Nicholas Brendon, Chuck Norris & More Left Out of Emmys In Memoriam

Jamie Lee Curtis Breaks Down Honoring "Beloved Meathead" Rob Reiner During Emmys In Memoriam

While they’ll forever stay in fans’ hearts, there were a few late TV stars who weren’t included in the 2026 Emmys in memoriam segment.

Take Nicholas Brendon, for instance. While the Buffy the Vampire Slayer actor died at age 54 in March, he was not featured in the televised tribute. Still, his former costars Sarah Michelle Gellar and David Boreanaz acknowledged the losses their TV family has faced, which also include the deaths of Anthony Head at age 72 in June and Michelle Trachtenberg at age 39 in February 2025, earlier in the program.

"David and I would like to acknowledge it’s been a tough two years for our beloved cast and crew,” Gellar said while presenting an award with Boreanaz, "and we feel very lucky to have known and worked with such amazing people."

Similarly, many were surprised to not see Walker, Texas Ranger's Chuck Norris in the tribute after his death at age 86 in March or Robert Redford, who died at age 89 in September 2025 after last year's Emmys and had acted in and produced shows like Dark Winds and Death Row Series in addition to being a movie star.

Others noticeably absent from the televised in memoriam included 30 Rock’s Grizz Chapman, who died at age 52 in May; Powerpuff Girls voice actor Tom Kane, who passed away that same month at age 64; and Days of Our Lives’ Patrick Muldoon, who suffered a fatal heart attack at age 57 in June.

Gilbert Carrasquillo/Getty Images/Jason Merritt/Getty Images/Rindoff/Charriau/Getty Images

Social media users also called out the omission of Daveigh Chase, who in addition to starring as the titular Lilo in Disney's animated film Lilo & Stitch acted in shows Big Love and Oliver Beene before she died at 39 in June. 

In addition, voice actor Peter Cullen from Transformers: Prime and The New Adventures of Winnie the Pooh as well as Gong Show panelist Jaye P. Morgan—who both passed away weeks before the 2026 Emmys in August at ages 85 and 94, respectively—were not featured.

However, the Television Academy did pay tribute to these and more late TV stars on its website. Before the ceremony, chairman Cris Abrego told Variety that since "so many big iconic names" died in the last year that it was “not feasible” to include everyone in the broadcast.

Still, there were many moving tributes during the telecast. Sally Field and Reba McEntire honored Dolly Parton, who died at age 80 in August following a private battle with cancer, and Home Alone’s Macaulay Culkin as well as Schitt’s Creek Annie Murphy and Dan Levy paid their respects to their onscreen mom Catherine O’Hara, who passed away at age 71 in January from a pulmonary embolism with rectal cancer as the underlying cause.

Jamie Lee Curtis also remembered Rob Reiner after he and his wife Michele Singer Reiner were fatally stabbed in December, and Noah Kahan performed a music tribute in memory of all the stars honored in the televised in memoriam segment.

The 2026 Emmys were hosted by Mariska Hargitay, with The Pitt and Widow’s Bay taking home the top prizes of Outstanding Drama and Comedy Series, respectively. To see more from the award show, read on.

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