Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series

The Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series is an award presented by the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences (ATAS). Beginning with the 18th Primetime Emmy Awards, leading actors in drama have competed alone. However, these dramatic performances included actors from miniseries, telefilms, and guest performers competing against main cast competitors. Such instances are marked below:


 * # – Indicates a performance in a Miniseries or Television film, before the category's creation
 * § – Indicates a performance as a guest performer, before and after the category's creation

Programs with multiple wins

 * 4 wins
 * Breaking Bad (3 consecutive)
 * NYPD Blue (2 consecutive)


 * 3 wins
 * Columbo
 * I Spy (consecutive)
 * The Sopranos (2 consecutive)
 * St. Elsewhere (2 consecutive)


 * 2 wins
 * Boston Legal
 * The Defenders
 * Father Knows Best (consecutive)
 * Hill Street Blues (consecutive)
 * Lou Grant
 * Perry Mason
 * Succession

Programs with multiple nominations

 * 14 nominations
 * NYPD Blue


 * 10 nominations
 * St. Elsewhere


 * 8 nominations
 * Columbo
 * Law & Order
 * Mad Men
 * This Is Us


 * 7 nominations
 * Succession
 * The West Wing


 * 6 nominations
 * 24
 * Better Call Saul
 * Breaking Bad
 * ER
 * House
 * I Spy
 * The Sopranos


 * 5 nominations
 * Dexter
 * The Equalizer
 * Hill Street Blues
 * House of Cards
 * Ironside
 * Lou Grant
 * Magnum, P.I.
 * Quantum Leap
 * The Rockford Files


 * 4 nominations
 * L.A. Law
 * Mannix
 * Mission: Impossible
 * Ozark
 * Quincy, M.E.
 * Six Feet Under
 * The Streets of San Francisco


 * 3 nominations
 * The Americans
 * Boston Legal
 * Dallas
 * The Danny Thomas Show
 * Dynasty
 * Father Knows Best
 * The Fugitive
 * Gunsmoke
 * The Jackie Gleason Show
 * Marcus Welby, M.D.
 * The Newsroom
 * Perry Mason
 * Pose
 * Ray Donovan
 * The Waltons
 * Westworld


 * 2 nominations
 * Baretta
 * Beauty and the Beast
 * Bloodline
 * Boardwalk Empire
 * The Bob Cummings Show
 * Cannon
 * The Crown
 * The Defenders
 * The Dick Van Dyke Show
 * Downton Abbey
 * Dragnet
 * Four Star Playhouse
 * Friday Night Lights
 * Have Gun – Will Travel
 * Hennesey
 * Homeland
 * Homicide: Life on the Street
 * I'll Fly Away
 * In Treatment
 * Kojak
 * Moonlighting
 * Naked City
 * Northern Exposure
 * The Phil Silvers Show
 * Picket Fences
 * The Practice
 * Rescue Me
 * Run for Your Life
 * The Shield
 * True Detective
 * Twin Peaks
 * The Untouchables
 * The X-Files

Performers with multiple wins

 * 4 wins
 * Bryan Cranston (3 consecutive)
 * Dennis Franz (2 consecutive)


 * 3 wins
 * Bill Cosby (consecutive)
 * Peter Falk
 * James Gandolfini (2 consecutive)
 * James Spader (2 consecutive)
 * Robert Young (2 consecutive)


 * 2 wins
 * Ed Asner
 * Raymond Burr
 * William Daniels (consecutive)
 * E. G. Marshall (consecutive)
 * Daniel J. Travanti (consecutive)

Performers with multiple nominations

 * 8 nominations
 * Raymond Burr*
 * Peter Falk*
 * Dennis Franz*
 * Jon Hamm*


 * 7 nominations
 * James Garner*


 * 6 nominations
 * Bryan Cranston*
 * James Gandolfini*
 * Michael C. Hall
 * Hugh Laurie
 * Bob Odenkirk
 * Martin Sheen
 * Kiefer Sutherland*
 * Robert Young*


 * 5 nominations
 * Ed Asner*
 * Sterling K. Brown*
 * William Daniels*
 * Ed Flanders*
 * Tom Selleck*
 * Jimmy Smits
 * Kevin Spacey
 * Daniel J. Travanti*
 * Sam Waterston
 * Edward Woodward


 * 4 nominations
 * Scott Bakula
 * Jason Bateman
 * Richard Boone
 * Kyle Chandler*
 * Mike Connors
 * Anthony Edwards
 * Jack Klugman
 * Karl Malden
 * Michael Moriarty
 * Matthew Rhys*
 * James Spader*


 * 3 nominations
 * James Arness
 * Andre Braugher*
 * Bill Cosby*
 * Brian Cox
 * Robert Culp
 * Jeff Daniels*
 * John Forsythe
 * David Janssen
 * Peter Krause
 * Martin Landau
 * Billy Porter*
 * Liev Schreiber
 * Jeremy Strong*
 * Milo Ventimiglia


 * 2 nominations
 * Corbin Bernsen
 * Robert Blake*
 * Hugh Bonneville
 * Paul Burke
 * Steve Buscemi
 * Gabriel Byrne
 * Michael Chiklis*
 * George Clooney
 * William Conrad
 * Jackie Cooper
 * David Duchovny
 * Ben Gazzara
 * Larry Hagman
 * Denis Leary
 * Damian Lewis*
 * Kyle MacLachlan
 * E. G. Marshall*
 * Rob Morrow
 * Ron Perlman
 * Telly Savalas*
 * Tom Skerritt*
 * Robert Stack*
 * Richard Thomas*
 * Michael Tucker
 * Jack Webb
 * Bruce Willis*

(*) refers to those who have won in this category