On winning the Best Actress in a Drama Series award for Shogun at the Primetime Emmys on Sunday, Anna Sawai has become the first Asian actor to win an award in the category. Other contenders in her category were Jennifer Aniston for The Morning Show, Carrie Coon for The Gilded Age, Maya Erskine for Mr and Mrs Smith, Imelda Staunton for The Crown, and Reese Witherspoon for The Morning Show.
On receiving the awards, Sawai paid tribute to her mother, who was her inspiration, and the entire Shogun team. “Thank you, John Landgraf and the whole FX team, for believing in our story. Thank you, Justin and Rachel, for believing in me and giving me this role of a lifetime,” she said. “Lastly, thank you to my team and thank you to my family. Mom, I love you. You are the reason I’m here. You showed me stoicism, and that’s how I was able to portray it. This is to all the women who expect nothing and continue to be an example for everyone,” Sawai concluded.
While she has previously starred in Pachinko, Monarch, and Giri/Haji, this is Sawai's first Emmy nomination as well as award. Shogun became the most-nominated series of this year's Emmy, receiving 25 nominations. Based on James Clavell's novel of the same name, which draws from Japan's rich history, the story features Sawai as Toda Mariko, a noblewoman who finds herself at the centre of a looming civil war. As tensions rise among Japan's powerful council of regents, Mariko's pivotal role becomes crucial in shaping the nation's destiny.
Initially conceived as a limited series, FX reversed course and opted to pursue additional seasons of Shogun. Following the network's decision to submit the show for drama series awards consideration in May, FX announced a partnership with the Clavell estate and series creators Justin Marks and Rachel Kondo to develop seasons two and three.