Emmys spotlight: Anna Sawai gives a star-making performance in ‘Shōgun’
“Shōgun” is a miracle of a TV show. Not only does it capture its audiences’ attention with its complex plot threads and painstaking world-building, but it also delivers career-best work from every single one of its cast members. In fact, the FX series may just launch several careers into stardom, including that of Anna Sawai.
Rachel Kondo and Justin Marks adapted James Clavell‘s 1975 historical novel about competitors trying to wrestle and scheme their way into controlling the five Regents of end-of-16th century Japan. Sawai stars as Toda Mariko, a highborn woman who has loyalty to Hiroyuki Sanada‘s Lord Yoshii Toranaga. Mariko, who has been given much more agency in this edition than she possessed in the original 1980 miniseries, is a Catholic convert who acts as a translator between Toranaga and Cosmo Jarvis‘ English sailor, John Blackthorne.
Sawai proves what a wonderful actress she is here, possessing grace, poise, strength, and spirit in the show’s leading female role. Critics agree that this ingenue delivers a star-making turn here.
Brandon Yu (The Wrap) opined: “The breakout star, though, is Anna Sawai as Mariko, Blackthorne’s translator and a sort of right-hand to Toranaga, a meaty and sometimes unwieldy role that Sawai embodies with grace.”
Kristen Baldwin (Entertainment Weekly) observed: “In the 1980 miniseries, Mariko (portrayed by the luminous Yoko Shimada) was generally soft-spoken and submissive; here, Sawai (‘Pachinko’) plays her with the steely strength and spirited temper befitting a more modern audience.”
Belen Edwards (Mashable) proclaimed: “Sawai cements herself as a major star to watch in her role as Mariko, a part which requires her to balance years’ worth of inner turmoil with the need to remain poised for the outside world. She delivers on every count.”
As a result, we are predicting Sawai to secure a career-first Emmy nomination and pick up a bid for Best TV Movie/Limited Series Actress alongside Jodie Foster (“True Detective: Night Country”), Brie Larson (“Lessons in Chemistry”), Kate Winslet (“The Regime”), Juno Temple (“Fargo”), and Sofia Vergara (“Griselda”).
Emmy voters love to recognize breakout roles in this category. Recent such nominees include Ali Wong (“Beef”), Lizzy Caplan (“Fleishman is in Trouble”), Riley Keough (“Daisy Jones & the Six”), Dominique Fishback (“Swarm”), Margaret Qualley (“Maid”), and Shira Haas (“Unorthodox”).
They also love leading ladies in historical dramas. Recent such nominees include Michelle Dockery (“Godless”), Jessica Lange and Susan Sarandon (“Feud: Bette and Joan”), Emma Thompson (“Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street”), Nicole Kidman (“Hemingway & Gelhorn”), and Elizabeth McGovern (“Downton Abbey”).
“Shōgun” explores Japanese culture and identity in a way that few other shows (well, ones available to US audiences) have done. Shows that intelligently explore cultures and identities are now getting a lot of recognition, as do their performances. Some examples include Haas in “Unorthodox,” Cate Blanchett in “Mrs. America,” and Queen Latifah in “Bessie.”
Sawai stands out in “Shōgun,” giving a powerful leading lady performance in a sea of men. This could help her be noticed by Emmy voters in the same way that Jennifer Jason Leigh was acknowledged by Oscar voters for her supporting turn in Quentin Tarantino‘s “The Hateful Eight,” which featured Leigh as the only leading lady in a cast full of men.
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