Based on the characters from Thomas Harris’ novels Red Dragon, Hannibal, and Hannibal Rising, Hannibal follows FBI profiler Will Graham (Hugh Dancy), who is assigned to investigate a serial killer. As the investigation weighs heavily on Will, his boss assigns forensic psychiatrist Dr. Hannibal Lecter (Mads Mikkelsen) to supervise him, unaware that Lecter is a serial killer and a cannibal.

Hannibal is widely regarded as one of the best horror TV shows of all time and one of the best TV shows of the 2010s, praised for its performances, visual style, and adaptation of Harris’ characters. Throughout its three seasons, Hannibal was nominated for an Emmy once, in the category of Outstanding Special Visual Effects.

Parks and Recreation

Created by Greg Daniels and Michael Schur, Parks and Recreation takes the audience to the fictional town of Pawnee, Indiana, to meet Leslie Knope (Amy Poehler), the deputy director of the Parks and Recreation Department. In a mockumentary style like that of The Office, Parks and Recreation follows Leslie and her friends and colleagues through many ups and downs at work and in their personal lives.

Parks and Recreation is one of the best sitcoms of all time, and it received a total of 14 Emmy nominations throughout its run, including Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series and Outstanding Comedy Series, but, surprisingly and unfairly, never won.

Star Trek: The Original Series

Created by Gene Roddenberry, Star Trek: The Original Series is one of the best sci-fi TV shows of all time, spawning one of the biggest, most popular, and profitable franchises in the genre. Star Trek: The Original Series takes the audience on different adventures across space aboard the USS Enterprise, alongside Captain James T. Kirk (William Shatner), First Officer and Science Officer Spock (Leonard Nimoy), and the rest of the crew.

The cultural impact and legacy of Star Trek: The Original Series is undeniable, but the show never took an Emmy home during its run. However, the Emmys did recognize the show’s quality and achievements with 13 nominations, including Outstanding Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role in a Drama (Leonard Nimoy), Outstanding Achievement in Film Editing, and Outstanding Dramatic Series.

Sons of Anarchy

Created by Kurt Sutter, Sons of Anarchy is a crime action drama TV series set in the fictional town of Charming, California. Sons of Anarchy follows the title motorcycle club, led by President Clay Morrow (Ron Perlman) and VP Jackson “Jax” Teller (Charlie Hunnam). Throughout seven seasons, Sons of Anarchy follows Jax and his SAMCRO brothers and family through conflicts with other clubs and organizations, betrayals, wins, and tragedies.

Sons of Anarchy is one of the best crime drama TV shows of all time and was consistently great from beginning to end. However, Sons of Anarchy only received five Emmy nominations in technical and creative categories, such as Outstanding Original Main Title Theme Music and Outstanding Stunt Coordination for a Drama Series, Limited Series or Movie, but didn’t win any.

The Good Place

Created by Michael Schur, The Good Place is a fantasy comedy TV show that introduces viewers to Eleanor Shellstrop (Kristen Bell), a woman who dies and ends up in the Good Place, a Heaven-like place. However, Eleanor is aware that she doesn’t belong there, but she does her best to earn her place with the help of her assigned soulmate, Chidi (William Jackson Harper). The Good Place famously has one of the best plot twists of all time in its first season.

The Good Place is one of the best TV shows of the 2010s and quickly became one of the best comedy shows of all time, but despite all the praise it received, it never won an Emmy. However, The Good Place received 14 nominations throughout its run, including Outstanding Comedy Series, Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series (Ted Danson), and Outstanding Writing for a Comedy Series.

The Wire

The Wire is a crime drama TV series created by David Simon. Set in Baltimore, each season of The Wire explores the failures and decay of the city through different institutions, such as the illegal drug trade, the port system, city hall, the public school system, and the print media. The Wire is praised for its realism, themes, performances, and writing, but the Emmys weren’t impressed.

Throughout its five-season run, The Wire was only nominated for an Emmy twice, both in the category of Outstanding Writing for a Drama Series, but the Emmys had other plans that didn’t involve The Wire.

Better Call Saul

Created by Vince Gilligan and Peter Gould, and a spinoff prequel to Breaking Bad, Better Call Saul follows Jimmy McGill (Bob Odenkirk). A former con artist, McGill wants to gain respectability as a public defender, and so Better Call Saul follows his journey as he becomes involved in questionable situations that lead him to become Saul Goodman, a criminal lawyer involved with the criminal world.

Better Call Saul is widely regarded as one of the best TV shows of all time, with some even considering it superior to Breaking Bad, and has been praised for its performances, writing, tone, and direction. Better Call Saul received a total of 53 Emmy nominations, and surprisingly and unfairly, it never won.