Matthew Rhys Became The First Male Actor in History to Win the ‘Best Leading Actor’ Award in All Three Major Acting Categories at the Emmys

While the buzz from the 78th Emmy Awards on the night of September 14th is still settling—amidst all the red carpet coverage, who wore what, and whose speech stole the night—let’s not let the real highlight slip through the cracks. Let’s talk about the incredible piece of history Matthew Rhys quietly just wrote!

The man accomplished something previously deemed “impossible” in the television world, breaking records right open.

Here is the breakdown: Matthew Rhys just became the first actor in Emmy history to win Lead Actor across all three major scripted categories: Drama, Comedy, and Limited Series. That’s no small feat—no performer had ever pulled this off until now.

Let’s take a quick look back. We first saw him take home the statuette in 2018 for his phenomenal performance in The Americans under the Drama category. We thought, “Alright, he’s mastered drama,” but clearly he was far from done. At this year’s 78th ceremony, he practically ran the show, taking home two trophies in a single night: Lead Actor in a Limited or Anthology Series for The Beast in Me, and Lead Actor in a Comedy Series for Widow’s Bay.

Earning industry-wide recognition as the absolute best across a heartbreaking drama, a high-tempo comedy, and a hard-hitting limited series requires a mind-blowing level of acting range. Just look at that well-earned smile in the photos and the two statuettes held tight in his hands—it speaks volumes about the sheer hard work and versatility behind this triumph.

In short, when people look back at the 78th Emmy Awards years from now, one of the first things that will come to mind is undoubtedly Matthew Rhys’s unmatched “hat-trick.” All that’s left for us to do is tip our hats and give him a standing ovation!