As the Emmy nominations were unveiled, it quickly became evident that this year’s lineup is anything but ordinary. While each nod recognizes outstanding talent, a handful of nominees truly stole the spotlight by earning not just one, but two or even three nominations for their television work over the past year.
While some of these nominations seemed almost inevitable, such as Matthew Rhys’s accolades for his stellar performances in Widow’s Bay and The Beast In Me—a prediction many had already penciled in—other recognitions emerged as delightful surprises for industry insiders and nominees alike.
This year’s Emmy race represents a fresh and thrilling experience for TV enthusiasts, who have been eager for a shake-up in the awards scene. It’s a chance to celebrate those actors, creators, and series that perhaps went unrecognized in previous years. This sense of newness imbues the 2026 Emmy nominations with a palpable excitement, as audiences eagerly anticipate how these contenders will celebrate achievements leading up to the much-awaited awards night.
Yet, as we ponder who truly dominated the screen this past year, it isn’t easily measured with accolades alone. However, in the spirit of celebrating exceptional talent, we’re thrilled to share some notable individuals who made a remarkable impression by securing multiple Emmy nominations for their work in television.
Matthew Rhys
Matthew Rhys is a standout in this year’s nominations. Taking on roles that challenged viewers with his portrayal of a mysterious billionaire in The Beast In Me and a jittery island mayor in Widow’s Bay, Rhys has earned two prestigious acting nominations. This achievement marks the first time since 1995 that an actor has been nominated in two lead acting categories. The last to do so was John Goodman, who was acknowledged for his performances in Roseanne and Kingfish: A Story of Huey P. Long.
Jason Bateman
Not only is Jason Bateman nominated for two different limited series — the Arrested Development alum picked up a nom in Best Lead Actor for Black Rabbit and Best Supporting Actor for DTF St. Louis — he also received a nod for directing the latter series, making him a three-time nom at this year’s Emmys.
Laurie Metcalf
Can you imagine being nominated for roughly 120 seconds of air time? If you are Laurie Metcalf, you don’t have to ponder it too hard because she found herself with another Emmy nomination this year, thanks to her brief but hilarious appearance in the penultimate episode of Hacks Season 5. The recent Tony winner also received a nomination for Best Supporting Actress in a Limited/Anthology Series for Monster: The Ed Gein Story. Sadly, no nomination for maybe her best work of the year, i.e. Big Mistakes, but more than two acting nominations might be a little greedy!
Nick Offerman
Who doesn’t love an actor who likes to show range, right? In Death By Lightning and Margo’s Got Money Troubles, Nick Offerman is the man, the myth, the legend, and now, a two-time nominee in a single year for his work. This is nothing new for the Emmy winner, though, so we assume he took the news as casually as if it were any other morning.
Colman Domingo
Colman Domingo is one of the hottest actors of 2026 and that is made clear in no better way than by looking at his two nominations for Best Guest Actor in a Drama Series for Euphoria and Best Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series for The Four Seasons. He’s got the range and he’s got the taste for a variety of roles and we love him for it.
Noah Wyle
Noah Wyle, who won the award for Best Lead Actor in a Drama Series last year for The Pitt, picked up two nominations this year for the HBO Max medical drama, both as an actor and as a director (“12:00 P.M.”). He’s also heavily favored as the frontrunner in the acting category so one way or another, we predict he will be up on that stage this year.
Martin Short
Martin Short is up for two different roles this year at the 2026 Emmys, both as Oliver Putnam in Hulu’s Only Murders In the Building and for hosting ABC’s Match Game. Some pundits predict that with the successful launch of his documentary, Marty: Life Is Short, he may even be positioned favorably to win in the first category, even among a stacked category of fellow comedic actors.
Quinta Brunson
Quinta Brunson is no stranger to the Emmys as a previous winner and nominee several times over, but this year, she scored nominations for her performance as Janine Teagues in Abbott Elementary and for Outstanding Writing for a Comedy Series.
Paul W. Downs
Snubbed no more! While Paul W. Downs was notably left off the Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series category roster at the 2025 Emmy Awards, the actor is back and better than ever this year with nominations for acting in the final season of Hacks and in Outstanding Writing For a Comedy Series.
Lisa Kudrow
Much like Downs and Brunson, Lisa Kudrow is an acting nominee who also received a nomination for writing. In the third and final season of HBO Max’s The Comeback, Kudrow solidified her place in comedy history as Valerie Cherish, the out-of-touch actress looking to find her next big break; Kudrow is nominated in the Lead Actress in a Comedy Series Category and for writing the episode “Valerie Does It All.”
Lucia Aniello
It’s a historic year for Hacks, which broke the record for most Emmy nominations for a comedy series in a single year, and co-creator Lucia Aniello is no small part of that major achievement. Aniello — who briefly appears on screen in Season 5 as Angela, a nosy realtor — scored noms in Outstanding Writing For a Comedy Series and for Outstanding Directing of a Comedy Series, both tied to the series’ finale.
Steven Conrad
Steven Conrad, the creator and mind behind DTF St. Louis, TV’s weirdest hit of 2026, received noms for Outstanding Writing for a Limited Series and Outstanding Directing for a Limited Series, much like Aniello did with Hacks in the comedy category.
Lee Sung-Jin
Walking alongside Conrad in the Limited/Anthology Series category is Beef creator Lee Sung-Jin, who won a series of Emmys back in 2023 after the show’s critically acclaimed first season. This season, Sung-Jin grabbed a nomination for Outstanding Writing and Outstanding Directing, notably for two different episodes. The creative’s Best Writing nom comes for “All the Things We’re Never Going to Have” and his Best Directing nod is for “Oh, The Comfort, The Inexpressible Comfort.” Can he do it again?
Salli Richardson-Whitfield
Salli Richardson-Whitfield has much to celebrate this year as she was honored by her peers for directing two different HBO series: Task and The Gilded Age. Considering that the Television Academy only chooses five nominees in this category, it’s a pretty good position to be in heading into Emmy night in September.
The Emmys air live on NBC and Peacock on Monday, September 14, at 8 p.m. ET.