Rhea Seehorn might be immune to Pluribus’ apocalyptic virus.
However, she’s noticed how the pathogen has impacted viewers—one intense watch at a time. Shortly after Rhea’s performance in Pluribus earned her Best Actress in a Drama Series at the 2026 Critic Choice Awards, she detailed if she knew the Apple TV series would be a success.
“Obviously, it’s [creator Vince Gilligan]’s writing, so there’s the quality of the writing, the writing team that he assembles, the directors, and it’s Apple,” Rhea exclusively told E! News’ Daryn Carp in an interview at the Jan. 4 ceremony. “But even given that quality of the material and if I tried my hardest, you don’t know what the response will be.”
The 53-year-old, who stars as author Carol Sturka in the sci-fi drama, added, “There’s still that other element of, ‘What if there’s a backlash of we’re sick of liking Vince? We’re just gonna hate it.’”
After all, Pluribus comes years after the screenwriter hit the TV jackpot with Breaking Bad—which received high acclaim from critics during its five season run from 2008 to 2013—and its prequel Better Call Saul that Rhea starred in opposite Bob Odenkirk. And with this back-to-back success, the actress “didn’t know” if viewers would approach this slow burn show with high expectations.
But similar to Vince’s previous works, Pluribus became an immediate hit and was renewed for season two weeks after its premiere last November.
“I didn’t know, but I knew it was a show that I would be a fan of,” Rhea explained of the show’s success, before reflecting on her first time reading the script. “I was like, ‘This is deep, weird, hilarious, scary and I have so many questions.’ This is my kind of show, and I’m grateful to be in it.”
But the Franklin & Bash alum isn’t the only viewer that’s fascinated with her character, as she also admitted “journalists have talked to me about their feelings about the show’s” layered plot.
“The fact that it’s inspired conversations like this was a hope,” she noted, “but we didn’t dream it this big.”
Indeed, fans have been creating their own plot twists since the series’ season one finale, including one where Carol might be an alien. And while Rhea and her costar Karolina Wydra (who plays extraterrestrial handler Zosia) doesn’t believe many of the theories, they’re both proud that viewers are interacting with the premise.
“I love the conversations that people [are] having,” Karolina, 44, told E! News last December. “I wrote that to Vince, actually, I said, ‘Vince, you’ve created something that makes people think and not numb out,’ And how incredible is that?”
Keep reading to see more stars who appeared, and took home a victory, at the 2026 Critics Choice Awards…
(E! and USA Network are both part of Versant Media.)
Best Young Actor/Actress
Everett Blunck – The Plague (Independent Film Company)
WINNER: Miles Caton – Sinners (Warner Bros.)
Cary Christopher - Weapons (Warner Bros.)
Shannon Mahina Gorman – Rental Family (Searchlight Pictures)
Jacobi Jupe – Hamnet (Focus Features)
Nina Ye – Left-Handed Girl (Netflix)
Best Supporting Actor in a Drama Series
Patrick Ball – The Pitt (HBO Max)
Billy Crudup – The Morning Show (Apple TV)
Ato Essandoh – The Diplomat (Netflix)
Wood Harris – Forever (Netflix)
Tom Pelphrey – Task (HBO Max)
WINNER: Tramell Tillman – Severance (Apple TV)
Best Picture
Bugonia (Focus Features)
Frankenstein (Netflix)
Hamnet (Focus Features)
Jay Kelly (Netflix)
Marty Supreme (A24)
WINNER: One Battle After Another (Warner Bros.)
Sentimental Value (Neon)
Sinners (Warner Bros.)
Train Dreams (Netflix)
Wicked: For Good (Universal Pictures)
Best Actor
WINNER: Timothée Chalamet – Marty Supreme (A24)
Leonardo DiCaprio – One Battle After Another (Warner Bros.)
Joel Edgerton – Train Dreams (Netflix)
Ethan Hawke – Blue Moon (Sony Pictures Classics)
Michael B. Jordan – Sinners (Warner Bros.)
Wagner Moura – The Secret Agent (Neon)
Best Actress
WINNER: Jessie Buckley – Hamnet (Focus Features)
Rose Byrne – If I Had Legs I’d Kick You (A24)
Chase Infiniti – One Battle After Another (Warner Bros.)
Renate Reinsve – Sentimental Value (Neon)
Amanda Seyfried – The Testament of Ann Lee (Searchlight Pictures)
Emma Stone – Bugonia (Focus Features)
Best Supporting Actor
Benicio del Toro – One Battle After Another (Warner Bros.)
WINNER: Jacob Elordi – Frankenstein (Netflix)
Paul Mescal – Hamnet (Focus Features)
Sean Penn – One Battle After Another (Warner Bros.)
Adam Sandler – Jay Kelly (Netflix)
Stellan Skarsgård – Sentimental Value (Neon)
Best Supporting Actress
Elle Fanning – Sentimental Value (Neon)
Ariana Grande – Wicked: For Good (Universal Pictures)
Inga Ibsdotter Lilleaas – Sentimental Value (Neon)
WINNER: Amy Madigan – Weapons (Warner Bros.)
Wunmi Mosaku – Sinners (Warner Bros.)
Teyana Taylor – One Battle After Another (Warner Bros.)
Best Director
WINNER: Paul Thomas Anderson – One Battle After Another (Warner Bros.)
Ryan Coogler – Sinners (Warner Bros.)
Guillermo del Toro – Frankenstein (Netflix)
Josh Safdie – Marty Supreme (A24)
Joachim Trier – Sentimental Value (Neon)
Chloé Zhao – Hamnet (Focus Features)
Best Casting and Ensemble
Nina Gold – Hamnet (Focus Features)
Douglas Aibel, Nina Gold – Jay Kelly (Netflix)
Jennifer Venditti – Marty Supreme (A24)
Cassandra Kulukundis – One Battle After Another (Warner Bros.)
WINNER: Francine Maisler – Sinners (Warner Bros.)
Tiffany Little Canfield, Bernard Telsey – Wicked: For Good (Universal Pictures)
Best Costume Design
WINNER: Kate Hawley – Frankenstein (Netflix)
Malgosia Turzanska – Hamnet (Focus Features)
Lindsay Pugh – Hedda (Amazon MGM Studios)
Colleen Atwood, Christine Cantella – Kiss of the Spider Woman (Lionsgate/Roadside Attractions)
Ruth E. Carter – Sinners (Warner Bros.)
Paul Tazewell – Wicked: For Good (Universal Pictures)
Best Hair and Makeup
Hair and Makeup Team – 28 Years Later (Sony Pictures)
WINNER: Mike Hill, Jordan Samuel, Cliona Furey – Frankenstein (Netflix)
Siân Richards, Ken Diaz, Mike Fontaine, Shunika Terry – Sinners (Warner Bros.)
Kazu Hiro, Felix Fox, Mia Neal – The Smashing Machine (A24)
Leo Satkovich, Melizah Wheat, Jason Collins – Weapons (Warner Bros.)
Frances Hannon, Mark Coulier, Laura Blount – Wicked: For Good (Universal Pictures)
Best Visual Effects
WINNER: Joe Letteri, Richard Baneham, Eric Saindon, Daniel Barrett – Avatar: Fire and Ash (20th Century Studios)
Ryan Tudhope, Nikeah Forde, Robert Harrington, Nicolas Chevallier, Eric Leven, Edward Price, Keith Dawson – F1 (Apple Original Films)
Dennis Berardi, Ayo Burgess, Ivan Busquets, José Granell – Frankenstein (Netflix)
Alex Wuttke, Ian Lowe, Jeff Sutherland, Kirstin Hall – Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning (Paramount Pictures)
Michael Ralla, Espen Nordahl, Guido Wolter, Donnie Dean – Sinners (Warner Bros.)
Stephane Ceretti, Enrico Damm, Stéphane Nazé, Guy Williams – Superman (Warner Bros.)
Best Animated Feature
Arco (Neon)
Elio (Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures)
In Your Dreams (Netflix)
WINNER: KPop Demon Hunters (Netflix)
Little Amélie or the Character of Rain (GKIDS)
Zootopia 2 (Walt Disney Animation Studios)
Best Comedy
The Ballad of Wallis Island (Focus Features)
Eternity (A24)
Friendship (A24)
WINNER: The Naked Gun (Paramount)
The Phoenician Scheme (Focus Features)
Splitsville (Neon)
Best Foreign Language Film
It Was Just an Accident (Neon)
Left-Handed Girl (Netflix)
No Other Choice (Neon)
WINNER: The Secret Agent (Neon)
Sirat (Neon)
Belén (Amazon MGM Studios)
Best Song
“Drive” – Ed Sheeran, John Mayer, Blake Slatkin – F1 (Apple Original Films)
WINNER: “Golden” – Ejae, Mark Sonnenblick, Ido, 24, Teddy – KPop Demon Hunters (Netflix)
“I Lied to You” – Raphael Saadiq, Ludwig Göransson – Sinners (Warner Bros.)
“Clothed by the Sun” – Daniel Blumberg – The Testament of Ann Lee (Searchlight Pictures)
“Train Dreams” – Nick Cave, Bryce Dessner – Train Dreams (Netflix)
“The Girl in the Bubble” – Stephen Schwartz – Wicked: For Good (Universal Pictures)
Best Drama Series
Alien: Earth (FX)
Andor (Disney+)
The Diplomat (Netflix)
Paradise (Hulu)
WINNER: The Pitt (HBO Max)
Pluribus (Apple TV)
Severance (Apple TV)
Task (HBO Max)
Best Actor in a Drama Series
Sterling K. Brown – Paradise (Hulu)
Diego Luna – Andor (Disney+)
Mark Ruffalo – Task (HBO Max)
Adam Scott – Severance (Apple TV)
Billy Bob Thornton – Landman (Paramount+)
WINNER: Noah Wyle – The Pitt (HBO Max)
Best Actress in a Drama Series
Kathy Bates – Matlock (CBS)
Carrie Coon – The Gilded Age (HBO Max)
Britt Lower – Severance (Apple TV)
Bella Ramsey – The Last of Us (HBO Max)
Keri Russell – The Diplomat (Netflix)
WINNER: Rhea Seehorn – Pluribus (Apple TV)
Best Supporting Actress in a Drama Series
Nicole Beharie – The Morning Show (Apple TV)
Denée Benton – The Gilded Age (HBO Max)
Allison Janney – The Diplomat (Netflix)
WINNER: Katherine LaNasa – The Pitt (HBO Max)
Greta Lee – The Morning Show (Apple TV)
Skye P. Marshall – Matlock (CBS)
Best Comedy Series
Abbott Elementary (ABC)
Elsbeth (CBS)
Ghosts (CBS)
Hacks (HBO Max)
Nobody Wants This (Netflix)
Only Murders in the Building (Hulu)
The Righteous Gemstones (HBO Max)
WINNER: The Studio (Apple TV)
Best Actor in a Comedy Series
Adam Brody – Nobody Wants This (Netflix)
Ted Danson – A Man on the Inside (Netflix)
David Alan Grier – St. Denis Medical (NBC)
Danny McBride – The Righteous Gemstones (HBO Max)
WINNER: Seth Rogen – The Studio (Apple TV)
Alexander Skarsgård – Murderbot (Apple TV)
Best Actress in a Comedy Series
Kristen Bell – Nobody Wants This (Netflix)
Natasha Lyonne – Poker Face (Peacock)
Rose McIver – Ghosts (CBS)
Edi Patterson – The Righteous Gemstones (HBO Max)
Carrie Preston – Elsbeth (CBS)
WINNER: Jean Smart – Hacks (HBO Max)
Best Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series
WINNER: Ike Barinholtz – The Studio (Apple TV)
Paul W. Downs – Hacks (HBO Max)
Asher Grodman – Ghosts (CBS)
Oscar Nuñez – The Paper (Peacock)
Chris Perfetti – Abbott Elementary (ABC)
Timothy Simons – Nobody Wants This (Netflix)
Best Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series
Danielle Brooks – Peacemaker (HBO Max)
Hannah Einbinder – Hacks (HBO Max)
WINNER: Janelle James – Abbott Elementary (ABC)
Justine Lupe – Nobody Wants This (Netflix)
Ego Nwodim – Saturday Night Live (NBC)
Rebecca Wisocky – Ghosts (CBS)
Best Limited Series
WINNER: Adolescence (Netflix)
All Her Fault (Peacock)
Chief of War (Apple TV)
Death by Lightning (Netflix)
Devil in Disguise: John Wayne Gacy (Peacock)
Dope Thief (Apple TV)
Dying for Sex (FX on Hulu)
The Girlfriend (Prime Video)
Best Movie Made For Television
WINNER: Bridget Jones: Mad About the Boy (Peacock)
Deep Cover (Prime Video)
The Gorge (Apple TV)
Mountainhead (HBO Max)
Nonnas (Netflix)
Summer of '69 (Hulu)
Best Actor in a Limited Series or Movie Made for Television
Michael Chernus – Devil in Disguise: John Wayne Gacy (Peacock)
WINNER: Stephen Graham – Adolescence (Netflix)
Brian Tyree Henry – Dope Thief (Apple TV)
Charlie Hunnam – Monster: The Ed Gein Story (Netflix)
Matthew Rhys – The Beast in Me (Netflix)
Michael Shannon – Death by Lightning (Netflix)
Best Actress in a Limited Series or Movie Made For Television
Jessica Biel – The Better Sister (Prime Video)
Meghann Fahy – Sirens (Netflix)
WINNER: Sarah Snook – All Her Fault (Peacock)
Michelle Williams – Dying for Sex (FX on Hulu)
Robin Wright – The Girlfriend (Prime Video)
Renée Zellweger – Bridget Jones: Mad About the Boy (Peacock)
Best Supporting Actor in a Limited Series or Movie Made For Television
WINNER: Owen Cooper – Adolescence (Netflix)
Wagner Moura – Dope Thief (Apple TV)
Nick Offerman – Death by Lightning (Netflix)
Michael Peña – All Her Fault (Peacock)
Ashley Walters – Adolescence (Netflix)
Ramy Youssef – Mountainhead (HBO Max)