Tony Awards 2026 winners: John Lithgow, 80, makes history as the oldest star to triumph in lead actor category... 53 years after his first win

The 2026 Tony Awards delivered a fierce competition at Radio City Music Hall on Sunday, as stars battled it out for the ultimate Broadway honors.

John Lithgow made history at 80 as he became the oldest winner in the Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role in a Play category.

The victory marked his third Tony Award, and this time he took home the trophy for his captivating portrayal of Roald Dahl in Mark Rosenblatt's play Giant. 

He triumphed over a stacked category of heavyweights, beating out Harry Potter alum Daniel Radcliffe (Every Brilliant Thing), Will Harrison (Punch), Nathan Lane (Arthur Miller's Death of a Salesman), and Mark Strong (Oedipus). 

In Giant, Lithgow portrays Dahl during a turbulent period in the 1980s, when the children's author faced backlash over a series of antisemitic comments. 

The victory came a staggering 53 years after his very first Tony win. 

The performance previously earned Lithgow his very first Olivier Award during the production's London run. 

'I'm such a lucky actor,' he said during his acceptance speech, before joking, 'The other gentlemen in my category, you all deserve this. I got it.'

He then turned serious, stating: 'Because I play the lead role in an extraordinary play, Giant. A stunning play made by people full of love and kindness. But it's a play about cruelty in a cruel age.' 

He also thanked his wife Mary Yeager for seeing him through 'two exhilarating but exhausting years bringing this incredible play to Broadway.'

'Two Tony bookends, with 53 years between them. In those years, I have worked with hundreds of fantastic theater artists. I've had dozens and dozens of ecstatic moments onstage. But I have to tell you, this moment has got to be one of the best.'

Giant was directed by two-time Tony winner Nicholas Hytner. 

Lithgow won his first Tony in 1973 for his performance as Nick in The Changing Room, just weeks after his Broadway debut.

He also won in 2002 for Best Leading Actor in a Musical for his performance as J.J. Hunsecker in Sweet Smell of Success.

It was a massive night for Arthur Miller's Death of a Salesman, which emerged as the evening's biggest victor by sweeping the board with six wins. The Lost Boys, Ragtime, and Schmigadoon! followed closely behind with four awards each. 

Lesley Manville, 70, took home the win for Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role in a Play for her role as Jocasta in Oedipus. 

Manville clinched the trophy over a formidable field of nominees, including Rose Byrne (Fallen Angels), Carrie Coon (Bug), Susannah Flood (Liberation), and Kelli O'Hara, (Fallen Angels). 

'Our genius director and writer Robert Icke took a 2,500 year–old play and brought it up to the present day with shocking, startling results,' she shared during her acceptance speech.

'And it was an extraordinary thing to do every night. But really shocking, how little has changed in those two and a half 1,000–years for women. Been very slow,' she added.

The AppleTV series turned Broadway smash Schmigadoon! won the award for Best Musical. 

Schmigadoon! follows a floundering couple who find themselves transported into the world of a classic Broadway musical.

The win went to the musical's producing team, led by Lorne Michaels, No Guarantees Productions, Micah Frank, and Caroline Maroney. 

Caissie Levy, 45, scooped up the award for Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role in a Musical for her performance in Ragtime, directed by Lear DeBessonet.

Her co-star Joshua Henry, 41, took home the prestigious award for Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role in a Musical.

Ragtime was also crowned the season's Best Revival of a Musical. The musical is based on the 1975 novel by E. L. Doctorow.

Shoshana Bean, 48, won her first Tony Award for Best Performance by an Actress in a Featured Role in a Musical for her turn in The Lost Boys. She was presented the award by Megan Thee Stallion.

She portrayed Lucy Emerson in The Lost Boys, directed by Tony winner Michael Arden and based on the 1987 Warner Bros. film.

Her co-star Ali Louis Bourzgui, 26, won for Best Performance by an Actor in a Featured Role in a Musical for his portrayal of David. 

Arthur Miller's Death of a Salesman, directed by Joe Mantello, won Best Revival of a Play. Actor Nathan Lane - who starred as Willy Loman in the play - accepted the award. 

'We all wouldn't be standing here without the genius of Joe Mantello, who created this revelatory production, and most importantly, the genius of Arthur Miller, who created this monumental masterpiece, which is still sadly as relevant as it was in 1949 and still continues to teach us who we are as humans and Americans,' Lane said while accepting the honor. 

His co-star Laurie Metcalf, who played Linda Loman, took home the win for Best Performance by an Actress in a Featured Role in a Play.

Alden Ehrenreich, 36, won for Featured Actor in a Play for his debut performance as Max in Becky Shaw, directed by Trip Cullman. It was his first Tony win and first nomination. 

'This art of acting has given me so much. It has given me a life. It has given me opportunity to be around artists like the people in this room. Most of all, it has shown me that when I am very afraid and things are very hard, there is, in this present moment, right here, right now, a sustaining mystery that is there to catch you, and I am grateful for that, and the magic that it is allowed to happen in my life,' he said while accepting the award.

The other nominees in the category were Christopher Abbott (Arthur Miller’s Death of a Salesman), Danny Burstein (Marjorie Prime), Brandon J. Dirden (Waiting for Godot), Ruben Santiago-Hudson (August Wilson’s Joe Turner’s Come and Gone), and Richard Thomas (The Balusters). 

Liberation, written by Bess Wohl, won for Best Play. 

Other winners of the night included Zhailon Levingston and Bill Rauch, who triumphed for Best Direction of a Musical for Cats: The Jellicle Ball.

It was an eventful night, as singer Pink made her awards show hosting debut with a Lady Marmalade inspired opening number for which she changed into a pink bustier and black fishnets.

She started off the show with some aerial acrobatics in a Peter Pan costume.

The star’s performance featured a handful of surprise cameos including Megan Thee Stallion, who took the stage just weeks after her high-profile split from NBA star Klay Thompson.

Later in the night Pink performed with the cast of Chicago.

In one of the night's most memorable showstoppers, a fiercely styled Luke Evans tackled Time Warp from Richard O'Brien's The Rocky Horror Show in a provocative black bustier and high heels, rounding out an electric evening of performances that also featured a turn from Rachel Zegler.