Emmys 2024: Shōgun's Anna Sawai Scores Historic Win For Best Lead Actress In A Drama

The star of FX's historical epic Shōgun just made some history of her own.

Anna Sawai won the Emmy for best lead actress in a drama series at Sunday's ceremony, making her the first Japanese actress to win an Emmy. She was in tears as she accepted the award, but she admitted in her speech: "I was crying before my name was announced. I'm a mess today." She thanked the Shōgun cast and crew and her mother, offering a tribute to "the women who expect nothing and continue to be an example for everyone."

Sawai starred as Lady Mariko in the acclaimed drama set in feudal Japan and based on the James Clavell bestseller that also inspired a 1980 NBC miniseries. Mariko served as a translator for Hiroyuki Sanada's Lord Toranaga, serving as a bridge between Toranaga and shipwrecked English sailor John Blackthorne, played by Cosmo Jarvis. (Check out our conversation with Sawai about Mariko's pivotal Episode 9.)

Shōgun earned 25 Emmy nominations this year, the most of any show, including nods for best drama series, best lead actor for Sanada (who also won) and best supporting actor for co-stars Tadanobu Asano and Takehiro Hira. The show already won 14 Emmys in technical categories in last week's Creative Arts Emmys, with wins for best costumes, cinematography and editing, among others.

This was Sawai's first career Emmy nomination, following roles on Apple TV+'s Pachinko and Monarch: Legacy of Monsters. She won her first major award for Shōgun back in July at the annual Television Critics Association Awards, taking home the prize for individual achievement in drama.