The 78th Primetime Emmy Awards returned to the Peacock Theater in Los Angeles on Monday, Sept. 14. The show kicked off with a sketch about the creation of television featuring this year’s host, actress Mariska Hargitay and 2026 NBA Champion and New York Knicks point guard Jalen Brunson.
The sketch featured Hargitay steaming her dress and telling someone off-camera about the pressure of being the center of millions of eyes, then revealing Brunson, who replies, “Seriously?” before she rushes off to the show and breaks out into song. For those not up to date, the two stars are major fans of each other’s craft.
In May 2025, on The Roommates Show podcast, Brunson co-hosts the show with teammate Josh Hart said that “Law & Order: Special Victims Unit” was a core part of his childhood. He added that his favorite TV star, and one of the only people ever to leave him starstruck, was Hargitay.
Fast forward to this year, when the Knicks won the Finals, Hargitay shared a touching message on Instagram with a photo of Brunson as a child, writing, “And you lead the way for so many. Congratulations to you all and deepest thanks. #NBAFINALS CAPTAIN @jalenbrunson1 @nyknicks CHAMPIONS #BELIEVE,” she wrote. “I’m not crying, you’re crying.”
Brunson shared a message with Hargitay ahead of her hosting the Emmys on the Today show.
“What’s up, Mariska? It’s Jalen here,” Brunson said as Hargitay lit up. “Just wanted to say I’m really excited to see you host the Emmys. It’s such an amazing opportunity for you, so I can’t wait to watch; I can’t wait to see … You’re going to do great. Everyone is rooting for you.”
“Was that just the G.O.A.T. wishing me good luck?” Hargitay asked.
“Yeah, he knows a little something about big stages,” said Today co-anchor Savannah Guthrie.
“I think he does!” Hargitay said with a big smile.
Here’s a look at more of the top moments of the night that viewers were buzzing about on social media.
David Boreanaz: I always thought Buffy and Angel would end up together.
Sarah Michelle Gellar: I guess we won’t find out…
WHY WOULD SHE SAY THAT?!?
BRING BUFFY BACK NOWWWWW#BringBuffyBack #Emmys #Buffy pic.twitter.com/5mgnEwBOB1
— TV Tweets
(@TVTweets2026) September 15, 2026
Not the “Buffy” resurrection fans hoped for
“Buffy the Vampire Slayer” stars Sarah Michelle Gellar and David Boreanaz had a mini reunion at the show while presenting the Emmy for outstanding lead actor in a limited or anthology series or movie, which went to Matthew Rhys for “The Beast in Me.”
The presentation opened with a joke about the premise of “Buffy the Vampire Slayer.”
“A teenage girl chosen by fate to fight vampires, demons and forces of darkness, and then she falls in love with a vampire with a soul carrying around a couple hundred years of regret,” Gellar said. “A much, much older vampire with a soul and agonizing remorse about his past. For those of you who don’t know, his character was 241 years old.”
She also took a jab at the pilot of a sequel series that was announced but not picked up earlier this year, by saying audiences will never know how Buffy and Angel’s love story will end.
“You know, Sarah, I always thought Buffy and Angel would end up together,” Boreanaz said.
“Well, I guess we won’t find out!” Gellar replied.
Gellar also alluded to some big losses in the beloved series in recent years. Nicholas Brendon, who played Buffy’s friend Xander Harris, died in March at 54; Anthony Head, who played Buffy’s Watcher Rupert Giles on all seven seasons of the show, died in June at 72; and Michelle Trachtenberg, who joined “Buffy” in its fifth season as Buffy’s younger sister Dawn Summers, died in February 2025 at 39.
The “S” in SVU stands for Swiftie
The internet buzzed with speculation about whether Taylor Swift would show, setting the stage for a “Law & Order: Special Victims Unit” skit full of red-string conspiracies on photo boards and a not-so-subtle characterization of the Swifties.
Real Swift fans would know that she wouldn’t appear at the awards show because her husband, Travis Kelce, had his first game of the season with the rest of his Kansas City Chiefs teammates against the Denver Broncos.
“The Emmys are tonight, and the mayor’s office is breathing down my neck demanding an answer to the big question: Will Taylor Swift be at the Emmys?” host Hargitay said in the sketch, in character as Olivia Benson. “Now, in order to crack a Swifty case, you’ve got to think like a Swifty, because the Swifties think that everything is a clue to what she’ll do next.”
The show’s cast tries to break down clues that she will show up during the ceremony, taking a page from dedicated Swifties who analyze her every move. Swift joined in on the fun, throwing out wild clues and ideas to help the team predict whether she’d end up in a segment with her real-life cat, named Olivia Benson after the character.
Swift was, in fact, at the Monday night football game and sat by actor Tom Cruise.
Stephen Colbert quotes Tennyson in praising his Emmy-winning “The Late Show” staff.#StephenColbert #Emmys #EmmyAwards pic.twitter.com/AcxMqd0diK
— The Associated Press (@AP) September 15, 2026
The Late Show with Stephen Colbert wins final Emmy
Stephen Colbert’s “The Late Show” went out with a win four months after it ended its run on CBS.
“The Late Show” won Outstanding Variety Series for the second year, and final time, beating out “The Daily Show,” “Jimmy Kimmel Live!,” “Saturday Night Live” and “Last Week Tonight with John Oliver.”
Colbert shouted out his show’s former writing staff, saying they were responsible for the comedy at the ceremony and were available for work.
“Thank you so much on behalf of the over 200 people who threw themselves at this show for 11 years to try to do the best show they possibly could for you. The thing about these late shows is that, besides being a really good, steady job, they require so many people that they’re a fantastic incubator for young people to come in to learn to work professionally on a deadline in cooperation and collaboration, and that is the future of our business that we have to look after,” he said.
Emmy Awards 2026: Megan Stalter goes for the gold as the Emmy Award
Michael J. Fox gets standing ovation
One of the most moving moments at the Emmys was Michael J. Fox’s acceptance speech, as Julianna Margulies honored him with the Bob Hope Humanitarian Award for his philanthropic efforts.
Fox received a standing ovation when he was brought onstage in a wheelchair and opened his speech with a joke. “I have to sit, so you enjoy it,” the actor jested. TV’s biggest stars, including Harrison Ford, watched with tears in their eyes as the acting legend took center stage.
Margulies told the crowd this year marked only the sixth time the award had been handed out since its 2002 creation. Fox thanked Bob Hope and shared what he learned from the comedian before discussing his own diagnosis.
“I understood that accepting Parkinson’s didn’t mean I had to surrender to it,” he said. “It just meant doing whatever I could for people living with this disease.”
Reba McEntire honoring Dolly Parton by singing “Appalachian Memories” at the Emmys…and just like that, my heart hurts.
— Olivia of Troye (@OliviaTroye) September 15, 2026
Reba’s tribute to the country queen
Actress, musician, and country music icon Reba McEntire took the stage to pay tribute to the late country queen Dolly Parton. Parton died on August 25 at the age of 80 after a battle with cancer, leading to nationwide mourning.
The segment opened with Parton’s Steel Magnolias co-star Sally Field, who emphasized her humanitarian spirit and “bawdy” sense of humor, and how she could put any man in their place. After a short clip of the late musician herself, McEntire kicked off a beautiful piano and string rendition of Parton’s 1983 ballad “Appalachian Memories.”
“I love you, Dolly, so much,” said McEntire at the song’s conclusion.
When Macaulay started talking about Catherine O’ Hara: #emmys pic.twitter.com/CgFa5MIqVH
— Jenae Ivy (@justwrite115) September 15, 2026
America’s Late mother
Macaulay Culkin, who played Catherine O’Hara’s son Kevin McCallister in the first two “Home Alone” movies, joined “Schitt’s Creek” stars Dan Levy and Annie Murphy to remember their TV and movie mom and deliver a heartfelt message.
“You remember her as the forgetful mother, right? But I will never forget about her,” Culkin said. “You know, there are all kinds of words I could use to describe Catherine. She was encouraging, she was warm, she was funny… but the word that I think of is Mama. She wasn’t just a wife and mother to Bo, Matthew, and Luke, she was my mom. She was our mama — and by extension, she’s all of our mama. But like a good mama, she always showed up when I asked her to, because that was Catherine. That’s what she did. She showed up, and this is the best that we can do for her tonight. We’re showing up for her.”
Murphy followed by saying: “Catherine’s laugh was a perpetual ‘Yes, and….’ It challenged anyone who heard it to join in and be as delighted as she was. And she spread that delight everywhere. After we lost Catherine, I was passed a note on an Air Canada flight that said, ‘She was so special. I hope you’re doing okay.’ On a drive up north, I was hugged by an extremely gruff-looking gas station attendant who was also grieving her loss. While buying wine at the LCBO, I was treated to a very lively Catherine mashup, which was a woman saying, ‘Ew, David, where’s the baby,’ while doing what I can only assume was Catherine’s exquisite hobble from ‘Best in Show.’ These are only a very few of the interactions I’ve been lucky enough to have that remind me how profoundly Catherine has impacted the world, and it’s because she brought us joy.”
Levy wrapped up by sharing the greatest lesson he ever learned from O’Hara: “Always say yes. Say yes to her instincts, all of them. As radical as they may sometimes seem, she is miles ahead of you, and you will learn to catch up. Say yes to helping her build a TV character over the age of 60 that wears leather miniskirts and eight-inch heels, and speaks in a strange, sometimes unintelligible transatlantic accent, and know that she will not scare an audience away. Say yes to that rewrite she emails you — sometimes the night before. ‘Dear Dan, some thoughts…’ It will always improve the story. Say yes to the concept of a wig wall. Say yes to her asking to wear a wig as a hat. Say yes to her naming that wig. Say yes to giving her space to experiment and create. It will amaze you on a daily basis, and it will change your life. Say yes to her dinner invites… and her stories… and her wisdom… and her generosity. Those are the things you will hold on to the tightest. Always say yes to any opportunity to revel in the presence of greatness.”
Then came the In Memoriam, honoring all of the industry greatness we lost this year, accompanied by a performance from Noah Khan, which included James Van Der Beek, Anthony Geary, Isiah Whitlock Jr., Desmond Wilson, June Lockhart, Anthony Head, Diane Ladd, Sid Krofft, Ted Turner, Patricia Crowley, Eric Dane, Hayden Panettiere, Louise Lasser, T.K. Carter, Robert Duvall, Dolly Parton, Robert Carradine, Vincent Pastore, Maria Riva, Randolph Mantooth, Jon Cypher, Gene Shalit, Cleto, Sam Neill, Hal Williams, Tim Curry, Shelley Fabares, Bob Mackie, James Burrows and Rob Reiner.
However, some social media users quickly pointed out that Chuck Norris, Grizz Chapman, Patrick Muldoon, and Jaye P. Morgan were missing.