The subtitle barrier in the United States has been definitively lifted: despite its numerous dialogues in Japanese, the series Shogun triumphed at the Emmy Awards on Sunday, winning best drama series and a record number of awards at the ceremony.
This adaptation of James Clavell’s novel, which explores power struggles in 17th-century Japan, won 18 trophies at the American television equivalent of the Oscars.
It became the first non-English series to win the top award and also received the prize for best direction. Its screenwriter Justin Marks highlighted the creative gamble made by the FX channel and its owner Disney with this project.
“You have validated a very expensive, subtitled Japanese period series, the climax of which takes place around a poetry competition,” he praised.
“A dream project where East meets West”
The soap opera’s star, Hiroyuki Sanada, won the Emmy for best actor. “It was a dream project where East meets West,” said the Japanese actor, who plays a master strategist.
Her co-star Anna Sawai, who was remarkable as the daughter of a fallen samurai who converted to Catholicism, was voted best actress. It was “the role of a lifetime,” she thanked, very moved.
South Korean productions ParasiteOscar winner for best picture in 2020, and Squid Game, which won multiple Emmys in 2022, had paved the way. Shogun’s victory confirms that American audiences can now praise a foreign-language series, with a different cultural prism.
About 70% of the dialogue is in Japanese and the hero of the novel, an English sailor stranded in the Japanese archipelago, quickly fades into the background in the series, to the benefit of court intrigues and the murderous rivalries of the shogunate.
Hacks wins against The Bear
In other drama categories, Elizabeth Debicki was voted best supporting actress, thanks to her portrayal of Princess Diana in the final season of The Crownthe saga about the British royal family.
The HBO series Hacks She created a surprise by winning the Emmy for best comedy, against the big favorite The Bear: eat in or take away.
The comic springs of Hacks are based on an unlikely duo between an aging American stand-up star, played by Jean Smart, and a young comedian tasked with renewing his jokes, played by Hannah Einbinder.
The series won an award for its third season’s script, and Jean Smart was voted best actress. “It’s a very humbling experience, really. I appreciate it because I don’t get enough attention, seriously,” the 73-year-old actress thanked her.
Deprived of the major prize, The Bear nevertheless garnered a shower of trophies for its casting, thanks to its grueling dive into the back kitchen of a Chicago restaurant in search of a star.
My little reindeer best mini-series
Jeremy Allen White and Ebon Moss-Bachrach, who play childhood friends turned chef and maître d’, won best actor and best supporting actor respectively for the second year in a row. Liza Colon-Zayas, who plays a gruff cook, won best supporting actress.
The evening also rewarded the Netflix phenomenon My little reindeer as best mini-series, a category reserved for single-season soap operas.
The story of a London bartender harassed by a woman with mental illness, this series, presented as a “true story”, is based on the misadventures of its author, Scottish comedian Richard Gadd. He was voted best actor in the category and also received the award for best screenplay.
The series, which came out of nowhere, proved that “the one constant in all successful television is good storytelling. A good story that speaks to our times,” said Richard Gadd, wearing a kilt on stage. “So take risks, push the boundaries, explore the uncomfortable.”
Emmy Award for Jodie Foster
Jessica Gunn, who plays his on-screen stalker, won the award for best supporting actress. In real life, the British actress who is said to have inspired this character was trolled on social media and filed a defamation suit against Netflix. She is seeking $170 million in damages.
Mini-series also include anthologies – serials that keep the same theme but change characters and setting each season.
In this respect, the fourth version of True Detective allowed Jodie Foster to win the award for best actress. The actress plays a relentless investigator in the polar night of Alaska. At 61, she had two Oscars, but had never won an Emmy.
- BFMTV.com
