Anna Sawai just made history at the 2024 Emmy Awards!
The 32-year-old actress was nominated for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series for her work on Shogun, her first Emmy nomination, and she won.
Prior to the night, the show already made TV awards history with 14 wins at the Creative Arts Emmys, and Anna‘s win continued to contribute to the history-making series!
Keep reading to find out more…
Anna became the very first actor of Asian descent to win the Emmy for Outstanding Lead Actress after being only the second nominee, following Sandra Oh, who was nominated four times for Killing Eve.
“Thank you to the Academy for naming me alongside my fellow nominees whose work I grew up watching and I love,” she said in her acceptance speech. “Thank you to John Landgraf and the whole FX team for believing in our story. Thank you Justin [Marks] and Rachel [Kondo] for believing in me and giving me this role of a lifetime. Thank you to every single one of the crew and cast, lead by Hiro [Sanada]. He really has opened doors and continues to open doors for people like me. Thank you so much. Cosmo [Jarvis], you are the most honest and truthful and no B.S. actor I know and you made me give my 120%.”
“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 Toda Mariko. This is to all the women who expect nothing and continue to be an example for everyone. Thank you so much,” she added.
At the Primetime Emmys that night, Shogun also picked up the awards for Outstanding Drama Series, Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series for Hiroyuki Sanada and Outstanding Directing for a Drama Series for Frederick E. O. Toye.