Hiro Murai Makes Emmy History With Comedy Directing Win for Widow's Bay
Hiro Murai has become the first Asian director ever to win Outstanding Directing for a Comedy Series.
He took the prize at the 78th Emmy Awards for the “Widow’s Bay” premiere, titled “Welcome to Widow’s Bay!”, according to Variety. It took 78 ceremonies.
The directing prize was presented as part of the 78th Emmy Awards, which were broadcast live on NBC and Peacock, according to the Television Academy. “Widow’s Bay” aired on Apple TV and was produced by Apple Studios / Chum Films. Murai served as an executive producer on the series, meaning he shared senior creative responsibility alongside his directing work.
The win puts Murai in a very small group. He is only the third Asian director to win in any Emmy category, after Hwang Dong-hyuk for the first season of “Squid Game” and Lee Sung Jin for the first season of “Beef”, Variety reported. In comedy directing, he had been recognised before for “Atlanta” but had not won.
Murai now holds 11 career Emmy nominations. His earlier comedy directing nominations were for the “Atlanta” episodes “Teddy Perkins” in 2018 and “New Jazz” in 2022. He was also nominated for Outstanding Comedy Series in 2017 as a producer of “Atlanta” and in 2018 as a co-executive producer, and for Outstanding Drama Series in 2024 as an executive producer of “Mr. & Mrs. Smith”. As a director, his other nominations span drama for the “Mr. & Mrs. Smith” episode “First Date” in 2024 and limited series for the “Station Eleven” episode “Wheel of Fire” in 2022.
“Widow’s Bay” had a busy night beyond directing. Murai is listed as a winner of Outstanding Comedy Series in 2026 as an executive producer of the show. Katie Dippold received a nomination for Outstanding Writing for a Comedy Series for the “Widow’s Bay” pilot, and Matthew Rhys received a lead actor nomination. The series also won Outstanding Music Composition for a Series (Original Dramatic Score). Across the 2026 race, “The Pitt” led all programmes with 25 nominations.
What makes this stand out for viewers is the wait behind it. Comedy directing at the Emmys had seen a breakthrough before, when Donald Glover became the first Black director to win the category, according to the Television Academy. Murai’s win adds a new first to that list, and closes a long run of nominations with a trophy for a first episode that launched a whole production.
