Laugh tracks: The state of the 2025 Emmy comedy race
Hacks will try to fend off foes old and new in Best Comedy Series Emmy race. It's perhaps fitting that Catherine O'Hara presented Best Comedy Series at last year's Emmys. After doing a bit, the Emmy champ announced the biggest awards upset in recent history: Hacks won over heavy favorite The Bear. As O'Hara handed the trophies to the Hacks team, little did anyone know that this was a preview of the probable top two series in the 2025 race.
By virtue of being the reigning champ and producing a stellar fourth season, Hacks is the odds-on favorite to defend its crown. After its shocking Emmy victory, the HBO Max hit had a near flawless winter run, picking up the top prize at every show except for comedy ensemble at the Screen Actors Guild Awards. Still, Jean Smart remained undefeated there, just like at the Emmys. Season 3 received 16 Emmy nominations and three wins — but they were big ones (series, actress, and writing) — and with so much momentum, Hacks could easily land more for Season 4 (it received the most nominations for Season 2 with 17). Smart is expected to win Best Comedy Actress once again, while Hannah Einbinder and co-creator, co-showrunner, and director Paul W. Downs, who broke through in acting last year, look safe to return to their respective supporting categories. Einbinder is in first place and was predicted to win last year too, but maybe the fourth time will be the charm.
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To win, Einbonder might have to defeat O'Hara, who stars on The Studio, Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg's hilarious Hollywood satire. Since its series premiere in March, The Studio has risen all the way to second place in the Best Comedy Series odds. Hot new shows right out of the gate tend to do well — just ask The Bear and The Studio's Apple TV+ mate Ted Lasso. Rogen is predicted to earn a Best Comedy Actor bid, while O'Hara and Ike Barinholtz are expected to be shortlisted for their supporting turns. But where The Studio could really make a killing is the guest categories. Its star-studded guest cast includes Martin Scorsese, Ron Howard, Bryan Cranston, Sarah Polley, Zoë Kravitz, Olivia Wilde, Anthony Mackie, Greta Lee, Zac Efron, Dave Franco, and more.
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The Studio's ascension means The Bear has dropped to third place in the series odds. The 2023 champ won 11 Emmys last year for its acclaimed second season, but it missed out on Best Comedy Series as discourse about its genre designation and divisive third season swirled. The FX culinary hit is now competing for said third season, but a strong Season 4, scheduled to premiere June 25 (two days after Phase 1 voting closes), could have voters shouting, "Yes, chef!" again. Look for Emmy winners Jeremy Allen White, Ayo Edebiri, Ebon Moss-Bachrach, and Liza Colón-Zayas to be back in the race, as well as defending guest champs Jamie Lee Curtis and Jon Bernthal. Moss-Bachrach is currently the only major win predicted for The Bear, which would also make him the first to three-peat in Best Comedy Supporting Actor since Entourage's Jeremy Piven (2006-08).
SEE 'Is that about me?' Seth Rogen loves how The Studio keeps Hollywood guessing
Hacks was denied a winter sweep at the SAG Awards by Only Murders in the Building, which not only won ensemble but comedy actor honors for Martin Short as well. "We never win. This is so weird," a stunned Selena Gomez said onstage. Indeed, these were the first major prizes for the Hulu murder mystery, which sits in fourth place in the series odds for its fourth season. Only Murders in the Building has won seven Emmys through three seasons, but none have been at the main Emmy ceremony. The twin SAG wins could be a sign of things to come. While the show is not in first place for series, Short is in pole position in Best Comedy Actor, where Steve Martin is in fifth place. And after finally cracking the category last year, Gomez is poised to score her second straight Best Comedy Actress bid.
The rest of the potential Best Comedy Series lineup is expected to be a mix of old and new. Past nominees Abbott Elementary and What We Do in the Shadows, the latter competing for its sixth and final season, are forecasted to return. Shrinking is not a new show, but it was snubbed in series for Season 1 despite snagging acting bids for Jason Segel and Jessica Williams. Its well-received second season ought to land it a spot in the lineup. And the eighth spot is expected to go to Kristen Bell and Adam Brody's rom-com Nobody Wants This. Netflix has a handful of new comedies in the running, including The Four Seasons and The Residence, but Nobody Wants This is the one that (nearly) everybody watched.
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