2026 Emmys Worst Moments: From Mariska Hargitay’s Cringe Opener to an Awkward Buffy Reunion

This year’s host, Mariska Hargitay, kicked off the 2026 Emmy Awards with a parody of Joan Jett’s I Love Rock ’n’ Roll, titled I Love TV Screens. We like Hargitay, but it cannot be said without being brutal: the rhymes were questionable, the song was cheesy, and the puns felt forced. The whole routine was agonizingly cringe. Even the participation of New York Knicks point guard Jalen Brunson, Jeff Hiller, Jennifer Coolidge, and others could not save it. 

During the awards show, Mariska Hargitay asked some of the actors and actresses an interesting question: What was their first job? Some answers were pretty normal, like Colman Domingo sharing that he used to work at McDonald’s. But when it was Nick Offerman’s turn to answer, he certainly left many ladies clutching their pearls in the audience. Offerman revealed that he was once an “erotic painter.” No, we are not making this up. He went on to explain, “I would strip down and dump a can of paint over my head and then roll my n**e male body around the house’s exterior. Doors and trim were extra. Roofs were not pleasant, but a buck is a buck.” Uh, we could have done without knowing all the deets.

We understand that there are rules and guidelines for live TV, which make everyone cautious about what they can and cannot say. We get it, but that does not mean we have to like it! John Mulaney appeared on stage to present the award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series. Before presenting the award, he performed a comedy routine about men. However, part of one particular joke was bleeped. And if anyone is wondering, it was about o**l s*x. “I believe it was DJ Khaled who said, ‘Real men don’t go down on their wives,’” Mulaney said. “But these nominees know that that is B.S. They know there’s often less pressure on them if they do that first.” The live audience could clearly understand the joke, but viewers watching from home can sometimes struggle to understand even when just one word is lost. And when that happens, it can completely take away from the impact of the joke.

To celebrate the 30th anniversary of Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Sarah Michelle Gellar and David Boreanaz reunited on stage at the 2026 Primetime Emmy Awards. And isn’t this exactly what we fans were waiting for while biting our nails? Well, not quite. The off-the-charts chemistry we’ve all come to know and love between our favorite Angel and Buffy was, unfortunately, nowhere to be seen.

The pair joked about the age gap between their characters, but the jokes did not land very well. They also addressed Hulu’s recently canceled Buffy reboot. When Boreanaz said, “I always thought that Buffy and Angel were endgame,” Gellar answered, “Well, I guess we won’t find out!” But the truly weird part was that they did not mention the names of cast members Michelle Trachtenberg, Nicholas Brendon, and Anthony Head, who all passed away recently. Gellar only acknowledged their losses by saying, “It has been a tough two years for our beloved cast and crew.”

Michael J Fox was honored with the Bob Hope Humanitarian Award at the Emmys for his contributions to Parkinson’s disease research and advocacy. But things did not go exactly as planned when a teleprompter text-size error forced him to ad-lib part of his speech. Fox kept his cool and simply improvised. Must have been a lot of pressure, though! Still, he handled the unexpected moment like a pro, and his moving speech ended with the audience giving him a well-deserved standing ovation.