Jean Smart Is One Emmy Away From Making History — But Zendaya and Lisa Kudrow Could Stop Her

Jean Smart is on the verge of doing something no woman has ever done at the Emmys.

The Hacks star has won the Lead Actress in a Comedy Series Emmy for every eligible season of the HBO Max comedy, collecting trophies in 2021, 2022, 2024 and 2025.

Now, with Hacks ending after five seasons, Smart has one final chance to complete a virtually flawless Emmy run.

Win again, and she would become the first woman in Emmy history to win an acting award for every eligible season of a scripted series lasting at least three seasons.

And that’s not the only piece of history waiting for her.

A fifth consecutive Hacks victory would give Smart her eighth career acting Emmy, moving her into a tie with Julia Louis-Dreyfus and Cloris Leachman for the second-most acting Emmys ever won by a female performer.

But there is a problem.

The competition is brutal.

Can Anyone Stop Jean Smart?

Smart may be the favorite, but this year’s field includes performers with historic Emmy narratives of their own.

One of the most intriguing challengers is Lisa Kudrow, whose Emmy story is almost impossible to replicate.

Kudrow has received nominations for every eligible season of The Comeback — in 2006, 2015 and now 2026.

That’s a perfect nomination streak stretched across nearly two decades.

Kudrow already owns an Emmy for Friends, and she is also nominated alongside The Comeback co-creator Michael Patrick King.

If voters want to reward one of television’s most enduring comedic performers, Kudrow could become the woman who finally interrupts Smart’s perfect Hacks run.

Zendaya Is Chasing History Too

Over in the drama categories, Zendaya is attempting her own remarkable feat.

The Euphoria star won Lead Actress in a Drama Series for both of the show’s first two seasons, taking home trophies in 2020 and 2022.

Those victories made her the youngest two-time Emmy winner in history.

Now Euphoria is back after a lengthy hiatus, giving Zendaya a chance to make it three wins from three eligible seasons.

But the competition is fierce.

She faces acclaimed performers including Rhea Seehorn from Pluribus and Keri Russell from The Diplomat.

Zendaya’s streak may be shorter than Smart’s, but sustaining it in the highly competitive drama category could be just as impressive.

Emmy History Shows Just How Rare This Is

The reason Smart’s potential achievement matters so much is simple:

Almost nobody has ever done it.

Only Bill Cosby has won an acting Emmy for every season of a scripted television series that lasted at least three seasons.

Cosby swept all three seasons of I Spy, winning from 1966 through 1968.

That means a Smart or Zendaya victory would end a nearly six-decade drought and make history for women in the acting categories.

There is one technical exception: Blythe Danner accomplished the feat on Huff, but the Showtime drama ran for only two seasons.

A Perfect Nomination Streak Is Almost As Rare

Winning every season is extraordinarily difficult.

Even getting nominated every season is a major accomplishment.

Only 39 performers have received Emmy acting nominations for every eligible season of a show’s complete run.

The list includes some of television’s biggest legends:

• Alan Alda — MASH*
• Ted Danson — Cheers
• David Hyde Pierce — Frasier
• Peter Dinklage — Game of Thrones
• Jon Hamm — Mad Men
• Tony Shalhoub — Monk
• Julia Louis-Dreyfus — Veep
• Alec Baldwin — 30 Rock
• Tina Fey — 30 Rock
• Jane Kaczmarek — Malcolm in the Middle
• Helen Hunt — Mad About You
• Betty White — The Golden Girls
• Mary Tyler Moore — The Mary Tyler Moore Show

And even some of those perfect streaks eventually ended.

This Year’s Emmy Nominations Prove How Quickly Streaks Can Die

The biggest warning comes from The Bear.

Jeremy Allen White and Ebon Moss-Bachrach had been nominated for every previous season.

This year?

Both were completely shut out.

Ayo Edebiri became the show’s lone acting nominee.

Jon Bernthal, who had also maintained a nomination streak for The Bear, saw his run end on nomination morning.

The same thing happened to Sheryl Lee Ralph, whose flawless four-season nomination streak for Abbott Elementary was finally broken.

In other words, Emmy perfection is temporary.

One bad season.

One stronger competitor.

One unexpected voting shift.

And the streak is gone forever.

Who Else Has a Perfect Run?

Several current stars are still maintaining remarkable nomination streaks.

Quinta Brunson and Janelle James are five-for-five with Abbott Elementary.

Hannah Einbinder has been nominated for every season of Hacks, matching Smart’s perfect five-season nomination record.

Martin Short has received nominations for every season of Only Murders in the Building but has yet to turn that streak into a win.

Keri Russell is also three-for-three with The Diplomat and enters this year’s race with momentum after winning at the Actors Awards.

Meanwhile, Jason Segel and Jessica Williams are three-for-three for Shrinking.

The Next Generation of Emmy Streaks Is Already Forming

The story won’t end with Smart and Zendaya.

If current television favorites return from hiatus, several perfect streaks could continue next year.

The Ted Lasso stars Jason Sudeikis, Brett Goldstein, Hannah Waddingham and Juno Temple could extend their records.

And Severance performers Adam Scott, John Turturro and Patricia Arquette could also return to the Emmy race and continue their own nomination streaks.

That’s what makes these records so difficult.

A performer doesn’t control all the variables.

The show has to survive.

The performer has to remain excellent.

The Television Academy has to keep recognizing the work.

And the competition has to be defeated every single awards cycle.

Jean Smart’s Final Hacks Shot Could Become Legendary

That’s why Smart’s final Hacks nomination carries more weight than another awards-season victory.

She’s not simply trying to win another Emmy.

She’s trying to finish an entire television series without ever losing the acting category she entered.

If she wins, her Hacks run becomes an Emmy record that could stand for decades.

If she loses, the perfect streak disappears with the final season.

And there is an equally fascinating possibility in the drama race: Zendaya could accomplish the same historic feat with Euphoria.

Meanwhile, Lisa Kudrow has a completely different kind of perfect record — one that has survived nearly 20 years.

The Bottom Line

The 2026 Emmys aren’t just about who gives the best performance.

They’re about history.

Jean Smart is chasing a fifth straight Hacks victory.

Zendaya is trying to remain undefeated for a third Euphoria season.

Lisa Kudrow is carrying a nomination streak that spans two decades.

And all three are chasing something that television’s biggest stars rarely achieve:

perfection.

Because at the Emmys, a perfect streak doesn’t survive because you’re famous.

It survives because, year after year, voters decide you’re still the best.

And this year, one vote could make history — or end it.