RuPaul; Lily Tomlin; Jane LynchMichael Buckner/Variety via Getty Images; Kevin Winter/Getty Images; Matt Winkelmeyer/WireImageThe envelope, please!
It's been a historic Emmys season, with Tramell Tillman at the 2025 Emmys becoming the first out gay Black man to win Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama, joining the names of queer Emmys trailblazers.
Tillman is a rising star, earning his first nomination this year for playing Mr. Milchick in Severance. Soon, he may be joining the ranks of LGBTQ+ legends with 10 or more nominations. These actors, hosts, writers, directors, and producers have been making Emmys history for decades, winning awards from the 1970s to the present. And they're not done yet.
Check out these 11 LGBTQ+ stars who have at least 10 Emmy nominations.
Ryan Murphy - 39 nominations, 6 wins
Murphy's first Emmy nomination came for directing Nip/Tuck in 2004, and his first win came in 2010 for directing the pilot of Glee. His other nominated and Emmy-winning projects include American Horror Story, The Normal Heart, American Crime Story, Feud, Pose, Halston, The Andy Warhol Diaries, and Monster.
RuPaul Charles - 28 nominations, 14 wins
RuPaul was nominated for, and won, his first Emmy in 2016 for hosting RuPaul's Drag Race, and has been nominated in the category every year since. He won the award for eight consecutive years before his streak was beaten by The Traitors host Alan Cumming.
His 10 nominations for hosting are an Emmy record. He has also won several Emmys as an executive producer of the show.
Lily Tomlin - 25 nominations, 6 wins
Lily Tomlin received her first Emmy nomination for Rowan and Martin's Laugh-In in 1971, and earned her 25th in 2018 for Grace and Frankie. Her most recent win was the Emmy for Outstanding Voice-Over Performance for narrating the HBO documentary An Apology to Elephants in 2012. Three of her specials, Lily, Lily Tomlin, and Lily: Sold Out, won Emmys.
Andy Cohen - 18 nominations, 1 win
Cohen is most known for Watch What Happens Live and the Real Housewives franchise, but most of his Emmy nominations come from producing Top Chef, Kathy Griffin: My Life on the D-List, and Project Runway. His one win is for Outstanding Reality - Competition Program in 2010 for Top Chef.
Wanda Sykes - 17 nominations, 1 win
Sykes was nominated for four Emmys and won one for writing on The Chris Rock Show, and has been nominated for several of her comedy specials. She also has two nominations for voice-over work and three nominations for Outstanding Guest Actress in a Comedy Series.
Ellen DeGeneres - 16 nominations, 1 win
DeGeneres's first round of Emmy nominations and wins came from her ABC sitcom Ellen, for which she won an Outstanding Writing Emmy in 1997. She's also been nominated as a producer, Oscars host, and host of Ellen's Game of Games.
Jane Lynch - 14 nominations, 5 wins
Lynch's first Emmy nomination was also her first win, when she won Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy for playing Sue Sylvester in Glee. Later, she won two Emmys and was nominated for two more for hosting Hollywood Game Night. She's also won Outstanding Actress in a Short Form Comedy or Drama Series for Dropping The Soap, and won Outstanding Guest Actress in a Comedy for playing Sophie Lennon in The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel. Her most recent nomination came in 2024 for hosting The Weakest Link.
Paula Pell - 13 nominations, 2 wins
Pell is a legendary comedy writer who wrote for Saturday Night Live from 1995 to 2013, and has earned most of her nominations there. She won for writing in 2002, and then again in 2025 as a writer for the SNL50 anniversary special.
Neil Patrick Harris - 12 nominations, 5 wins
Harris earned his first Emmy nomination in 2007 for playing Barney Stinson in How I Met Your Mother, and later won Outstanding Guest Actor in a Comedy Series as Bryan Ryan in Glee. He also won four Emmys as a producer and host of the Tonys.
David Hyde Pierce - 11 nominations, 4 wins
From 1994 to 2004, Pierce was nominated for 11 consecutive Emmys the category of Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy for the role of Niles Crane in Frasier. He won in 1995, 1998, 1999, and 2004.
Kate McKinnon - 10 nominations, 2 wins
All 10 of McKinnon's come from her years on Saturday Night Live. She earned her first in 2014 and has been nominated for Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series nine times. She won two consecutive years in 2016 and 2017.
