‘Deli Boys’ Mounts 22-Category Emmy Campaign, Including Acting Bids for Kumail Nanjiani, Fred Armisen and More (EXCLUSIVE)

Hulu is inviting Emmys on a trip to the Deli.

The streamer is submitting the second season of its Pakistani American comedy, “Deli Boys,” across 22 categories, with 28 total planned submissions, Variety has learned exclusively.

At the center of the push is a play for outstanding comedy series, with the sophomore run set to drop as a binge on Hulu on May 28, 2026, three days before the end of the eligibility window. The show landed on numerous best-of lists in its freshman year with a strong 96% on Rotten Tomatoes.

Saagar Shaikh, who plays the impulsive younger brother Raj Dar, will compete for the lead comedy actor category. In addition, the supporting actor field will be led by Asif Ali as elder brother Mir Dar and Brian George as Ahmad, alongside two of the season’s prominent additions: Emmy winner and “Saturday Night Live” alumni Fred Armisen joins the second season as casino magnate Max Sugar, a money launderer who becomes the brothers’ auntie Lucky’s chaotic new love interest. And Tony nominee and Grammy winner Andrew Rannells comes aboard as Philadelphia District Attorney Andrew Chadwater, who is angling to turn one major bust into a mayoral run.

Poorna Jagannathan, whose turn as the formidable crime-boss auntie Lucky has been a fan favorite, will be the lone supporting comedy actress submission.

The campaign will also target a deep bench of guest actors for the upcoming sophomore season. Emmy and Oscar nominee Kumail Nanjiani will be on the guest comedy actor ballot alongside “Queer Eye” host Tan France, and former “Glee” star Iqbal Theba. At the same time, six-time Emmy nominated comedian Robin Thede, best known for “A Black Lady Sketch Show” and YouTuber and Canadian comedian Lilly Singh will vie for spots in the guest comedy actress race. The series will additionally vie for directing and comedy, with the official selections still to be determined. With the artisans, Hulu will submit “Deli Boys” in an additional 14 craft categories. Specific episode submissions and craft details will be announced in the coming weeks.

Season 2 picks up with the Dars discovering that inheriting a criminal empire was, in fact, the easy part. Drowning in dirty money and surrounded by Philly’s sketchiest operators, Mir works to expand the family’s DarCo enterprise without torching it, Raj plots revenge on Ahmad and Lucky finds her professional and personal lives blurring as Max Sugar turns laundering into what one might generously call a situationship.

Emmy submissions are due on May 7, with the nomination-round voting running from June 11-22. The 78th Primetime Emmy Awards nominations will be announced on July 8.

The full list of Emmy submissions is below.