FX’s ‘Shogun’ could match Emmy success of original 1980 NBC miniseries

Christopher Tsang
·5 min read
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Since its premiere on February 27, FX on Hulu’s “Shōgun” has become one of the most popular limited series of this Emmy cycle. Based on James Clavell’s 1975 titular novel, the historical series created by Rachel Kondo and Justin Marks revolves around an English sailor (Cosmo Jarvis) shipwrecked in Japan at the start of the 17th century in the midst of political upheaval surrounding a powerful daimyō (Hiroyuki Sanada) and a samurai (Anna Sawai) torn between her loyalty and faith. With the series already midway through its run and receiving critical acclaim and awards attention, let’s re-examine NBC’s original 1980 miniseries — which garnered 14 Emmy nominations and three wins –- to determine potential categories for the current program.

Here are the 1981 Emmy nominations and wins for the first “Shōgun” television adaptation:

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Best Limited Series (WON)
James Clavell, Executive Producer
Eric Bercovici, Producer

Best Movie/Limited Actor
Richard Chamberlain as John Blackthorne

Best Movie/Limited Actor
Toshiro Mifune as Lord Yoshi Toranaga

Best Movie/Limited Actress
Yoko Shimada as Lady Toda Buntaro “Mariko”

Best Movie/Limited Supporting Actor
Yūki Meguro as Kashigi Omi

Best Movie/Limited Supporting Actor
John Rhys-Davies as Vasco Rodrigues

Best Movie/Limited Writing (“Episode 5”)
Eric Bercovici, Written by

Best Movie/Limited Directing (“Episode 5”)
Jerry London, Directed by

Best Movie/Limited Cinematography (“Episode 4”)
Andrew Laszlo, A.S.C., Director of Photography

Best Movie/Limited Picture Editing (“Episode 5”)
Donald R. Rode, Editor
Benjamin A. Weissman, Editor
Jerry Young, Editor
Bill Luciano, Editor

Best Main Title Design (“Episode 1”) (WON)
Phill Norman, Title Designer

Best Series Costumes (“Episode 5”) (WON)
Shin Nishida, Costume Designer

Best Movie/Limited Art Direction (“Episode 5”)
Joseph R. Jennings, Art Director
Yoshinobu Nishioka, Production Designer
Tom Pedigo, Set Decorator
Shoichi Yasuda, Set Decorator

Best Achievement in Film Sound Editing (“Episode 3”)
Stanley Paul, Sound Editor
William M. Andrews, Sound Editor
Leonard Corso, Sound Editor
Dennis Dutton, Sound Editor
Jack A. Finlay, Sound Editor
Robert Gutknecht, Sound Editor
Sean Hanley, Sound Editor
Pierre Jalbert, Sound Editor
Jack Keath, Sound Editor
Alan L. Nineberg, Sound Editor
Lee Osborne, Sound Editor
Tally Paulos, Sound Editor

SEE‘Shōgun’ review round-up: FX limited series is a ‘genuine masterpiece’

NBC’s “Shōgun” also won a Peabody Award and swept the Golden Globe drama categories, claiming Best TV Drama and lead categories for Chamberlain and Simada. It is highly possible that the 2024 historical fiction series could easily repeat the Emmy bids it got in 1981, particularly the top program category and lead acting mentions for Sanada, Jarvis and Sawai – presuming all of them are submitted in lead. The supporting categories are also more of a possibility with Hiroto Kanai and Nestor Carbonell portraying the roles that gave Meguro and Rhys-Davies their respective Emmy noms, but there are also actors like Tadanobu Asano, Takehiro Hira, Tommy Bastow and Fumi Nikaido who could receive recognition depending on how the rest of the season plays out and if the show really takes off.

In terms of the non-acting categories, the 1980 series was cited for its final episode in writing and directing, so it seems likely that one of the later episodes could be in contention for both categories. However, it is also dependent on how many episodes are submitted for each, since every episode has a different writer and director attached to it and the showrunners only penned the first two installments. As far as the technical races, it would be safe to say that the show has a shot in all aforementioned categories, and maybe even more if it does well, such as casting, hairstyling, music (one of the composers is Emmy and Oscar winner Atticus Ross), sound mixing and special visual effects – some of these categories did not exist four decades ago.

SEE‘Shōgun’ final trailer: ‘Enemies are everywhere and friends nowhere’ [WATCH]

Best Limited Series is a supremely crowded field with the return of many anthologies like “Fargo,” “True Detective: Night Country,” “Feud: Capote vs. The Swans,” “Black Mirror” and “Genius: MLK/X,” along with original programs like “Lessons in Chemistry,” “The Regime,” “The Sympathizer,” “Masters of the Air,” “Fellow Travelers,” “Griselda” and “Ripley” that “Shōgun” will have to compete with. But as we have seen from past years at the Emmys and with the popular voting system, voters will check off a program in multiple categories if they really respond to it, and the series looks to be a huge contender if it can maintain its buzz throughout the rest of its airing time frame.

As it currently stands in the combined Gold Derby odds, “Shōgun” is in fourth place (behind “Fargo,” “Lessons in Chemistry” and “True Detective: Night Country” in descending order) to win the Best Limited Series category with 7/1 odds and 822 users predicting a mention and 173 forecasting a win, including two Editors and one Expert. It will be exciting to see how the rest of the series goes and whether its Emmy tally can live up to its predecessor.

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