While the film world focuses on the Venice and Telluride festivals kicking off the fall season, the Creative Arts Emmys highlighted television achievements, marking the start of the Primetime Emmys week and presenting honors across reality, variety, documentary, and guest‑actor categories.
The ceremony began Saturday evening at Los Angeles’s Peacock Theater, hosted by Wanda Sykes. Night 1’s top honorees were “The Traitors,” which captured five awards—including its third straight win for host Alan Cumming; “The Late Show with Stephen Colbert,” which earned six awards for its final season; and “The Muppet Show,” which secured four awards, notably Variety Special (Pre‑Recorded). Bad Bunny emerged as the night’s biggest winner, taking home trophies for Variety Special (Live), Directing, Lighting Design, Music Direction, Sound Mixing, Choreography and Technical Direction, and his SNL appearance also contributed to a Makeup win for a Variety, Nonfiction or Reality Program.
The 2026 Creative Arts Emmys resume on Sunday, September 6, with Night 1 winners listed below.
Variety Special (Live)
“The Apple Music Super Bowl LX Halftime Show Starring Bad Bunny”
Variety Special (Pre-recorded)
“The Muppet Show”
Directing for a Variety Special
“The Apple Music Super Bowl LX Halftime Show Starring Bad Bunny”
Directing for a Variety Series
“The Late Show With Stephen Colbert”
Technical Direction and Camerawork for a Special
“The Apple Music Super Bowl LX Halftime Show Starring Bad Bunny”
Technical Direction and Camerawork for a Series
“The Late Show With Stephen Colbert”
Lighting Design/Lighting Direction for a Series
“The Late Show With Stephen Colbert”
Lighting Design/Lighting Direction for a Special
“The Apple Music Super Bowl LX Halftime Show Starring Bad Bunny”
Structured Reality Program
“Antiques Roadshow”
Unstructured Reality Program
“Love On The Spectrum”
Host for a Reality or Reality Competition Program
“The Traitors”
Narrator
“Lost Women Of Alaska,” “The Missing”
Directing for a Reality Program
“The Traitors,” “Let the Cards Fall as They Will”
Directing for a Documentary/Nonfiction Program
“My Mom Jayne: A Film By Mariska Hargitay”
Hosted Nonfiction Series or Special
“Tucci In Italy”
Documentary or Nonfiction Series
“Mr. Scorsese”
Documentary or Nonfiction Special
“My Mom Jayne: A Film By Mariska Hargitay”
Picture Editing for a Structured Reality or Competition Program
“The Traitors,” “The Death Conga”
Picture Editing for an Unstructured Reality Program
“Love On The Spectrum,” “Episode 4”
Performer in a Short Form Comedy or Drama Series
“The Daily Show: Desi Lydic Foxsplains”
Picture Editing for a Nonfiction Program
“Sean Combs: The Reckoning”
Picture Editing for Variety Programming (Segment)
“The Late Show With Stephen Colbert”
Picture Editing for Variety Programming
“The Muppet Show”
Outstanding Sound Editing For A Nonfiction Or Reality Program
“Ocean With David Attenborough”
Sound Mixing for a Nonfiction Program
“Billy Joel: And So It Goes”
Sound Mixing for a Reality Program
“Welcome To Wrexham,” “Do A Wrexham”
Sound Mixing for a Variety Series or Special
“The Apple Music Super Bowl LX Halftime Show Starring Bad Bunny”
Writing for a Nonfiction Program
“The Daily Show Presents: Jordan Klepper Fingers The Pulse: Give The Man A Prize”
Writing for a Variety Series
“The Late Show With Stephen Colbert”
Writing for a Variety Special
“The Muppet Show”
Makeup for a Variety, Nonfiction or Reality Program
“Saturday Night Live,” “Host: Bad Bunny”
Hairstyling for a Variety Nonfiction or Reality Program
“RuPaul’s Drag Race”
Commercial
“I’m Not Remarkable – Apple”
Short Form Comedy, Drama or Variety Series
“Colbert Before Air”
Short Form Nonfiction or Reality Series
“Inside The Pitt”
Cinematography for a Reality Program
“The Traitors”
Cinematography for a Nonfiction Program
“Ocean With David Attenborough”
Casting for a Reality Program
“Love On The Spectrum” Cian O’Clery, Sean Bowman, Ashley Morgan, and Emily Frisbie
Emerging Media Program
“Uncanny Alley: A New Day”
Choreography for Variety or Reality Programming
“The Apple Music Super Bowl LX Halftime Show Starring Bad Bunny,” Charm La’Donna and Karina Ortiz,
Music Direction
“The Apple Music Super Bowl LX Halftime Show Starring Bad Bunny,” Miguel Gandelman
Music Composition for a Documentary/Nonfiction or Reality Program (Original Dramatic Score)
“John Candy: I Like Me”
Production Design for a Variety Special
“The Muppet Show”
Production Design for a Variety or Reality Series
“The Traitors,” “The Black Banquet”
Game Show
“Jeopardy!,”
Host for a Game Show
“Who Wants To Be A Millionaire,” Jimmy Kimmel
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