The Writers Guild of America West and East (WGA) have unveiled the nominations for the 78th Annual Writers Guild Awards, spotlighting a year in which bold authorship, genre reinvention, and creator-driven storytelling dominated film and television.
Leading the conversation is Ryan Coogler’s Sinners, nominated for Original Screenplay, a Warner Bros. release that underscores the continued power of socially grounded genre storytelling. On the adapted side, Guillermo del Toro’s Frankenstein emerges as one of the year’s most anticipated literary reinterpretations, reaffirming del Toro’s long-standing commitment to character-driven mythmaking on a studio scale.
Television and streaming nominees reflect a similar creative confidence, with Apple TV’s Pluribus and The Studio landing key nominations across drama and comedy categories. Pluribus, shepherded by Breaking Bad and Better Call Saul veterans Vince Gilligan and Peter Gould, cements Apple TV’s reputation as a haven for writer-led prestige drama, while The Studio marks a sharp, self-aware comedy turn from Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg, skewering Hollywood power dynamics from the inside. Together, these titles exemplify a year in which writers pushed past formula, embraced risk, and reminded the industry that strong voices remain the engine of great storytelling.
The complete list of WGA nominees is below:
SCREENPLAY NOMINEES
Original Screenplay
- Black Bag
David Koepp
Focus Features - If I Had Legs I’d Kick You
Mary Bronstein
A24 - Marty Supreme
Ronald Bronstein, Josh Safdie
A24 - Sinners
Ryan Coogler
Warner Bros. Pictures - Weapons
Zach Cregger
Warner Bros. Pictures
Adapted Screenplay
- Bugonia
Will Tracy
Based on Save the Green Planet by Jang Joon Hwan
Focus Features - Frankenstein
Guillermo del Toro
Based on Frankenstein; or The Modern Prometheus by Mary Shelley
Netflix - Hamnet
Chloe Zhao, Maggie O’Farrell
Based on the novel by Maggie O’Farrell
Focus Features - One Battle After Another
Paul Thomas Anderson
Inspired by Vineland by Thomas Pynchon
Warner Bros. Pictures - Train Dreams
Clint Bentley, Greg Kwedar
Based on the novella by Denis Johnson
Netflix
Documentary Screenplay
- 2,000 Meters to Andriivka
Mstyslav Chernov
Frontline Features - Becoming Led Zeppelin
Bernard MacMahon, Allison McGourty
Sony Pictures Classics - White with Fear
Andrew Goldberg
Area23A
TELEVISION AND STREAMING
Drama Series
- Andor
Tom Bissell, Dan Gilroy, Tony Gilroy, Beau Willimon
Disney+ - The Pitt
Cynthia Adarkwa, Simran Baidwan, Valerie Chu, R. Scott Gemmill, Elyssa Gershman, Joe Sachs, Noah Wyle
HBO | Max - Pluribus
Vera Blasi, Jenn Carroll, Vince Gilligan, Jonny Gomez, Peter Gould, Ariel Levine, Gordon Smith, Alison Tatlock
Apple TV - Severance
Adam Countee, Mohamad El Masri, Dan Erickson, Mark Friedman, Anna Ouyang Moench, K.C. Perry, Megan Ritchie, Erin Wagoner, Beau Willimon, Wei-Ning Yu
Apple TV - The White Lotus
Mike White
HBO | Max
Comedy Series
- Abbott Elementary
Quinta Brunson, Ava Coleman, Lizzy Darrell, Riley Dufurrena, Justin Halpern, Joya McCrory, Chad Morton, Morgan Murphy, Brittani Nichols, Rebekka Pesqueira, Kate Peterman, Brian Rubenstein, Patrick Schumacker, Justin Tan, Jordan Temple, Garrett Werner
ABC - The Chair Company
Zach Kanin, Gary Richardson, Tim Robinson, Marika Sawyer, Sarah Schneider, John Solomon
HBO | Max - Hacks
Genevieve Aniello, Lucia Aniello, Paul W. Downs, Jess Dweck, Ariel Karlin, Andrew Law, Carolyn Lipka, Joe Mande, Aisha Muharrar, Pat Regan, Samantha Riley, Jen Statsky
HBO | Max - The Rehearsal
Nathan Fielder, Carrie Kemper, Adam Locke-Norton, Eric Notarnicola
HBO | Max - The Studio
Evan Goldberg, Alex Gregory, Peter Huyck, Frida Perez, Seth Rogen
Apple TV
New Series
- The Chair Company
Zach Kanin, Gary Richardson, Tim Robinson, Marika Sawyer, Sarah Schneider, John Solomon
HBO | Max - The Pitt
Cynthia Adarkwa, Simran Baidwan, Valerie Chu, R. Scott Gemmill, Elyssa Gershman, Joe Sachs, Noah Wyle
HBO | Max - Pluribus
Vera Blasi, Jenn Carroll, Vince Gilligan, Jonny Gomez, Peter Gould, Ariel Levine, Gordon Smith, Alison Tatlock
Apple TV - The Studio
Evan Goldberg, Alex Gregory, Peter Huyck, Frida Perez, Seth Rogen
Apple TV - Task
Brad Ingelsby, David Obzud
HBO | Max
Limited Series
- The Beast in Me
Howard Gordon, C.A. Johnson, Ali Liebegott, Daniel Pearle, Gabe Rotter, Erika Sheffer, Mike Skerrett
Netflix - Black Rabbit
Zach Baylin, Sarah Gubbins, Kate Susman, Andrew Hinderaker, Stacy Osei-Kuffour, Carlos Rios
Netflix - Death by Lightning
Mike Makowsky
Netflix - Dying for Sex
Sheila Callaghan, Harris Danow, Madeleine George, Elizabeth Meriwether, Kim Rosenstock, Sasha Stewart, Sabrina Wu, Keisha Zollar
FX/Hulu - Sirens
Bekah Brunstetter, Dan LeFranc, Colin McKenna, Molly Smith Metzler
Netflix
COMEDY AND VARIETY
Comedy and Variety Series
- The Daily Show
Dan Amira, Lauren Sarver Means, Daniel Radosh, David Angelo, Nicole Conlan, Devin Delliquanti, Zach DiLanzo, Jennifer Flanz, Jason Gilbert, Dina Hashem, Scott Hercman, Josh Johnson, David Kibuuka, Matt Koff, Matt O’Brien, Joe Opio, Randall Otis, Zhubin Parang, Kat Radley, Lanee’ Sanders, Scott Sherman, Jon Stewart, Ashton Womack, Sophie Zucker
Comedy Central - Last Week Tonight with John Oliver
Daniel O’Brien, Owen Parsons, Charlie Redd, Joanna Rothkopf, Seena Vali, Johnathan Appel, Ali Barthwell, Tim Carvell, Liz Hynes, Ryan Ken, Sofía Manfredi, John Oliver, Taylor Kay Phillips, Chrissy Shackelford
HBO | Max - Saturday Night Live
Alison Gates, Erik Kenward, Streeter Seidell, Kent Sublette, Bryan Tucker, Dan Bulla, Will Stephen, Auguste White, Celeste Yim, Steven Castillo, Michael Che, Mike DiCenzo, Jimmy Fowlie, Sudi Green, Martin Herlihy, John Higgins, Steve Higgins, Colin Jost, Allie Levitan, Ben Marshall, Lorne Michaels, Jake Nordwind, Ceara O’Sullivan, Moss Perricone, Carl Tart, Asha Ward
NBC
RADIO, AUDIO, AND NEWS
Radio and Audio Documentary
- Camp Swamp Road: Episode 2 – A Game of Telephone
Heather Rogers, Rachel Humphreys, Colin McNulty
Spotify - Decoder Ring: Jerry Lewis’ Lost Holocaust Clown Movie
Max Freedman
Slate - What Next: Why Women Kill
Mary Harris, Elena Schwartz
Slate
Digital News
- Altadena Residents Know Their Community Is Worth Rebuilding. Can They Protect Its Legacy?
Taiyler Mitchell
HuffPost - American Siberia
Alexander Sammon
Slate - How Cassie’s Lawsuit Against Diddy Galvanized a Movement of Survivors
Njera Perkins, Taiyler Mitchell
HuffPost
RADIO/AUDIO NOMINEES
RADIO/AUDIO DOCUMENTARY
- “Episode 2: A Game of Telephone” (Camp Swamp Road), Written by Heather Rogers, Rachel Humphreys, Colin McNulty; Spotify
- “Jerry Lewis’ Lost Holocaust Clown Movie” (Decoder Ring), Written by Max Freedman; Slate
- “Why Women Kill” (What Next), Written by Mary Harris and Elena Schwartz; Slate
RADIO/AUDIO NEWS SCRIPT – REGULARLY SCHEDULED, BULLETIN, OR BREAKING REPORT
- “ABC News Radio Top of the Hour News”, Written by Robert Hawley; ABC News Radio
- “CBS World News Roundup”, Written by Paul Farry and Steve Kathan; CBS News
- “Hasan Piker Knew Charlie Kirk” (What Next), Written by Mary Harris and Madeline Ducharme; Slate
RADIO/AUDIO NEWS SCRIPT – ANALYSIS, FEATURE, OR COMMENTARY
- “How Will We Feed Our Neighbors?”, Written by Mary Harris and Anna Phillips; Slate
- “The Life and Legacy of Jimmy Carter”, Written by Gail Lee; CBS News Radio
- “We Made a Memecoin”, Written by Lizzie O’Leary, Evan Campbell, and Patrick Fort; Slate
PROMOTIONAL WRITING NOMINEES
ON-AIR PROMOTION
- “Behind the Crown: King & Conqueror EPK”, Written by Molly Neylan; CBS
- “CBS Comedy”, Written by Dan Greenberger; CBS
The 78th Annual WGA Awards will take place March 8, 2026, at the JW Marriott L.A. LIVE in Los Angeles and the Edison Ballroom in New York City.
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