‘Slow Horses’ Wins Directing Emmy Ahead of Season 6 Premiere on Apple TV
Saul Metzstein won Outstanding Directing for a Drama Series for “Scars” just before Gary Oldman and the Slough House team return for a six-episode sixth season.
Slow Horses is heading into its Season 6 premiere with fresh Emmy momentum. Saul Metzstein won Outstanding Directing for a Drama Series for the Apple TV spy drama on September 14, just two days before the new season begins streaming globally on September 16.
Metzstein received the award for directing “Scars,” the Season 5 finale. The Television Academy confirmed the win in its Saul Metzstein Emmy record, giving Slow Horses another major television honor as Gary Oldman and the Slough House ensemble prepare to return.
Slow Horses Season 6 premiere follows an Emmy victory
The timing gives the series an unusually direct bridge between awards season and its next chapter. Apple TV confirms that Season 6 premieres Wednesday, September 16, with a six-episode run that continues weekly through October 21.
The directing award was one of several major categories in which Slow Horses competed at the 78th Emmy Awards. Oldman was nominated for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series, Jack Lowden competed in supporting actor and the series was nominated for Outstanding Drama Series. Will Smith was also nominated for writing “Scars.”
The win came during an awards night that produced several major results across Apple TV programming. Apple TV’s 2026 Emmy showing also included a record-setting 14-win season for Widow’s Bay, while Slow Horses supplied the streamer with the drama directing victory.
CBS News’ Emmy results independently list Metzstein as the winner over a directing field that included Salli Richardson-Whitfield for The Gilded Age and Task, Hanelle Culpepper for Paradise, Noah Wyle for The Pitt and Vince Gilligan for Pluribus.
Season 6 brings the Slow Horses back on the run
The Emmy arrives as the series shifts immediately into a new story. Apple says Season 6 adapts Joe Country and Slough House, the sixth and seventh novels in Mick Herron’s Slough House book series.
The new season finds Jackson Lamb’s team on the run as Diana Taverner draws the Slow Horses into what Apple describes as a high-stakes cycle of retaliation and revenge. Oldman returns as Lamb alongside Kristin Scott Thomas as Taverner and Lowden as River Cartwright.
The returning ensemble also includes Saskia Reeves, Christopher Chung, Aimee-Ffion Edwards, Rosalind Eleazar, Joanna Scanlan, Samuel West, Ruth Bradley, Tom Brooke, Jonathan Pryce and Hugo Weaving. Lenny Rush joins the cast for the new season.
One of the more notable returns is Olivia Cooke as Sidonie “Sid” Baker. Apple highlighted Cooke’s return when it released the Season 6 trailer in August, bringing the character back into the series after a long absence.
Slow Horses continues an unusually steady Apple TV run
The September premiere keeps Slow Horses on a consistent release cycle at a time when long waits between seasons have become common for major streaming dramas. The series began in 2022 and has built its story around the dysfunctional intelligence officers assigned to Slough House, an MI5 department populated largely by agents whose mistakes have damaged their careers.
Oldman’s Jackson Lamb remains at the center of that setup. His abrasive leadership style and the team’s unconventional approach to intelligence work have allowed the series to move between espionage thriller, workplace drama and dark comedy without abandoning its spy-story structure.
The upcoming premiere also adds another high-profile series to Apple’s September television schedule. The streamer is preparing the September 23 premiere of Brothers, its comedy starring Matthew McConaughey and Woody Harrelson, one week after the Slow Horses return.
Watch the Slow Horses Season 6 trailer
Apple’s official Season 6 trailer offers the clearest preview of the new threat facing Slough House, while also revealing returning and new members of the ensemble ahead of the September 16 premiere.
For Slow Horses, the transition from Emmy night to premiere day is particularly short. Metzstein’s directing win recognizes the conclusion of Season 5 just as the series prepares to begin its next story, giving the drama an awards boost immediately before audiences return to Slough House.
About the author
Jonas Muthoni
Jonas Muthoni is the Editor at The Showbiz Journal, where he curates and oversees engaging content across the lifestyle, entertainment, and celebrity news landscape. With a sharp eye for storytelling and a deep understanding of pop culture trends, Jonas brings fresh, authentic perspectives to the publication. His editorial work reflects a passion for uncovering unique voices and spotlighting the moments that shape the world of entertainment.
