Tony Awards 2026 Winners — Laurie Metcalf and Death of a Salesman Dominate
Broadway's biggest night delivered some of the most celebrated winners in years. The 2026 Tony Awards — held Sunday, June 7 at Radio City Music Hall in New York City and broadcast live on CBS and Paramount+ — saw Arthur Miller's Death of a Salesman dominate the evening, with Laurie Metcalf winning Best Actress in a Play and Joe Mantello claiming Best Direction of a Play.
The revival — which stars Nathan Lane as Willy Loman and Metcalf as Linda Loman — has been one of the most acclaimed productions of the Broadway season, earning nine Tony nominations and delivering on the night.
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Death of a Salesman Wins Big
The Joe Mantello-directed revival at the Winter Garden Theatre was the talk of Broadway from the moment it was announced. Reuniting three-time Tony winner Nathan Lane with two-time Tony winner Laurie Metcalf — who had last appeared on stage together in Mantello's 2008 production of November — the production opened in April 2026 to thunderous reviews.
Laurie Metcalf — winning her third Tony Award — played Linda Loman with devastating emotional precision. It was her seventh Tony nomination overall, having previously won for A Doll's House, Part 2 (2017) and Three Tall Women (2018). "This nomination — this win — reminds me of how challenging it was to put this show together," Metcalf said. "It's a very daunting play to begin with."
Joe Mantello won Best Direction of a Play for his bold, physical staging of the Arthur Miller classic — a production that drew on archival research into Miller's earliest drafts to find a completely new way into one of the most studied plays in American theatre history.
Best Musical: Cats: The Jellicle Ball
The biggest musical prize of the evening went to Cats: The Jellicle Ball — the radical reimagining of Andrew Lloyd Webber's iconic musical, directed by Zhailon Levingston and Bill Rauch. The production won Best Musical alongside Best Direction of a Musical for its creative team.
The show — which presented the classic feline musical through a completely different theatrical lens — had been one of the most talked-about productions of the season.
Full 2026 Tony Awards Winners
PLAYS:
- Best Play Revival: Arthur Miller's Death of a Salesman
- Best Actress in a Play: Laurie Metcalf — Death of a Salesman
- Best Direction of a Play: Joe Mantello — Death of a Salesman
MUSICALS:
- Best Musical: Cats: The Jellicle Ball
- Best Direction of a Musical: Zhailon Levingston & Bill Rauch — Cats: The Jellicle Ball
*Full winners list continues to be updated — follow cbsnews.com for all categories*
Laurie Metcalf: A Broadway Legend
At 70, Laurie Metcalf is one of the most decorated stage actors of her generation — a founding member of Chicago's legendary Steppenwolf Theatre Company who has seamlessly moved between stage and screen throughout her career.
TV audiences know her best as Jackie Harris on the original Roseanne (1988-1997) and its revival. Film fans recognize her as Marion McPherson in Lady Bird (2017) — a role that earned her an Academy Award nomination. But it is on Broadway where she has consistently delivered her most extraordinary work.
Three Tony Awards. Seven nominations. One of the great performers of her era. Tonight simply confirmed what Broadway has long known.
Key Takeaways
- The 2026 Tony Awards were held June 7 at Radio City Music Hall — broadcast live on CBS and Paramount+.
- Laurie Metcalf won Best Actress in a Play for Death of a Salesman — her third Tony Award overall.
- Joe Mantello won Best Direction of a Play for the same production, which stars Nathan Lane as Willy Loman.
- Cats: The Jellicle Ball won Best Musical and Best Direction of a Musical for Zhailon Levingston and Bill Rauch.
- Death of a Salesman earned nine Tony nominations — one of the most nominated productions of the season.
- Metcalf is a three-time Tony winner and seven-time nominee — one of Broadway's most decorated performers.
