“Widow’s Bay” stormed the Emmy Awards on Monday night, breaking a record for a comedy series with 14 awards including best comedy series and three acting wins.
The first-season horror comedy created by Katie Dippold about a New England island community reckoning with a centuries-old curse spoiled the going-away party for “Hacks,” which had gotten the most comedy nominations of any show in its fifth and final season.
It broke the comedy record set last year by “The Studio” when it won 13.
Star Matthew Rhys won best actor, Stephen Root won best supporting actor and Kate O’Flynn won best supporting actress. Dippold won for writing.
The Apple TV horror comedy “Widow’s Bay” rode into the night on a wave of buzz. It had already won eight Emmys at an earlier ceremony and added four more, including supporting actress for breakout star Kate O’Flynn and supporting actor for Stephen Root.
Rhys also won best actor in a limited series for “The Beast in Me,” becoming the first man to win two leading actor categories in the same year.
“The celebrations will be long, varied, and I hope at times wild,” Rhys said backstage while holding both Emmys.
It also won for directing for Hiro Murai and for writing for its creator Dippold, a first-time Emmy winner and first-time nominee who was previously best known for an old viral tweet showing her dressed as “The Babadook.”
