Apple TV+'s "Widow's Bay," a horror-comedy series, received 19 Emmy nominations announced July 8, more than any other new show in this awards cycle for the 78th Emmy Awards Engadget. Another Apple TV+ series, "Pluribus" (a science fiction drama), came in second among new shows with 18 nominations Engadget.

"Widow's Bay" was created by Katie Dippold and ran for 10 episodes in its first season. The show received nominations across writing, directing, acting, and supporting acting categories Engadget. Dippold was nominated for writing, director Hiro Murai for directing, and cast members Matthew Rhys and Kate O'Flynn were nominated for their acting roles. "Widow's Bay" also received a nomination for Best Comedy The New York Times.

Before nominations were announced, the Television Academy published an interview with Dippold on June 23 about the show's finale Emmys.com. This kind of early attention from the Academy often hints at a strong showing when nominations are announced.

When looking at streaming services overall, HBO Max led with 122 nominations across all its shows, followed by Netflix with 111 Engadget TheWrap. Apple came in third with 87 total nominations. HBO Max's medical drama "The Pitt" was the most-nominated single show across all services with 26 nominations, though "The Pitt" is a returning series, not a new one.

The Emmy Awards ceremony airs September 14 on NBC and will also stream on Peacock Emmys.com.

It helps to understand the difference between counting an individual show's nominations and counting an entire service's nominations. "Widow's Bay" leads among new shows — a fresh category each year. HBO Max, Netflix, and Apple's totals include nominations for all their shows combined, old and new, including dramas, comedies, and reality programs. So while "Widow's Bay" and "Pluribus" rank at the top for new shows, HBO Max's larger number reflects that it has more shows in general.

Apple's third-place finish matters because the company has fewer shows overall than HBO Max or Netflix, but two of its new shows still landed in the top two spots. This continues a pattern since Apple TV+ launched in 2019: the service chooses to make fewer shows with bigger budgets and more care, rather than making many shows quickly like larger services do. "Widow's Bay" and "Pluribus" together account for a large chunk of Apple's 87 total nominations this year.

One thing worth noticing is the kinds of shows that got the most nominations. A horror-comedy and a science fiction drama topped the list. Historically, Emmy voters tend to favor serious dramas and traditional comedies. Whether this year signals a real change in what the Academy likes, or just means these two particular shows are very good, remains to be seen.

For Apple, what happens at the September 14 ceremony itself matters more than just getting nominated. Emmy wins and nominations help convince people to sign up for and stay subscribed to streaming services. A big night for "Widow's Bay" could help Apple attract more viewers as it builds its library of shows.