Emmys: Kate O’Flynn Wins First Award of the Night, Jean Smart Makes History

The 2026 Emmy Awards are underway, and the show opened with a bang(er).

Emmy host Mariska Hargitay began the 2026 show with a musical number matched to “I Love Rock ‘n’ Roll,” chronicling her journey from New York to the Nokia Theater in Los Angeles, where the show is being held, in the lead up to the ceremony. In the medley, she shouted out Emmy-nominated shows like The Pitt, Margo’s Got Money Troubles, Beef and Widow’s Bay, among others.

“I am so proud to be the first woman to host the Emmys in 15 years. Imagine that, for 15 years, Amy [Poehler] and Tina [Fey] said no.” She then channeled Nicole Kidman’s infamous AMC ad, prompting the actress from the audience say, “That’s my bit! You can’t do that.”

“Zip it movie lady, it’s TV’s turn tonight!” Hargitay quipped back, before welcoming Poehler herself on the stage to present the first award, which went to Kate O’Flynn for her supporting role in a comedy, Widow’s Bay, which marked her first nomination and first win.

“This is for all the Patricia’s out there! See you at Sunset cocktails,” she said in her acceptance speech, referencing a plot point in the Apple TV show.

Jean Smart won again for best actress in a comedy for her role in Hacks, which was presented to her by Zendaya (who is also nominated tonight for her role in Euphoria). This marks her fifth award for Hacks, for all five seasons of the show’s run. This makes her the first performer in TV history to win an Emmy for every single season of a show’s run.

Buffy the Vampire Slayer debuted 30 years ago, so stars Sarah Michelle Gellar and David Boreanaz stepped on the stage to present best actor in a limited/anthology series or TV movie, which went to Matthew Rhys for The Beast in Me. This year, he earned the rare feat of getting dual nominations for The Beast in Me and best actor in a comedy series for Widow’s Bay. But before he took the stage to accept the award, Gellar and Boreanaz wondered if their characters would have ever gotten together.

“I guess we’ll never find out,” Gellar said, referencing the revival series that was canceled after filming its pilot, as well as possibly referring to the deaths of beloved cast members Nicholas Brendon and Tony Head. “It’s been a tough two years for our cast and crew.”

Allison Janney took home a trophy for her performance in The Diplomat, and Rhea Seehorn won her first Emmy for her role in Pluribus. Her recurring omissions for her role as Kim Wexler on Better Caul Saul is widely considered one of the biggest snubs in modern Emmy history. Despite having received acclaim for the first five seasons the show, she never received a single Emmy nomination. Only in 2022 did she get a supporting actress nod for the first half of the final season and then a lead acting nod for the final episodes, but she didn’t win.

During her acceptance speech, she told the audience that fellow nominee Keri Russell sent her a card beforehand, quoting the now-late Gloria Steinem: “We are linked, not ranked.”