The comedy issue 55th Primetime Emmys

2003 Emmy Award Comedy Nominations: the year of the ensemble

Everybody Loves Raymond led the winners, Will & Grace put its central cast on the ballot, and Monk found a place among sitcom favorites. Revisit the 2003 comedy nominees.

By Series Schedule Editorial Published

Categories covered
7
Nominations in this guide
37
Nominations announced
Primetime ceremony

A look back

A ballot built around chemistry

In 2003, the comedy-series ballot made a strong case for the ensemble. Everybody Loves Raymond joined Curb Your Enthusiasm, Friends, Sex and the City and Will & Grace in a field built around people who knew exactly how to get under one another's skin. The eventual series winner was Everybody Loves Raymond, whose family arguments also brought supporting-acting awards for Brad Garrett and Doris Roberts.

Will & Grace had a particularly complete showing: Eric McCormack, Debra Messing, Sean Hayes and Megan Mullally all received nominations. Messing won lead actress, while Gene Wilder's guest-actor victory added another name to the show's winners.

The acting fields reached beyond those five series. Tony Shalhoub won lead actor for Monk, a reminder that comic performance could sit comfortably inside a detective story. Bernie Mac represented The Bernie Mac Show, while Frasier and Malcolm in the Middle each had two performers in the lead or supporting races covered here.

This retrospective lists all 37 nominations in seven categories: comedy series, plus the six lead, supporting and guest acting races. Lead actor and supporting actor each had six nominees; the other categories had five. Follow a name to its Series Schedule profile or a show title to its series page. Winner badges show the eventual results.

Winner This retrospective includes the eventual results. Every nominee is listed in each category.

The top prize

Outstanding Comedy Series

Family loyalties, friendships and social misunderstandings connected these five very different contenders. Everybody Loves Raymond took the top prize.

  • Curb Your Enthusiasm

    HBO

    Larry David's smallest disagreements had a way of swallowing an entire day. Its awkward encounters gave the lineup a distinctly uncomfortable edge.

  • Everybody Loves Raymond

    Winner

    CBS

    The Barones turned marriage, sibling rivalry and parental interference into an ensemble comedy. The series win sat alongside acting victories for Brad Garrett and Doris Roberts.

  • Friends

    NBC

    The Central Perk ensemble remained in the series race, with Jennifer Aniston and Matt LeBlanc nominated as leads. Its guest performers also made a strong showing.

  • Sex and the City

    HBO

    Four friends' overlapping lives gave the ballot another approach to relationships. Sarah Jessica Parker, Kim Cattrall and Cynthia Nixon were recognized in the acting categories.

  • Will & Grace

    NBC

    All four central performers received acting nominations. Debra Messing won for Grace, while Gene Wilder brought the show another victory in guest actor.

Verify comedy series nominees at the Television Academy

The performances

Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series

This six-person field stretched from domestic sitcoms to Monk's detective stories. Tony Shalhoub won for Adrian Monk.

Verify lead actor nominees at the Television Academy

The performances

Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series

Debra Messing won for Will & Grace, in a field spanning five shows and five distinct comic perspectives.

Verify lead actress nominees at the Television Academy

The performances

Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series

Six performers made this ballot. Everybody Loves Raymond and Frasier each had two nominees, with Brad Garrett winning for Robert Barone.

Verify supporting actor nominees at the Television Academy

The performances

Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series

Doris Roberts won for Marie Barone. The field also recognized Cheryl Hines, two members of the Sex and the City ensemble, and Megan Mullally.

Verify supporting actress nominees at the Television Academy

The performances

Outstanding Guest Actor in a Comedy Series

Gene Wilder won for his appearance as Mr. Stein on Will & Grace. Life with Bonnie earned two places in the category through David Duchovny and Jonathan Winters.

Verify guest actor nominees at the Television Academy

The performances

Outstanding Guest Actress in a Comedy Series

Christina Applegate won for Friends. Nominations for Betty Garrett and Betty White brought Becker and Yes, Dear into this seven-category guide.

Verify guest actress nominees at the Television Academy

The bigger picture

Why this ballot still matters

The results reward more than a single leading performance. Everybody Loves Raymond won both supporting categories in this guide, and every central member of the Will & Grace cast appeared on the ballot. Looking across the nominees makes it easier to see the relationships that sustained these comedies: partners, siblings, parents and friends who could turn an ordinary conversation into a scene.

The guest races add a different perspective. David Duchovny and Jonathan Winters both earned nominations for Life with Bonnie. Betty Garrett in Becker and Betty White in Yes, Dear widened the field further, while Christina Applegate won for Friends. Those appearances make the ballot a useful starting point for exploring television careers beyond a performer's best-known role.

Read this year's nominees alongside our 2004 comedy nominations guide to see how the lineup changed, or return to the Emmy Awards archive to browse the collection.

Sources & scope

This guide covers Outstanding Comedy Series and the six lead, supporting and guest acting categories at the 2003 Primetime Emmys. Writing, directing and other craft categories are outside its scope. Nominees and winners were checked against the Television Academy records linked under each category.

The guest acting awards were presented at the Creative Arts ceremony on ; the main Primetime ceremony followed on . This is a retrospective published in 2026.

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