Emmy Predictions 2026 - Who Will Likely Be Nominated for Guest Actress in a Comedy Series?

From June 11 to 22, 2026, voting is taking place for The 78th Primetime Emmy Awards. As such, it's fun to look at which actors and shows have the best chances of actually being nominated this year. So, these are my predictions for which performers will be nominated for Guest Actress in a Comedy Series.

Performers most likely to be nominated:

1. Jamie Lee Curtis for FX's The Bear
2. Candice Bergen for Apple TV's Shrinking
3. Amy Poehler for NBC's Saturday Night Live
4. Cherry Jones for HBO Max's Hacks
5. Laurie Metcalf for HBO Max's Hacks
6. Betty Gilpin for Apple TV's Widow's Bay

Serious threats that could break through:

1. Kaitlin Olson, Jane Adams, Leslie Bibb, Ann Dowd, J. Smith-Cameron, Anna Konkle, Alanna Ubach and Lauren Weedman for HBO Max's Hacks
2. Melissa McCarthy, Ariana Grande and Olivia Rodrigo for NBC's Saturday Night Live
3. Cobie Smulders and Sherry Cola for Apple TV's Shrinking
4. Téa Leoni for Hulu's Only Murders in the Building
5. Taraji P. Henson, Khandi Alexander, Tatyana Ali and Keyla Monterroso Mejia for ABC's Abbott Elementary
6. Gillian Jacobs, Marin Ireland and Molly Gordon for FX's The Bear
7. Connie Britton for HBO's Rooster
8. Malin Akerman and Abbi Jacobson for HBO's The Comeback
9. Ayo Edebiri and Quenlin Blackwell for HBO's I Love LA

Some considerable long-shots:

1. Tisha Campbell for FX's The Lowdown
2. D'Arcy Carden and Leighton Meester for Netflix's Nobody Wants This
3. Octavia Spencer for Netflix's Running Point
4. Christina Ricci and Thandiwe Newton for Netflix's Wednesday
5. Sally Struthers for Netflix's A Man on the Inside
6. Anna Camp, Heidi Gardner and Megan Thee Stallion for NBC's The Fall and Rise of Reggie Dinkins
7. Linda Emond for Peacock's The Miniature Wife
8. Patsy Meck and Eleanor Reissa for Netflix's Big Mistakes
9. Kathleen Kenny and Wendy Schaal for Peacock's The 'Burbs

Colorful oddities that still have an outside chance:

1. Patti LuPone and Vicki Lawrence for Apple TV's Palm Royale
2. Melanie Lynskey for Peacock's Poker Face
3. D'Arcy Carden for Apple TV's Loot
4. Amy Sedaris and J. Smith-Cameron for CBS' Elsbeth
5. Christa Miller and Judy Reyes for ABC's Scrubs
6. Julia Butters for Peacock's The Paper
7. Anna Konkle for Apple TV's Murderbot
8. Ariana Madix for NBC's St. Denis Medical
9. Lisa Gilroy and Sia for Prime Video's Jury Duty Presents: Company Retreat

The nominations for The 78th Primetime Emmy Awards will be announced on Tuesday, July 8. The winners will be awarded in a ceremony broadcast on NBC on Monday, September 14.