Bill Hader vs. Donald Glover: All the Emmys 2018 Categories Where They Face Off

The best part of Emmys season is picking your favorite category rivalries to passionately scream about. Typically, this is where things get dramatic in the drama category, but this year something extraordinary is happening. For the first time in a while, the comedy categories for the 2018 Emmys are putting up one heck of a fight, and it all comes down to two revolutionary comedic forces: Donald Glover and Bill Hader.

There’s always a risk of stagnation when it comes to repeating Emmy winners, but the major comedy categories have been especially guilty of this trend. As my colleague Josh Sorokach covered last year, over the past 10 years only three shows have won the award for Outstanding Comedy Series: 30 Rock (3 times), Modern Family (5 times), and Veep (3 times). They’re all incredibly deserving, very funny shows, but these powerhouses have made the past decade of awards shows a fairly predictable snoozefest.

2018, meanwhile, is in the middle of creating an entirely new television landscape. Because of Veep star Julia Louis-Dreyfus’ cancer diagnosis, the HBO show went on hiatus this past year. And while Dreyfus is on the miraculous road to recovery, two newer beloved comedies have risen to take Veep’s esteemed place — Atlanta and Barry. These two comedies will be going head-to-head in 10 different categories. And the two creative powerhouses behind these two series are going to be directly facing off against each other multiple times. Here’s your guide to every category that pits Donald Glover and Bill Hader against each other and who we think is going to take home the statue.

Outstanding Guest Actor in a Comedy Series

Because this was a Creative Arts Emmy, we already know the result of face off. And because of it, we also know where the Emmys are starting to lean this year. Both Glover and Hader were nominated for their SNL guest appearances, competing against Katt Williams in Atlanta, Sterling K. Brown in Brooklyn Nine-Nine, and Bryan Cranston and Lin-Manuel Miranda in Curb Your Enthusiasm.

Neither performer won, but Donald Glover ‘s creative legacy pulled through.

Winner: Katt Williams for Atlanta‘s “Alligator Man”

Outstanding Directing for a Comedy Series

This is one of the many categories that sees either Atlanta or Barry doubling up their nominations. Atlanta received two nominations for Outstanding Directing — Glover for “FUBU” and Hiro Murai for “Teddy Perkins.” Meanwhile Hader received his nomination for Barry‘s “Chapter One: Make Your Mark.” The Big Bang Theory‘s “The Bow Tie Asymmetry,” GLOW‘s “Pilot,” The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel‘s “Pilot,” and Silicon Valley‘s “Initial Coin Offering” also received nominations.

Barry‘s first episode was strong, but from a directorial point of view, it wasn’t its strongest. That honor likely goes to the haunting “Chapter Seven: Loud, Fast, and Keep Going.” Conversely, Atlanta‘s strongest directorial episodes have been nominated. This may be another one where Glover loses the battle but his legacy wins the war.

Who We Think Will Win: Hiro Murai for Atlanta‘s “Teddy Perkins”

Outstanding Writing for a Comedy Series

Atlanta and Barry swept this category with two nominations each. On Atlanta’s side, Glover was nominated for “Alligator Man” and Stefani Robinson was nominated for “Barbershop.” For Barry, Hader and Alec Berg were nominated for “Chapter One: Make Your Mark” and Liz Sarnoff was nominated for “Chapter Seven: Loud, Fast, and Keep Going.” This category also saw nominations for Amy Sherman-Palladino for The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel’s “Pilot” and Alec Berg for Silicon Valley’s “Fifty-One Percent.”

This is a pretty stacked category with three episodes the Emmys have already proven they love — “Chapter Seven: Loud, Fast, and Keep Going” and Marvelous Mrs. Maisel‘s “Pilot.” It feels safe to count Glover out this round. But Hader and Berg’s nomination doesn’t feel completely secure.

Who Has the Best Chance of Winning Between Glover and Hader: Hader and Berg for Barry‘s “Chapter One: Make Your Mark”

Who We Think Will Win: Amy Sherman-Palladino for The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel‘s “Pilot”

Outstanding Lead Actor In A Comedy Series

This is where things start to get tricky because there are a lot of strong contenders here. Glover and Hader were naturally nominated for their starring roles in Atlanta and Barry, respectively. Rounding out the nomination list is Anthony Anderson for black-ish, Larry David for Curb Your Enthusiasm, Ted Danson for The Good Place, and William H. Macy for Shameless.

Last year Glover took home this particular Emmy, and these awards love to pick a favorite and stand by his or her side. But the addition of David and Danson makes things tough. The latest season of Curb Your Enthusiasm didn’t garner nearly as much critical praise or attention as the show’s past seasons, but he’s still Larry David, a man the Emmys have already given two awards. Then there’s Danson, another two-time Emmy winner who’s on beloved, more traditional comedy. There’s a real nostalgia angle working in his favor.

Who Has the Best Chance of Winning Between Glover and Hader: Glover. He won it last year, he can do it again.

Who We Think Will Win: It’s likely going to be between Danson and Glover, but let’s go Glover.

Outstanding Comedy Series

It’s the big one. This year the nominees are Atlanta, Barry, black-ish, Curb Your Enthusiasm, GLOW, The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, Silicon Valley, and Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt.

Since Veep out this year this is anyone’s game. But it’s likely that the Emmys will fall back on its favorites or at least those shows that most resemble its favorites. Barry, Curb, and Silicon Valley are all ambitious HBO comedies, and two of which had strong seasons this year (Barry and Silicon Valley). But the Emmys also love the new kid, and they tend to prefer strict comedies rather than sad-coms for this coveted award. Will they follow their Best Actor lead from last year or dive into new waters?

Who Has the Best Chance of Winning Between Glover and Hader: Glover’s Atlanta. Barry has the HBO of it all but it may be too dark.

Who We Think Will Win: Amazon’s The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel

Where to stream Atlanta

Where to stream Barry