HBO Max wasted no time in bringing The Pitt back for Season 2 early in the 2026 TV schedule, but the medical drama is still picking up awards wins from the first season last year. After taking trophies at the Emmys, Golden Globes, Critics Choice Awards, and TCAs, the whole cast was on hand for a couple of big wins at the 2026 Actor Awards. The latest round of victories reminded me of comments from cast member Brandon Mendez Homer, a.k.a. the fan-favorite nurse practitioner Donnie, about the "fairy tale" of The Pitt immediately becoming such a smash hit among viewers with an HBO Max subscription.
The Pitt won in two categories at the 32nd Actor Awards (formerly known as the Screen Actors Guild Awards) to start out March, with Noah Wyle beating Sterling K. Brown (Hulu's Paradise), Billy Crudup (Apple TV+'s The Morning Show), Walton Goggins (HBO's The White Lotus), and Gary Oldman (Apple TV+'s Slow Horses) for Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Drama Series. Then, the whole cast won Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series, beating the casts from Netflix's The Diplomat, Paramount+'s Landman, Apple TV+'s Severance, and HBO's The White Lotus.
Suffice it to say that The Pitt had a pretty big night! I'd spoken with Brandon Mendez Homer ahead of the Actor Awards at SCAD TVfest in Atlanta. In addition to opening up about getting "blisters from practicing" for the Noah Wyle-directed episode of Season 2, he also told me about his reaction to the medical drama getting so much awards love for the first season:
I had no idea that it was going to be this kind of reaction. [I'm] overjoyed. I mean, I feel truly, truly grateful to have found myself on the show coming out of two strikes. The fact that it just immediately picked up on the first season and won.
As Homer noted, The Pitt came along not too long after the WGA writers strike and SAG-AFTRA actors strike, which was quite an uncertain time for the entertainment industry. HBO Max didn't wait too long before renewing the show for Season 2, and it quickly became clear that fans weren't just tuning in for the novelty of Noah Wyle playing an emergency room doctor again more than a decade after ER.
Over the course of the year since the premiere, The Pitt started out on the awards circuit by winning Program of the Year, Outstanding Achievement in Drama, Outstanding New Program, and Individual Achievement in Drama (Noah Wyle) at the TCAs. Next up were the 2025 Emmy Awards, where the show won Outstanding Drama Series, Outstanding Lead Actor (Wyle), Outstanding Supporting Actress (Katherine LaNasa), and Outstanding Guest Actor (Shawn Hatosy).
Brandon Mendez Homer shouted out the moment at the Emmys when he knew The Pitt had a shot at winning in the top categories:
I remember when Katherine LaNasa won for Supporting [Actress], that was probably the first moment that I thought we might win for Best Drama Series. And I remember screaming my head off in the car, and my daughter just crying. She got so startled. [laughs] I mean, it's a dream. This is like some fairy tale.
If the Emmys wins in 2025 weren't enough, the show started 2026 strong at the Critics Choice Awards, where The Pitt won Best Drama Series, Best Actor in a Drama Series (Wyle), and Best Supporting Actress in a Drama Series (LaNasa). Next up were the 2026 Golden Globes, with The Pitt earning Best Performance by a Male Actor (Wyle) and Best Television Drama.
It's too early in Season 2 for awards buzz to start circulating again, but the doctors and nurses are already under plenty of stress to require strong performers from the cast. Brandon Mendez Homer has had more drama and more comedy to deliver this season, with Donnie passing his nurse practitioner test to take on more responsibility in the ED... and also building a buddy comedy bromance with Langdon between the usual bloody crises at PTMC.
The preview for the next new episode indicates a showcase for Taylor Dearden, who opened up about how far she's come since playing "Sad Faced Girl" as her first credit. Take a look:
Well, with Season 2 set on the 4th of July, part of me is surprised that it's taken this long for a firecracker injury! New episodes of The Pitt will continue releasing on Thursdays at 9 p.m. ET on HBO Max, where you can also stream the full first season and every installment of Season 2 so far.
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