LGBTQ+ Creative Arts Emmys 2026 award winners: Hacks and lesbian-led Pluribus land early wins
Hannah Einbinder, Jean Smart for “Hacks”, pose with the Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series and Lead Actress in a Comedy Series awards, respectively at the 77th Primetime Emmy Awards held at the Pea (Getty Images)
The 2026 Creative Arts Emmy Awards in Los Angeles saw multiple LGBTQ+-connected shows and stars recognised, including wins for Hacks and Pluribus and a hosting award for The Traitors’ Alan Cumming.
The ceremonies took place on 5 and 6 September. HBO’s Hacks won Outstanding Picture Editing for a Single Camera Comedy Series, adding to what has been described as a record-breaking 24 Emmy nominations for the show this year. Jean Smart is nominated for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series, with the winner set to be announced at the Primetime Emmy Awards on 14 September.
Smart has also spoken publicly about LGBTQ+ equality. At the 2024 Human Rights Campaign Dinner, she said: “In a world where children are starving and dying because of war, it seems obscene and beyond understanding that any of us should be concerned with someone else’s sexuality”.
Pluribus takes four craft awards
Sci-fi dark comedy Pluribus, centred on lesbian romance author Carol surviving the aftermath of an alien invasion, won four Creative Arts Emmys: Original Main Title Theme Music, Sound Mixing for a Drama Series, Production Design for a Narrative Contemporary Program and Picture Editing for a Drama Series.
Rhea Seehorn is nominated for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series for portraying Carol, while Miriam Shor is up for Outstanding Guest Actress in a Drama Series as Carol’s wife, Helen. Speaking to Fox LA, Shor said: “It was about getting across the history these two people have together, the love they have together, in a very short period of time”. She added: “Rhea and I really worked together to create this bond that really matters, you have to care that Helen (spoiler alert) doesn’t make it, because it’s the whole show, that grief and Carol grappling with it”.
Alan Cumming on queer visibility
Cumming won the Reality TV Host award, with RuPaul, Ariana Madix and Kristen Kirsch also nominated in the category. In an interview with Them, he said: “With all these draconian, horrific things, laws, and attitudes against the queer and trans community in America right now, I think it’s a really positive thing to see so many queer people and, hopefully, trans people in a show that also celebrates dressing up, androgyny, femmeness, and queerness,”.
