Bad Bunny’s Super Bowl halftime performance, explained
USA TODAY’s Rebecca Morin dives into Bad Bunny’s halftime performance and five easter eggs you may have missed.
Will a Bad Bunny Broadway musical be the next step in the Puerto Rican rapper’s EGOT journey? Thanks to a fresh Emmy win, he’s now halfway to the milestone.
Bad Bunny and Sabrina Carpenter won their first Emmy Awards during the first night of prizes on Sept. 5, meaning the stars are both now closer to EGOT status.
A person achieves EGOT status when they have won an Emmy, a Grammy, an Oscar and a Tony. Both Carpenter and Bad Bunny were previously Grammy winners, leaving only an Oscar and a Tony left.
Bad Bunny received his Emmy for the 2026 Super Bowl halftime show, which won in the category of outstanding variety special (live). The “Tití Me Preguntó” rapper, 32, was also a producer on the halftime show. Ironically, to win the prize he defeated telecasts of the Grammy Awards, the Oscars and the Tony Awards, which were fellow nominees, along with the Golden Globe Awards.
Bad Bunny has so far won six Grammy Awards in his career. He snagged his first win in 2021 when “YHLQMDLG” won for best latin pop album. More recently, he was one of the big winners at the 2026 Grammys, with his “Debí Tirar Más Fotos” winning album of the year. It was the star’s first time winning in that category, as well as the first time the award went to a Spanish-language album.
Bad Bunny’s Super Bowl halftime show took home a total of seven Emmys, also winning for its music direction, choreography, sound mixing, lighting, technical direction and camerawork, and directing.
Meanwhile, Carpenter, 27, won an Emmy for executive producing and starring in the Disney+ TV special “The Muppet Show,” which won in the category of outstanding variety special (pre-recorded). The “Espresso” singer was the musical guest performing her own song “Manchild,” as well as a rendition of “Islands in the Stream” with Kermit the Frog and Miss Piggy.
“The Muppet Show” also won Emmys for its production design, writing and editing.
Carpenter’s collection of trophies includes two Grammy Awards: Her album “Short n’ Sweet” was named best pop vocal album in 2025, and her smash hit “Espresso” won the Grammy for best pop solo performance the same year.
Neither Carpenter nor Bad Bunny has been nominated for an Oscar or a Tony, though Carpenter has had theater credits; she briefly starred in “Mean Girls” on Broadway in 2020 before the show closed amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
The milestones for Carpenter and Bad Bunny come after Beyoncé moved halfway to EGOT status in 2025, snagging her first Emmy for her “Beyoncé Bowl” special. She has also won a whopping 35 Grammys. Taylor Swift is similarly halfway to an EGOT: On top of her 14 Grammys, Swift won an Emmy in 2015 for outstanding creative achievement in interactive media for “AMEX Unstaged: Taylor Swift Experience.” Her Eras Tour special earned five nominations this year but didn’t win any. The pop superstar has yet to be nominated for an Academy Award, though she has earned Oscar buzz this year for her original song from “Toy Story 5.”
Stars who are a bit closer to achieving EGOT status include Lin-Manuel Miranda, Hugh Jackman and Cynthia Erivo, all three of whom only need to win an Oscar to join the coveted club. There are also a number of singers who are only missing a Tony, including Lady Gaga and Adele, though the latter has said she is unlikely to become an EGOT due to her disinterest in theater. “I actually prefer the sound of an EGO than an EGOT,” Adele joked in 2022, per Broadway World. “EGO is fun.”
The most recent person to achieve EGOT status was Steven Spielberg: The directing legend became an EGOT in February when he won his first Grammy as a producer on the documentary “Music by John Williams.”
Other stars who have won Emmys so far this year include Mariska Hargitay, who received two awards for her documentary “My Mom Jayne,” and Jimmy Kimmel, who was named best game show host for “Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?” Emmys will continue to be handed out on Sept. 6, prior to the Primetime Emmy Awards airing on NBC on Sept. 14.
Contributing: Kalia Richardson and Anthony Robledo, USA TODAY