Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Writing for a Drama Series


The Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Writing for a Drama Series is an award presented annually by the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences. It was first awarded at the 7th Primetime Emmy Awards ceremony, held in 1955 and it is given in honor of a writer or writers who produced an outstanding story or screenplay for an episode of a television drama series during the primetime network season. Undergoing several name changes, the award received its current title at the 48th Primetime Emmy Awards in 1996.
Since its inception, the award has been presented to 75 writers. Dan Gilroy is the current recipient of the award for his work on the episode of Disney+'s Andor titled "Welcome to the Rebellion". Rod Serling holds the record for most wins for this category at six. The Sopranos holds the record for most wins and nominations for this category at 6 and 21, respectively. Game of Thrones, Hill Street Blues and The Sopranos are the only shows that have been nominated in 7 different years.

Winners and nominations

Listed below are the winners of the award for each year, as well as the other nominees.
Indicates the winner

1950s

1960s

1970s

1980s

1990s

2000s

2010s

2020s

Total awards by network

;6 awards
  • Rod Serling
;4 awards
;3 awards
;2 awards
;19 nominations
  • Steven Bochco
;15 nominations
  • David Milch
  • Matthew Weiner
;11 nominations
  • Tom Fontana
;10 nominations
  • David E. Kelley
;9 nominations
  • John Masius
  • Rod Serling
;8 nominations
;7 nominations
  • David Benioff
  • Robin Green
  • D. B. Weiss
;6 nominations
;5 nominations
;4 nominations
;3 nominations
;2 nominations
;6 awards
  • The Sopranos
;4 awards
  • The Defenders
  • Succession
;3 awards
  • Hill Street Blues
  • L.A. Law
  • Mad Men
  • NYPD Blue
;2 awards
  • CBS Playhouse
  • Game of Thrones
  • Hallmark Hall of Fame
  • Homeland
  • Lou Grant
  • Playhouse 90
  • St. Elsewhere
  • Thirtysomething
  • The Twilight Zone
  • ''The Waltons''

    Programs with multiple nominations

;21 nominations
  • The Sopranos
;16 nominations
  • Hill Street Blues
;15 nominations
  • Mad Men
;12 nominations
  • L.A. Law
  • NYPD Blue
;9 nominations
  • Lou Grant
  • Playhouse 90
  • St. Elsewhere
;8 nominations
  • Better Call Saul
;7 nominations
  • ER
  • Game of Thrones
  • Hallmark Hall of Fame
;6 nominations
  • Alcoa-Goodyear Playhouse
  • CBS Playhouse
  • Lost
  • Northern Exposure
;5 nominations
  • The Crown
  • Thirtysomething
  • The West Wing
;4 nominations
  • The Americans
  • Breaking Bad
  • Columbo
  • The Defenders
  • The Handmaid's Tale
  • Moonlighting
  • Ozark
  • Succession
  • The Waltons
  • The X-Files
;3 nominations
;2 nominations