The 55th Primetime Emmy Awards were held on Sunday, September 21, 2003. The ceremony was broadcast on Fox. The Sci Fi channel received its first major nomination this year for Outstanding Miniseries for Taken; the series won the award. 28 competitive awards were presented.
With the win for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series for Debra Messing, Will & Grace became only the third television show to have all credited actors win a Primetime Emmy Award for their respective role, following All in the Family and The Golden Girls (also later tied by The Simpsons). For its seventh season, Everybody Loves Raymond won its first Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Comedy Series. It led all comedies with four major wins and ten major nominations. The West Wing won Outstanding Drama Series for the fourth consecutive year, tying the record set by Hill Street Blues (also later tied by Game of Thrones and Mad Men).
Despite failing to win Outstanding Drama Series, The Sopranos continued to rake in the awards, leading all dramas with four major wins, including James Gandolfini and Edie Falco winning their third and final trophy for their respective category. Also Joe Pantoliano's win for Supporting Actor in a Drama marked the first time HBO had won in this category.
Additionally, for the first time, not only did the Lead Male in a Comedy award go to a show outside the Big Four TV networks, with Tony Shalhoub's win, for Monk on the USA Network, it was that network's first ever Acting win.
For the first time since 1991, the Outstanding Drama Series field did not include Law & Order; it was nominated 11 times in the category, a record for drama series that still stands. The mark tied the overall record held by comedy series M*A*S*H and Cheers. For the first time since its premiere, Frasier, then in its tenth and penultimate season, didn't win a major award, with its only major nominations going to David Hyde Pierce and John Mahoney for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series. The ceremony featured 11 presenters, which included: Ellen DeGeneres, Brad Garrett, Darrell Hammond, George Lopez, Conan O'Brien, Bernie Mac, Dennis Miller, Garry Shandling (who opened the show with a comedic monologue), Martin Short, Jon Stewart, and Wanda Sykes.
Winners and nominees Winners are listed first and highlighted in bold:Emmys.com list of 2003 Nominees & Winners
Programs + Everybody Loves Raymond (CBS) Curb Your Enthusiasm (HBO) Friends (NBC) Sex and the City (HBO) Will & Grace (NBC) The West Wing (NBC) 24 (Fox) CSI: Crime Scene Investigation (CBS) Six Feet Under (HBO) The Sopranos (HBO) The Daily Show with Jon Stewart (Comedy Central) Late Night with Conan O'Brien (NBC) Late Show with David Letterman (CBS) Saturday Night Live (NBC) The Tonight Show with Jay Leno (NBC) Cher: The Farewell Tour (NBC) 75th Annual Academy Awards (ABC) Bruce Springsteen & the E Street Band (CBS) Robin Williams: Live on Broadway (HBO) Rolling Stones: Forty Licks World Tour Live at Madison Square Garden (HBO) Door to Door (TNT) Homeless to Harvard: The Liz Murray Story (Lifetime) Live from Baghdad (HBO) My House in Umbria (HBO) Normal (HBO) Taken (Sci Fi) Hitler: The Rise of Evil (CBS) Napoléon (A&E) The Amazing Race (CBS) 100 Years of Hope and Humor (NBC) AFI's 100 Years... 100 Passions: America's Greatest Love Stories (CBS) American Idol: The Search for a Superstar (Fox) Survivor (CBS)
Acting Lead performances + Tony Shalhoub – Monk as Adrian Monk (USA) Larry David – Curb Your Enthusiasm as himself (HBO) Matt LeBlanc – Friends as Joey Tribbiani (NBC) Bernie Mac – The Bernie Mac Show as Bernie McCullough (Fox) Eric McCormack – Will & Grace as Will Truman (NBC) Ray Romano – Everybody Loves Raymond as Ray Barone (CBS) (Episode: “Counseling”) Debra Messing – Will & Grace as Grace Adler (NBC) Jennifer Aniston – Friends as Rachel Green (NBC) Patricia Heaton – Everybody Loves Raymond as Debra Barone (CBS) (Episode: “Baggage”) Jane Kaczmarek – Malcolm in the Middle as Lois (Fox) (Episode: “Baby”) Sarah Jessica Parker – Sex and the City as Carrie Bradshaw (HBO) James Gandolfini – The Sopranos as Tony Soprano (HBO) Michael Chiklis – The Shield as Vic Mackey (FX) Peter Krause – Six Feet Under as Nate Fisher (HBO) Martin Sheen – The West Wing as President Jed Bartlet (NBC) Kiefer Sutherland – 24 as Jack Bauer (Fox) Edie Falco – The Sopranos as Carmela Soprano (HBO) Frances Conroy – Six Feet Under as Ruth Fisher (HBO) Jennifer Garner – Alias as Sydney Bristow (ABC) Marg Helgenberger – CSI: Crime Scene Investigation as Catherine Willows (CBS) Allison Janney – The West Wing as C. J. Cregg (NBC) William H. Macy – Door to Door as Bill Porter (TNT) Brad Garrett – Gleason as Jackie Gleason (CBS) Paul Newman – Our Town as the Stage Manager (Showtime) Tom Wilkinson – Normal as Ruth "Roy" Applewood (HBO) James Woods – Rudy: The Rudy Giuliani Story as Rudy Giuliani (USA) Maggie Smith – My House in Umbria as Emily Delahunty (HBO) Thora Birch – Homeless to Harvard: The Liz Murray Story as Liz Murray (Lifetime) Helena Bonham Carter – Live from Baghdad as Ingrid Formanek (HBO) Jessica Lange – Normal as Irma Applewood (HBO) Helen Mirren – The Roman Spring of Mrs. Stone as Karen Stone (Showtime)
Supporting performances + Brad Garrett – Everybody Loves Raymond as Robert Barone (CBS) (Episodes “Just a Formality” and “Robert’s Wedding”) Peter Boyle – Everybody Loves Raymond as Frank Barone (CBS) (Episodes: “Grandpa Steals” and “Meeting the Parents”) Bryan Cranston – Malcolm in the Middle as Hal (Fox) (Episodes: “Malcolm Holds His Tongue” and “Day Care”) Sean Hayes – Will & Grace as Jack McFarland (NBC) John Mahoney – Frasier as Martin Crane (NBC) David Hyde Pierce – Frasier as Dr. Niles Crane (NBC) Doris Roberts – Everybody Loves Raymond as Marie Barone (CBS) (Episodes: “Marie’s Vision” and “Robert’s Wedding”) Kim Cattrall – Sex and the City as Samantha Jones (HBO) Cheryl Hines – Curb Your Enthusiasm as Cheryl David (HBO) Megan Mullally – Will & Grace as Karen Walker (NBC) Cynthia Nixon – Sex and the City as Miranda Hobbes (HBO) Joe Pantoliano – The Sopranos as Ralph Cifaretto (HBO) Victor Garber – Alias as Jack Bristow (ABC) Michael Imperioli – The Sopranos as Christopher Moltisanti (HBO) John Spencer – The West Wing as Leo McGarry (NBC) Bradley Whitford – The West Wing as Josh Lyman (NBC) Tyne Daly – Judging Amy as Maxine Gray (CBS) Lauren Ambrose – Six Feet Under as Claire Fisher (HBO) Stockard Channing – The West Wing as First Lady Abbey Bartlet (NBC) Rachel Griffiths – Six Feet Under as Brenda Chenowith (HBO) Lena Olin – Alias as Irina Derevko (ABC) Ben Gazzara – Hysterical Blindness as Nick Piccolo (HBO) Alan Arkin – The Pentagon Papers as Harry Rowen (FX) Chris Cooper – My House in Umbria as Thomas Riversmith (HBO) John Malkovich – Napoléon as Charles Maurice de Talleyrand-Périgord (A&E) Peter O'Toole – Hitler: The Rise of Evil as Paul von Hindenburg (CBS) Gena Rowlands – Hysterical Blindness as Virginia Miller (HBO) Kathy Baker – Door to Door as Gladys (TNT) Anne Bancroft – The Roman Spring of Mrs. Stone as Contessa (Showtime) Juliette Lewis – Hysterical Blindness as Beth Tocyznski (HBO) Helen Mirren – Door to Door as Irene Porter (TNT)
Individual performances + Wayne Brady – Whose Line Is It Anyway? (ABC) Dennis Miller – Dennis Miller: The Raw Feed (HBO) Martin Short – Primetime Glick (Comedy Central) Jon Stewart – The Daily Show with Jon Stewart (Comedy Central) Robin Williams – Robin Williams: Live on Broadway (HBO)
Directing + Curb Your Enthusiasm: "Krazee-Eyez Killa" – Robert B. Weide (HBO) Curb Your Enthusiasm: "Mary, Joseph, and Larry" – David Steinberg (HBO) Curb Your Enthusiasm: "The Nanny from Hell" – Larry Charles (HBO) Curb Your Enthusiasm: "The Special Section" – Bryan Gordon (HBO) Sex and the City: "I Love a Charade" – Michael Engler (HBO) Will & Grace: "24" – James Burrows (NBC) The West Wing: "Twenty Five" – Christopher Misiano (NBC) 24: "Day 2: 10:00 p.m. – 11:00 p.m." – Ian Toynton (Fox) Six Feet Under: "Nobody Sleeps" – Alan Poul (HBO) The Sopranos: "Whitecaps" – John Patterson (HBO) The Sopranos: "Whoever Did This" – Tim Van Patten (HBO) 56th Annual Tony Awards – Glenn Weiss (CBS) 75th Annual Academy Awards – Louis J. Horvitz (ABC) Bruce Springsteen & the E Street Band – Chris Hilson (CBS) Late Show with David Letterman – Jerry Foley (CBS) Saturday Night Live: "Host: Christopher Walken" – Beth McCarthy-Miller (NBC) Door to Door – Steven Schachter (TNT) Live from Baghdad – Mick Jackson (HBO) My House in Umbria – Richard Loncraine (HBO) The Roman Spring of Mrs. Stone – Robert Allan Ackerman (Showtime) Soldier's Girl – Frank Pierson (Showtime)
Writing + Everybody Loves Raymond: "Baggage" – Tucker Cawley (CBS) The Bernie Mac Show: "Goodbye, Dolly" – Steve Tompkins (Fox) Everybody Loves Raymond: "Counseling" – Mike Royce (CBS) Lucky: "Pilot" – Robb Cullen and Mark Cullen (FX) Sex and the City: "I Love a Charade" – Cindy Chupack and Michael Patrick King (HBO) The Sopranos: "Whitecaps" – Robin Green, Mitchell Burgess, and David Chase (HBO) Six Feet Under: "Twilight" – Craig Wright (HBO) The Sopranos: "Eloise" – Terence Winter (HBO) The Sopranos: "Whoever Did This" – Robin Green and Mitchell Burgess (HBO) The West Wing: "Twenty Five" – Aaron Sorkin (NBC) The Daily Show with Jon Stewart (Comedy Central) Late Night with Conan O'Brien (NBC) Late Show with David Letterman (CBS) Robin Williams: Live on Broadway (HBO) Saturday Night Live (NBC) Door to Door – William H. Macy and Steven Schachter (TNT) Hysterical Blindness – Laura Cahill (HBO) Live from Baghdad – Robert Wiener, Richard Chapman, John Patrick Shanley, and Timothy J. Sexton (HBO) My House in Umbria – Hugh Whitemore (HBO) Normal – Jane Anderson (HBO)
Most major nominations + Networks with multiple major nominations Network No. ofNominations HBO 53 NBC 38 CBS 28
+ Programs with multiple major nominations Program Category Network No. ofNominations The Sopranos Drama HBO 10 Everybody Loves Raymond Comedy CBS8 The West Wing Drama NBC Curb Your Enthusiasm ComedyHBO7 Six Feet Under Drama Door to Door Movie TNT6 Sex and the CityComedy HBO Will & Grace NBC My House in UmbriaMovieHBO 5 Hysterical Blindness4 Live from Baghdad Normal 24Drama Fox3 Alias ABC The Daily Show with Jon Stewart Variety Comedy Central Friends Comedy NBC Late Show with David LettermanVariety CBS Robin Williams: Live on Broadway HBO The Roman Spring of Mrs. Stone Movie Showtime Saturday Night LiveVariety NBC The 75th Annual Academy Awards ABC2 The Bernie Mac Show Comedy Fox Bruce Springsteen & the E Street Band VarietyCBS CSI: Crime Scene Investigation Drama Frasier Comedy NBC Hitler: The Rise of Evil Miniseries CBS Homeless to Harvard: The Liz Murray Story Movie Lifetime Late Night with Conan O'Brien Variety NBC Malcolm in the Middle Comedy Fox Napoléon Miniseries A&E
Most major awards +Networks with multiple major awards"Major" constitutes the categories listed above: Program, Acting, Directing, and Writing. Does not include the technical categories. Network No. ofAwards HBO 8 CBS 7 NBC4 TNT Comedy Central 2
+Programs with multiple major awards Program Category Network No. ofAwards Door to Door Movie TNT4 Everybody Loves Raymond Comedy CBS The Sopranos Drama HBO The Daily Show with Jon Stewart Variety Comedy Central2 Hysterical Blindness Movie HBO The West Wing Drama NBC
Presenters The awards were presented by the following people: