Overview
- Hiro Murai won Outstanding Directing for a Comedy Series for the pilot episode “Welcome to Widow’s Bay!,” earning the directing prize for Apple TV’s freshman show.
- His victory is the first time an Asian director has taken the Emmy in the comedy directing category and makes him only the third Asian director to win any Emmy.
- Widow’s Bay emerged as a major winner at the 2026 Emmys, collecting Outstanding Comedy Series plus acting trophies for Matthew Rhys, Kate O’Flynn and Stephen Root.
- Murai has a long awards track record, including multiple past directing nominations and a previous Emmy as an executive producer on The Bear, and he directed five episodes of Widow’s Bay’s first season.
- In his acceptance remarks Murai thanked showrunner Katie Dippold, his family and his partner Emma, and the win is likely to raise visibility for diverse directors and for Apple TV’s new hit series.