Chuck Norris and Nicholas Brendon skipped by the 2026 Emmy Awards

Like every year, the “In Memoriam” sequence of the Emmy Awards paid tribute to television personalities who have passed away since the previous ceremony. But several names were missing…

It is an obligatory part of all major ceremonies.

As with each edition, the 2026 Emmy Awards took a few minutes to pay tribute to the actors, directors, producers and other television figures who have passed away since the previous edition. But like every year, certain names were forgotten in the traditional montage broadcast on screen.

This year, several absences particularly caused a reaction. Starting with Nicholas Brendon, known for his role as Xander Harris in Buffy the Vampire Slayer. An omission all the more notable as the cult series was the subject of a tribute during the ceremony. Sarah Michelle Gellar and her former partners had notably discussed the last two years which were particularly difficult for the Buffy family.

Chuck Norris’ name was also missing. The actor and specialist in fighting and martial arts films was a star of the small screen since Walker, Texas Ranger. He died in 2026 at the age of 86. Fans were quick to point out his absence from the official cut.

Other personalities were also forgotten from the sequence broadcast on screen, notably Patrick Muldoon, actor of Days of our Lives and Starship Troopers, Jaye P. Morgan, member of the panel of The Gong Show, Daveigh Chase, known in particular for his role in The Ring, or Grizz Chapman, appeared in 30 Rock.

The sequence, however, began with a special tribute to Catherine O’Hara, with Annie Murphy and Dan Levy, her children in Schitt’s Creek, as well as Macaulay Culkin, who played her son in Mom, I Missed the Plane. Dolly Parton and Rob Reiner also benefited from individual sequences. More recently deceased, Tim Curry and Hayden Panettiere also appeared in the montage, as did Bob Mackie, who died the same day of the ceremony.

Singer Noah Kahan accompanied the sequence by performing Bridge Over Troubled Water by Simon & Garfunkel, while the names of the deceased appeared on the screen.

As Variety points out, these oversights regularly cause viewers to react, with the limited duration of the ceremony forcing the Emmy Awards to make a selection. But fans can nevertheless find some of the names absent from the television montage on the official website of the Television Academy, where there is a much more complete list of personalities honored this year.