By Hope Sloop

“Please give us an award.” That is the caption attached to a photo shared by Industry co-creator Mickey Down in a recent Instagram post, showing himself alongside his creative partner Konrad Kay, as well as series stars Marisa Abela, Myha’la, and Kit Harington. It’s a plea and a post he shouldn’t have to make after crafting four seasons of the best new TV show to premiere this decade.

On a particularly chilly Monday evening in Los Angeles, HBO invited press, Television Academy voters, and other industry figures to screen an episode from the fourth season of the financial drama and to hear from the cast and crew. As “Both Sides Now” by Judy Collins played out over the credits of Season 4 Episode 6 (“Dear Henry”), the packed auditorium was buzzing with excitement, only to give Down, Kay, and the cast a raucous round of applause as they walked out onto the stage.

To an outsider, it might have looked like just another For Your Consideration (FYC) event in the height of Emmy 2026 eligibility season; as it happens, I have been to nearly a dozen screenings and panels in that very theater since March 1 as networks and streamers attempt to showcase their best work. To those who have followed the show since the beginning, however, this event marked an acknowledgement of what many have known for years: Industry deserves every overdue Emmy nomination that it can garner.

While this isn’t the first event that platforms the “financial horror” as Kay called the series during the moderated panel portion of the evening, it is the first FYC presentation on the West Coast, a major move that tells Emmy voters considering the show in the 2025-2026 eligibility cycle that HBO is more than serious — they’re confident. After three seasons of quietly being discussed online and in television circles as one of the best shows on air, Season 4 premiered earlier this year to rave reviews, calling it a “triumph” and a feat of storytelling, not to mention commending the writing pair at the helm as well as the stellar performances on which the show is built. One quick glance at the show’s Rotten Tomatoes page tells you everything you need to know.

“Myha’la and Abela have never been better and that may be true for this show too, which feels more evolved and unhinged in the best way,” one review of Industry Season 4 reads.

“Once again, the pair write themselves into a corner, but now, the best part of Industry is watching how they’ll thrash and claw their way out of it and who will survive the bloodshed,” another states.

“Its star-studded cast, steamy sex scenes, and eerily prescient storylines ought to finally propel the HBO stunner into the forefront of pop culture — and line their shelves with a slew of long overdue Emmys,” DECIDER’s own Meghan O’Keefe wrote in her January 2026 review.

Perhaps HBO finally read the above words, or maybe it’s the droves of viewers who have started message boards, Facebook groups, and fan pages devoted to the series that finally moved the needle on promoting it as though it’s the winner it could be. HBO is certainly not new to prestige television by any stretch of the imagination, but Industry has felt more like an afterthought than an underdog in years past. But as the panelists walked out to loud cheers and received overwhelming applause for each of their answers, it became clear that this is no longer a show that can be overlooked.

To HBO’s credit, I think it is that recognition, paired with stellar reviews and the steady uptick in viewership as word of mouth about the series has spread like wildfire, that led to Abela, Myha’la, Harrington, and Max Minghella — who joined the cast for Season 4 alongside Mad Men alum Keirnan Shipka — to be stage in Los Angeles on Monday night. Not as unknowns. Not as underdogs. Not as afterthoughts. As contenders.

“Its star-studded cast, steamy sex scenes, and eerily prescient storylines ought to finally propel Industry, the HBO stunner, into the forefront of pop culture — and line the network’s shelves with a slew of long overdue Emmys.”

In truth, the only thing that got the crowd in attendance cheering louder than discussing the truly unhinged, sadistic, and phenomenally written storylines of Season 4 — which went down some of the darkest and most ripped-from-the-headlines paths in the show’s run — was Down and Kay discussing the upcoming fifth and final season, which they are currently writing. As the duo told the assembly of peers that they plan to go balls-to-the-wall to end the show (a sentiment that makes one wonder how much they’ve been holding back over the years if Season 5 is the first time they’re really letting loose), those watching from their seats could not help but respond with anticipatory cheers.

While I was inclined to clap as an Industry-head myself, I took the moment to look around the nearly 600-seat theater and take in the eager and excited group, finally watching a show that has gone above and beyond from the very first moments of Season 1 finally receive the credit, care, and FYC campaign that it is due. Sure, some of those in attendance may have been there for the free shepherd’s pie served out in the lobby afterward, but even if they came in as a noob, I can almost guarantee they left feeling the same way that every person who has watched this show for the better part of five years has felt in their bones: Industry deserves to win every Emmy and thensome.

How To Watch Industry

The first four seasons of Industry are now streaming on HBO Max.

If you’re new to HBO Max, you can sign up for as low as $10.99/month with ads, but an ad-free subscription will cost $18.49/month.

If you want to stream even more and save a few bucks a month while you’re at it, we recommend subscribing to one of the discounted Disney+ Bundles with Hulu and HBO Max. With ads, the bundle costs $19.99/month and without ads, $32.99/month.