Apple TV closed out this year's Emmys with 28 trophies, more wins than any other platform managed, and the first time since the service launched in 2019 that it has finished on top of the tally. HBO Max came second with 21. Netflix, which has spent most of the last decade trading the top spot with HBO, dropped to third with 16.

The number that did the heavy lifting was 14. That's how many Emmys Widow's Bay picked up across the Creative Arts ceremony and Monday's telecast, a horror-comedy about a New England island that Variety and The Hollywood Reporter both describe as the most-decorated comedy series in Emmy history, breaking a record set only last year by another Apple show, The Studio. It won every single category it was nominated in on the main night, including outstanding comedy series, lead comedy actor, supporting comedy actor and actress, plus writing and directing.

Stephen Root, who took supporting comedy actor for playing the fisherman Wyck Crawford, told Deadline backstage that the show's tone was deliberate from the first table read. "We're not doing a comedy, we're not doing a horror show, and we're not doing a drama," he said Matthew Rhys had told the cast early on. "What we're playing is the truth. Truth in reality. All those other things come out of that." Root also singled out co-star Kate O'Flynn as someone who pushed his own performance, saying watching her work up close "will knock you over."

Apple didn't win on Widow's Bay alone. Pluribus, another first-year series, brought in six Emmys including Rhea Seehorn's drama lead actress win and Vince Gilligan's writing award. Margo's Got Money Troubles and Palm Royale added three apiece, with one each going to Slow Horses and Mr. Scorsese. The Hollywood Reporter notes Apple's parent company also picked up a separate award for best commercial, which is part of why its own count nudges to 29 depending on how the tally is drawn. Either way, Apple TV won roughly a third of everything it was nominated for, 87 nominations against 28 or 29 wins.

On the other side, HBO Max's night was carried by DTF St. Louis and The Pitt, seven wins apiece, which tied them with Peacock's The Traitors for second-most-decorated show of the year behind Widow's Bay. Netflix spread its 16 wins across Beef, Love on the Spectrum, Bridgerton and The Beast in Me, none of them dominating the way Apple's shows did.

Variety points out this is only the second time in twenty years that neither HBO Max nor Netflix has finished first, the other being FX's win in 2024. Apple had the top individual show last year with The Studio's 13 wins but still trailed both bigger streamers on count. This time it didn't just have the best show. It had the best year, full stop, and the question now is whether Widow's Bay gets a second season order to go with the trophy case.