# Writers Guild of America Award for Television: Long Form – Original

The Writers Guild of America Award for Television: Long Form – Original is an award presented by the Writers Guild of America to the writers of the best long-form program not based on the previously published material of the season. It has been awarded since the 49th Annual Writers Guild of America Awards in 1996.
Through the 70s and 80s, numerous categories were presented to recognize writing for long-form programs, some of them were for anthology series or limited series while others also included television films as "long form". The divisions between original and adapted were presented in some of the categories presented during these years, though not all of them.
Since the 39th Writers Guild of America Awards in 1976, two categories are presented to recognize the writing in long form television media, these two categories remain to this day and are: Long Form – Original and Long Form – Adapted.

## Name History

* Best Anthology Original (1975, 1978)
* Best Original Comedy Anthology (1982-1983)
* Best Original Drama Anthology (1982-1985)
* Best Original/Adapted Comedy Anthology (1984-1985)
* Best Original/Adapted Multi-Part Long Form Series (1984)
* Best Anthology Episode/Single Program (1986-1990)
* Best Long Form - Original (1986-present)

## Winners and nominees

The year indicates when each season aired. Single winner of the years is left unmarked while other winners are highlighted in gold and in bold.

### 1970s
#### Best Anthology Original

| Year | Program | Writer(s) | Network |
| 1975 |
| 1975 | Queen of the Stardust Ballroom | Jerome Kass | CBS |
| 1978 |
| 1978 | Scott Joplin | Christopher Knopf | NBC |

### 1980s
#### Best Original Comedy Anthology

| Year | Program | Writer(s) | Network |
| 1982 |
| 1982 | Sidney Shorr: A Girl's Best Friend | Oliver Hailey and Marilyn Canton Baker | NBC |
| 1983 |
| 1983 | The Other Woman | Lila Garrett and Anne Meara | CBS |

#### Best Original Drama Anthology

| Year | Program | Writer(s) | Network |
| 1982 |
| 1982 | Skokie | Ernest Kinoy | CBS |
| 1983 |
| 1983 | Special Bulletin | Marshall Herskovitz and Edward Zwick | NBC |
| 1984 |
| 1984 | The Day After | David Hume | ABC |
| 1984 | Pope John Paul II | Christopher Knopf | CBS |
| 1985 |
| 1985 | Do You Remember Love | Vickie Patik | CBS |
| 1985 | Not My Kid | Christopher Knopf and Beth Polson | CBS |

#### Best Original/Adapted Comedy Anthology

| Year | Program | Writer(s) | Source material | Network |
| 1984 |
| 1984 | Hobson's Choice | Burt Prelutsky | Original TV movie | CBS |
| 1985 |
| 1985 | The Ratings Game | Michael Barrie and Jim Mulholland | Original TV movie | Showtime |

#### Best Original/Adapted Multi-Part Long Form Series

| Year | Program | Writer(s) | Source material | Network |
| 1983 |
| 1983 | Blood Feud "Part II" | Robert Boris | Original TV movie | Syndicated |
| 1983 | V "Part I" | Kenneth Johnson | Original miniseries | NBC |
| 1984 |
| 1984 | The First Olympics: Athens 1896 | Charles Gary Allison and William Bast | Original miniseries | NBC |

#### Best Anthology Episode/Single Program

| Year | Program | Episode | Writer(s) | Network |
| 1986 |
| 1986 | The Twilight Zone | "Teacher's Aide"/"Paladin of the Lost Hour" | Harlan Ellison | CBS |
| 1986 | Amazing Stories | "The Doll" | Richard Matheson | NBC |
| 1986 | The Twilight Zone | "A Day in Beaumont"/"The Last Defender of Camelot" | George R. R. Martin | CBS |
| 1986 | The Twilight Zone | "Her Pilgrim Soul"/"I of Newton" | Alan Brennert | CBS |
| 1987 |
| 1987 | There Were Times, Dear | There Were Times, Dear | Harry Cauley | PBS |
| 1987 | The Twilight Zone | "The Storyteller"/"Nightsong" | Rockne S. O'Bannon | CBS |
| 1987 | The Twilight Zone | "The Card"/"The Junction" | Virginia Aldridge | CBS |
| 1987 | American Playhouse | "A Mistaken Charity" | Lawrence DuKore, C.R. Portz | PBS |
| 1987 | Tales from the Darkside | "Everybody Needs a Little Love" | John Harrison | Syndicated |
| 1988 |
| 1988 | Great Performances | "Tales from the Hollywood Hills: Natica Jackson" | Andy Wolk | PBS |
| 1988 | Alfred Hitchcock Presents | "There Was a Little Girl..." | Charlie Grant Craig | NBC |
| 1988 | CBS Summer Playhouse | "Mad Avenue" | Christopher Knopf and David A. Simons | CBS |
| 1989 |
| 1989 | Great Performances | "Tales from the Hollywood Hills: The Closed Set" | Ellen M. Violett | PBS |
| 1989 | The Cosby Show | "The Birth" | John Markus, Carmen Finestra, and Gary Kott | NBC |
| 1989 | The Twilight Zone | "Father and Son Game" | Jeremy Bertrand Finch, and Paul Chitlik | Syndicated |
| 1989 | The Twilight Zone | "Street of Shadows" | Michael Reaves | Syndicated |

#### Best Long Form - Original

| Year | Program | Writer(s) | Network |
| 1986 |
| 1986 | Nobody's Child | Mary Gallagher and Ara Watson | CBS |
| 1986 | The Execution of Raymond Graham | Mel Frohman | ABC |
| 1986 | Unnatural Causes | John Sayles, Martin M. Goldstein, Stephen Doran, Robert Jacobs | NBC |
| 1986 | Miles to Go... | Beverly Levitt, Stuart Fischoff | CBS |
| 1986 | The Return of Sherlock Holmes | Bob Shayne | CBS |
| 1987 |
| 1987 | Not awarded | Not awarded | Not awarded |
| 1988 |
| 1988 | God Bless the Child | Dennis Nemec | ABC |
| 1988 | My Father, My Son | Jacqueline Feather and David Seidler | CBS |
| 1988 | The Taking of Flight 847: The Uli Derickson Story | Norman Morrill | NBC |
| 1989 |
| 1989 | Nightbreaker | T.S. Cook | TNT |

### 1990s
#### Best Anthology Episode/Single Program

| Year | Program | Episode | Writer(s) | Network |
| 1990 |
| 1990 | Sisters | Sisters | Shelley List, and Jonathan Estrin | CBS |
| 1990 | Nightmare Classics | "The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde" | J. Michael Straczynski | Showtime |
| 1990 | Tales from the Crypt | "The Ventriloquist's Dummy" | Frank Darabont | HBO |

#### Best Long Form - Original

| Year | Program | Writer(s) | Network | Ref. |
| 1990 |
| 1990 | The Incident | James Norell, and Michael Norell | CBS | |
| 1990 | Heat Wave | Michael Lazarou | TNT | |
| 1991 |
| 1991 | Judgment | Tom Topor | HBO | |
| 1992 |
| 1992 | Homefront "S.N.A.F.U." | Lynn Marie Latham, and Bernard Lechowick | ABC | |
| 1993 |
| 1993 | The Positively True Adventures of the Alleged Texas Cheerleader-Murdering Mom | Jane Anderson | HBO | |
| 1994 |
| 1994 | Witness to the Execution | Thomas Baum, Keith Pierce, and Priscilla Prestwidge | NBC | |
| 1994 | Lily in Winter | Julie Moskowitz, Robert Elsele, Gary Stephens, and J. Michael Riva | USA Network | |
| 1995 |
| 1995 | ER "24 Hours" | Michael Crichton | NBC | |
| 1995 | A Father for Charlie | H. Haden Yelin | CBS | |
| 1995 | Lily in Winter | Julie Moskowitz, Robert Elsele, Gary Stephens, and J. Michael Riva | USA Network | |
| 1995 | Serving in Silence: The Margarethe Cammermeyer Story | Alison Cross | NBC | |
| 1996 |
| 1996 | Harvest of Fire | Susan Nanus and Richard Alfieri | CBS | [17] [18] |
| 1996 | Andersonville | David W. Rintels | TNT | [17] [18] |
| 1996 | Hidden in Silence | Stephanie Liss | Lifetime | [17] [18] |
| 1996 | Stolen Memories: Secrets from the Rose Garden | Tim Cagney | The Family Channel | [17] [18] |
| 1997 |
| 1997 | The Summer of Ben Tyler | Robert Inman | CBS | |
| 1997 | Dark Skies | Bryce Zabel, Brent V. Friedman | NBC | |
| 1997 | Hidden in America | Peter Silverman and Michael De Guzma | Showtime | |
| 1998 |
| 1998 | Labor of Love | Nina Shengold | Lifetime | [20] [21] |
| 1998 | Blind Faith | Frank Military | Showtime | [20] [21] |
| 1998 | Color of Justice | Lionel Chetwynd | Showtime | [20] [21] |
| 1998 | Gia | Jay McInerney and Michael Cristofer | HBO | [20] [21] |
| 1999 |
| 1999 | Dash and Lilly | Jerry Ludwig | A&E | [22] [23] |
| 1999 | Aldrich Ames: Traitor Within | Michael Burton | Showtime | [22] [23] |
| 1999 | Freak City | Jane Shepard | Showtime | [22] [23] |
| 1999 | Purgatory | Gordon T. Dawson | TNT | [22] [23] |

### 2000s

| Year | Program | Writer(s) | Network | Ref. |
| 2000 |
| 2000 | Freedom Song | Phil Alden Robinson and Stanley Weiser | TNT | |
| 2000 | Sally Hemings: An American Scandal "Part I" | Tina Andrews | CBS | |
| 2000 | If You Believe | Anthea Sylbert and Richard Romanus | Lifetime | |
| 2000 | The Truth About Jane | Lee Rose | Lifetime | |
| 2001 |
| 2001 | Conspiracy | Loring Mandel | HBO | |
| 2001 | Varian's War | Lionel Chetwynd | Showtime | |
| 2001 | 61* | Hank Steinberg | HBO | |
| 2001 | For Love or Country: The Arturo Sandoval Story | Timothy J. Sexton | HBO | |
| 2002 |
| 2002 | The Gathering Storm | Larry Ramin and Hugh Whitemore | HBO | |
| 2002 | Door to Door | William H. Macy and Steven Schachter | TNT | |
| 2002 | My Beautiful Son | Tim Kazurinsky | Showtime | |
| 2002 | Sins of the Father | John Pielmeier | FX | |
| 2003 |
| 2003 | And Starring Pancho Villa as Himself | Larry Gelbart | HBO | |
| 2003 | Julius Caesar | Peter Pruce and Craig Warner | TNT | |
| 2003 | Wilder Days | Jeff Stockwell | TNT | |
| 2003 | Taken "Beyond the Sky", "Jacob and Jesse" | Leslie Bohem | Sci-Fi Channel | |
| 2004 |
| 2004 | Something the Lord Made | Peter Silverman and Robert Caswell | HBO | |
| 2004 | Redemption: The Stan Tookie Williams Story | J.T. Allen | FX | |
| 2004 | Spinning Boris | Yuri Zeltser and Grace Cary Bickley | Showtime | |
| 2005 |
| 2005 | Warm Springs | Margaret Nagle | HBO | [29] [30] |
| 2005 | Dirt | Richard Guay and Nancy Savoca | Showtime | [29] [30] |
| 2005 | The Librarian: Quest for the Spear | David Titcher | TNT | [29] [30] |
| 2005 | The Reading Room | Randy Feldman | Hallmark Channel | [29] [30] |
| 2006 |
| 2006 | Flight 93 | Nevin Schreiner | A&E | [31] [32] |
| 2006 | Broken Trail | Alan Geoffrion | AMC | [31] [32] |
| 2006 | The Ron Clark Story | Annie deYoung and Max Enscoe | TNT | [31] [32] |
| 2007 |
| 2007 | Pandemic | Bryce Zabel and Jackie Zabel | Hallmark Channel | [33] [34] |
| 2007 | The Lost Room | Christopher Leone, Laura Harkcom and Paul Workman | Syfy Channel | [33] [34] |
| 2008 |
| 2008 | Recount | Danny Strong | HBO | [35] [36] |
| 2008 | An American Crime | Tommy O'Haver | Showtime | [35] [36] |
| 2008 | Fringe "Pilot" | J. J. Abrams, Alex Kurtzman and Roberto Orci | Fox | [35] [36] |
| 2009 |
| 2009 | Georgia O’Keeffe | Michael Cristofer | Lifetime | [37] [38] |
| 2009 | Grey Gardens | Michael Sucsy and Patricia Rozema | HBO | [37] [38] |
| 2009 | Pedro | Dustin Lance Black and Paris Barclay | MTV | [37] [38] |

### 2010s

| Year | Program | Writer(s) | Network | Ref. |
| 2010 |
| 2010 | The Special Relationship | Peter Morgan | HBO | [39] [40] |
| 2010 | You Don't Know Jack | Adam Mazer | HBO | [39] [40] |
| 2011 |
| 2011 | Cinema Verite | David Seltzer | HBO | |
| 2011 | Five | Deirdre O'Connor, Stephen Godchaux, Howard Morris, Jill Gordon, Wendy West | Lifetime | |
| 2012 |
| 2012 | Hatfields & McCoys "Part 2", "Part 3" | Bill Kerby, Ted Mann, and Ronald Parker | History | |
| 2012 | Hemingway & Gellhorn | Jerry Stahl and Barbara Turner | HBO | |
| 2012 | Political Animals "Pilot" | Greg Berlanti | USA | |
| 2013 |
| 2013 | Not awarded | Not awarded | Not awarded | |
| 2014 |
| 2014 | Deliverance Creek | Melissa Carter | Lifetime | |
| 2014 | Return to Zero | Sean Hanish | Lifetime | |
| 2015 |
| 2015 | Saints & Strangers | Seth Fisher, Walon Green, Chip Johannessen, and Eric Overmyer | Nat Geo | |
| 2015 | American Horror Story: Hotel | Brad Falchuk, John J. Gray, Todd Kubrak, Crystal Liu, Ned Martel, Tim Minear, Ryan Murphy, Jennifer Salt, and James Wong | FX | |
| 2015 | Flesh and Bone | Bronwyn Garrity, Jami O'Brien, Adam Rapp, Moira Walley-Beckett, and David Wiener | Starz | |
| 2015 | Sons of Liberty | Stephen David, Kirk Ellis, and David C. White | History | |
| 2016 | | | | |
| 2016 | Confirmation | Susannah Grant | HBO | |
| 2016 | American Crime | Julie Hébert, Sonay Hoffman, Keith Huff, Stacy A. Littlejohn, Kirk A. Moore, Davy Perez and Diana Son | ABC | |
| 2016 | Harley and the Davidsons | Seth Fisher, Nick Schenk and Evan Wright | Discovery Channel | |
| 2016 | Surviving Compton: Dre, Suge & Michel'le | Dianne Houston | Lifetime | |
| 2017 | | | | |
| 2017 | Flint | Barbara Stepansky | Lifetime | |
| 2017 | American Horror Story: Cult | Brad Falchuk, John J. Gray, Joshua Green, Todd Kubrak, Crystal Liu, Ned Martel, Tim Minear, Ryan Murphy, Adam Penn and James Wong | FX | |
| 2017 | Feud: Bette and Joan | Jaffe Cohen, Sonay Hoffman, Tim Minear, Ryan Murphy, Gina Welch and Michael Zam | FX | |
| 2017 | Godless | Scott Frank | Netflix | |
| 2017 | Manhunt: Unabomber | Jim Clemente, Tony Gittelson, Max Hurwitz, Steven Katz, Nick Schenk, Andrew Sodroski and Nick Towne | Discovery | |
| 2018 |
| 2018 | Castle Rock | Marc Bernardin, Scott Brown, Lila Byock, Mark Lafferty, Sam Shaw, Dustin Thomason, Gina Welch and Vinnie Wilhelm | Hulu | |
| 2018 | My Dinner with Hervé | Sacha Gervasi and Sean Macaulay | HBO | |
| 2018 | Paterno | Debora Cahn and John C. Richards | HBO | |
| 2019 |
| 2019 | Chernobyl | Craig Mazin | HBO | |
| 2019 | True Detective | Nic Pizzolatto, David Milch, Alessandra DiMona, Graham Gordy and Gabriel Hobson | HBO | |
| 2019 | The Terror: Infamy | Max Borenstein, Naomi Iizuka, Tony Tost, Alexander Woo, Alessandra DiMona, Shannon Goss, Steven Hanna, Benjamin Klein and Danielle Roderick | AMC | |
| 2019 | Togo | Tom Flynn | Disney+ | |

### 2020s

| Year | Program | Writer(s) | Network |
| 2020 |
| 2020 | Mrs. America | Tanya Barfield, Joshua Allen Griffith, Sharon Hoffman, Boo Killebrew, Micah Schraft, April Shih, Dahvi Waller | FX |
| 2020 | Dirty John: The Betty Broderick Story | Aaron Carew, Alexandra Cunningham, Lex Edness, Kevin J. Hynes, Juliet Lashinsky-Revene, Stacy A. Littlejohn, Katherine B. McKenna | USA Network |
| 2020 | Hollywood | Ian Brennan, Janet Mock, Ryan Murphy, Reilly Smith | Netflix |
| 2020 | Safety | Nick Santora | Disney+ |
| 2020 | Uncle Frank | Alan Ball | Amazon |
| 2021 |
| 2021 | Mare of Easttown | Brad Ingelsby | HBO |
| 2021 | American Horror Story: Double Feature | Brad Falchuk, Manny Coto, Ryan Murphy, Kristen Reidel, Reilly Smith | FX |
| 2021 | The White Lotus | Mike White | HBO |
| 2021 | Midnight Mass | James Flanagan, Mike Flanagan, Elan Gale, Jeff Howard, Dani Parker | Netflix |
| 2021 | Them: Covenant | Christina Ham, Little Marvin, David Matthews, Dominic Orlando, Seth Zvi Rosenfeld, Francine Volpe | Prime Video |