Will the Emmys be the 'Shogun' show? What to expect from Sunday's show

The Emmys have become the “Shogun” show well before Sunday’s ceremony even begins.

The FX series about political machinations among local lords, Portuguese traders and a wandering British sailor is already the winningest series for a single season in Emmy history after taking 14 trophies at the precursor Creative Arts ceremony on Sunday.

The main Emmys show could not only extend its lead — it could bring historic wins for its lead actors.

Here's a look at the 76th Primetime Emmy Awards, which will be held Sunday night at the Peacock Theater in Los Angeles, hosted by Dan and Eugene Levy and airing on ABC.

“Shogun” could win six more trophies, including best drama series, best actor in a drama for Hiroyuki Sanada and best actress in a drama for Anna Sawai.

Though if it fails to win in the biggest categories, “Shogun” may end up feeling like a sports team that has a record-setting regular season then tanks in the playoffs.

Sanada, 63, is a revered veteran Japanese actor whose face may be familiar to most American viewers for films including “The Last Samurai" and “John Wick: Chapter 4” even if his name is not. He's favored by most experts to win best actor over more widely known performers including Gary Oldman, Donald Glover and Idris Elba.

Sawai, 32, even less known in the U.S., is in the same situation, favored over famous names like Jennifer Aniston — who had been considered a frontrunner for “The Morning Show” before the “Shogun” wave took shape — and her castmate Reese Witherspoon.

Either Sanada or Sawai would be the first Japanese actor to win an Emmy.

When “Shogun” led all Emmy nominees with 25 at the announcements in July, many — including The Associated Press — suggested it was at least in part because of the absence of last year's HBO big three: “Succession," “The White Lotus” and “The Last of Us.”

But its dominance at the Creative Arts ceremony put it in its own class. It wasn't just the number, it was the percentage. It won 14 of the 16 awards it was up for, getting snubbed only in two music categories. It won for its costumes, its hairdressing, its cinematography, its costumes, its casting and many more categories on its way to breaking the record of 13 Emmys set by the 2008 limited series “John Adams.”

When Néstor Carbonell won best guest actor in a drama and thanked the crew, he gleefully declared, “You're all here!" because the crowd was so full of people who worked on the show.

Possibly getting a whiff of the golden possibilities, the makers of “Shogun” shifted from the limited series to the more prestigious drama category in May at the expense of competitors like “The Crown," which might have been getting a coronation for its final season. The Netflix series is considered the only significant competitor for “Shogun.” Elizabeth Debicki is very likely to win for playing Princess Diana, and Imelda Staunton could take the best actress trophy from Sawai for playing Queen Elizabeth.

But it would truly be a stunner if “The Crown” won its second best drama series Emmy this year.

“The Bear,” which led all comedies with 23 nominations, could well have been the darling of these Emmys after tying “Succession” with six wins at the previous ceremony, held in January because of Hollywood's strikes.

Its placement in the comedy category — mocked by some for a show with more drama than many dramas — will be a major perk this time amid the “Shogun” dominance.

The FX show's second season — which this year's nominations are for — was even more acclaimed than its first, and even though its recently released third season was received more coolly, it could easily see repeat acting wins for Jeremy Allen White, Ebon Moss-Bachrach and Ayo Edebiri, who will face somewhat stiffer competition after a shift from supporting actress to lead.

While “Shogun” and “The Bear” may lack household names, there are truly major stars who are potential winners at these Emmys, several of them Oscar winners.

Two-time Academy Award winner Jodie Foster is a good bet to win her first Emmy as best actress in a limited or anthology series or TV movie for playing a hot-tempered cold-weather cop in “True Detective: Night Country."

Meryl Streep could end up with more Emmys than Oscars if she wins her fourth for best supporting actress in a comedy for “Only Murders in the Building.”

Reigning best supporting actor Oscar winner Robert Downey Jr. could also become a first-time Emmy winner. He's up for best supporting actor in the limited series category for playing five different roles in “The Sympathizer.”

Academy Award winners Gary Oldman and Brie Larson are also among the nominees, and one Oscar winner, Jamie Lee Curtis, already won an Emmy for her guest role on “The Bear.”

Old Emmy constants will also be featured. Aniston is a 10-time Emmy nominee who only won once during her time on “Friends.”

Jon Hamm is up for acting Emmys for both “The Morning Show” and “Fargo.” He's an 18-time nominee who also only won once, for “Mad Men.”

An ABC awards show not hosted by Jimmy Kimmel? It's about to happen. And the father-son duo of Eugene and Dan Levy make plenty of sense as replacements.

The four-time Oscar host Kimmel emceed the last time ABC aired the show in 2020, and those “Pandemmies” were among the only successful awards shows of the pandemic era. The novelty of an empty theater, show's casts gathered together in remote locations, and a hazmat-suited representative comically handing out the trophies somehow worked.

The stars of that show were the cast members of the Levys' show “Schitt's Creek,” which swept the comedy categories including wins for best actor for Eugene Levy and best supporting actor for Dan.

The telecast still rotates between the four broadcast networks, even as they consistently fail to get nominations, much less wins, in the biggest categories. ABC's “Abbott Elementary" and NBC's “Saturday Night Live" have been the lone broadcast bright spots in recent years.

This image released by FX shows Ebon Moss-Bachrach, from left, Ayo Edebiri and Jeremy Allen White in a scene from "The Bear." (FX via AP)

This image released by FX shows Jeremy Allen White in a scene from "The Bear." (FX via AP)

This image released by FX shows Ayo Edebiri as Sydney Adamu in a scene from "The Bear." (FX via AP)

This image released by FX shows Hiroyuki Sanada in a scene from "Shogun." (Katie Yu/FX via AP)

This image released by Apple TV+ shows Billy Crudup, left, and Greta Lee in a scene from "The Morning Show." (Apple TV+ via AP)

This image released by Apple TV+ shows Jennifer Aniston in a scene from "The Morning Show." (Apple TV+ via AP)

This image released by FX shows Eita Okuno as Saeki Nobutatsu, from left, Anna Sawai as Toda Mariko, Hiromoto Ida as Kiyama Ukon Sadanaga in a scene from "Shogun." (Katie Yu/FX via AP)

This image released by FX shows Hiroyuki Sanada as Yoshii Toranaga, center, in a scene from "Shogun." (Katie Yu/FX via AP)

FILE - A view of the stage at the 71st Primetime Emmy Awards in Los Angeles, Sept. 22, 2019. (Photo by Chris Pizzello/Invision/AP, File)

FILE - Emmy statues appear on stage at the 70th Primetime Emmy nominations announcement in Los Angeles on July 12, 2018. (Photo by Chris Pizzello/Invision/AP, File)

This image released by FX shows Jon Hamm in a scene from "Fargo." (Michelle Faye/FX via AP)

This image released by Apple TV+ shows Jon Hamm in a scene from "The Morning Show." (Apple TV+ via AP)

This image released by FX shows Cosmo Jarvis, left, and Nestor Carbonell in a scene from "Shogun." (Katie Yu/FX via AP)

This image released by FX shows Anna Sawai as Toda Mariko in a scene from "Shogun." (Katie Yu/FX via AP)

This image released by Netflix shows Imelda Staunton as Queen Elizabeth in "The Crown." (Alex Bailey/Netflix via AP)

This image released by Netflix shows Elizabeth Debicki as Diana, Princess of Wales, in a scene from "The Crown." (Keith Bernstein/Netflix via AP)

This image released by Apple TV+ shows Gary Oldman in a scene from "Slow Horses." (Jack English/Apple TV+ via AP)

This image released by HBO shows Kali Reis, right, and Jodie Foster in a scene from "True Detective: Night Country." (HBO via AP)

Nestor Carbonell with the award for Outstanding Guest Actor in a Drama Series for Shogun attends night two of the Creative Arts Emmy Awards on Sunday, Sept. 8, 2024, in Los Angeles. (Photo by Richard Shotwell/Invision/AP)

From left, Brian J. Armstrong, Benjamin Cook, James Gallivan, John Creed, Mark Hailstone, Ken Cain, Melissa Muil, Matt Salib and Sanaa Kelley pose with the award for Outstanding Sound Editing for a Comedy or Drama Series (One-Hour) for Shogun during night two of the Creative Arts Emmy Awards on Sunday, Sept. 8, 2024, in Los Angeles. (Photo by Richard Shotwell/Invision/AP)

FILE - Eugene Levy, left, and Dan Levy appear at the 71st Primetime Emmy Awards in Los Angeles on Sept. 22, 2019. (Photo by Jordan Strauss/Invision/AP, File)

This image released by FX shows Hiroyuki Sanada in a scene from "Shogun." (Katie Yu/FX via AP)

The presidential campaign is moving forward after another apparent attempt on Donald Trump 's life. Trump was safe after the incident in Florida and praised the Secret Service for protecting him but didn't shy away from blaming his opponents. The Republican nominee claimed without evidence that President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris ' comment that is a threat to democracy had inspired the attempt on Sunday.

The man suspected in the incident, Ryan Wesley Routh, camped outside the golf course in West Palm Beach with food and a rifle for nearly 12 hours, according to court documents filed Monday. Additional and more serious charges are possible as the investigation continues and prosecutors seek an indictment from a grand jury.

Trump is expected to travel to Michigan while Harris will speak at a Black journalists forum in Pennsylvania.

Here is the Latest:

The election director in Cobb County, an Atlanta suburb where votes will be fiercely contested in this year’s presidential race, recently organized a five-hour training session. The focus wasn’t solely on the nuts and bolts of running this year’s election. Instead, it brought together election staff and law enforcement to strategize on how to keep workers safe and the process of voting and ballot-counting secure.

Having a local sheriff’s deputy at early voting locations and panic buttons that connect poll managers to a local 911 dispatcher are among the added security steps the office is taking this year.

Tate Fall, Cobb County’s election director, said she was motivated to act after hearing one of her poll workers describe being confronted during the state’s presidential primary in March by an agitated voter who the worker noticed was carrying a gun. The situation ended peacefully, but the poll worker was shaken.

▶ Read more about what officials are doing across the country

Florida law enforcement will launch a state-level criminal probe of the apparent assassination attempt on former President Donald Trump, Gov. Ron DeSantis said Tuesday.

DeSantis told reporters that the “suspect is believed to (backslash)have committed state law violations.” DeSantis’ announcement comes a day after Ryan Routh was charged with federal firearms crimes.

Routh did not fire any shots, never had Trump in his line of sight and sped away after an agent who spotted him shot in his direction, officials said. He was arrested in a neighboring county.

Tuesday is National Voter Registration Day and Democratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris and her running mate, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, are kicking off a week of action to encourage young voters in battleground states to sign up to vote in the Nov. 5 election.

Walz has events on Tuesday in Macon, Georgia, and Atlanta, followed by a rally in Asheville, North Carolina, while his wife, Gwen, appears in Las Vegas.

Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro and actor Jane Fonda are among a group of high-profile Harris supporters who are set to participate in the registration drive.

More than 130 voter registration events will be held on college campuses — at basketball tournaments, football games and more — in the handful of states where Harris and Walz and the Republican presidential ticket of former President Donald Trump and his running mate, Ohio Sen. JD Vance, are focusing their campaigns, the Harris-Walz campaign said.

The campaign will also have a presence at historically Black colleges and universities and Hispanic-serving institutions, including setting up kiosks to assist students with registration.

As he participated in an event on his X social media platform, Trump gave a shoutout to Elon Musk, saying the tech billionaire “endorsed me for president so strongly.”

Trump also called Musk his “friend,” commending his efforts on space travel in particular.

Musk deleted a post on X in which he said “no one is even trying to assassinate” Biden and Harris in the wake of the apparent assassination attempt on Trump.

Early Monday, after taking down the post about the apparent Trump assassination, Musk wrote on the platform: “Well, one lesson I’ve learned is that just because I say something to a group and they laugh doesn’t mean it’s going to be all that hilarious as a post on X.”

Musk, who has nearly 200 million followers on the social media site he bought for $44 billion in 2022, has increasingly embraced conservative ideologies in recent years and endorsed Trump for president.

Trump says the apparent attempt on his life was a “much better result” than when he was shot in July because no others were wounded or killed.

“That was some crazy day, and yesterday you had another one with a different result, actually much better result,” Trump said.

The host noted that some of Trump’s sons were in the room for the interview.

He and his friends playing golf “heard shots, being fired in the air, and I guess probably four or five.”

Trump said they got into carts “and we moved along pretty good.”

“I would have loved to have sank that last putt,” Trump said, of not being able to finish the round of golf.

Trump said an agent had seen a gun barrel “and started shooting in the bushes ... and ran toward the target.”

Trump also noted that a civilian woman in the area drove her vehicle to the back of Routh’s vehicle and took pictures of the license plate, which she then gave to authorities, who were able to track the suspect down.

Trump is participating in his first speaking appearance since the apparent assassination attempt on Sunday.

The former president is taking part in an X Space about the launch of World Liberty Financial, a crypto platform controlled by his sons Donald Jr. and Eric.

From his Mar-a-Lago home in Florida, Trump commended the Secret Service for doing an “excellent job.”

Farokh, the event’s host, began by applauding Trump for not canceling his appearance.

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis delivers remarks and answers questions at a news conference Monday, Sept. 16, 2024, in Orlando, Fla. (AP Photo/John Raoux)

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis arrives for a news conference in the aftermath of the apparent assassination attempt of Republican presidential nominee and former President Donald Trump Tuesday, Sept. 17, 2024, in West Palm Beach, Fla. (AP Photo/Lynne Sladky)

Jestin Nevarez, of Lake Worth, Fla., adjusts flags flying from his car as he shows support for Republican presidential nominee and former President Donald Trump outside of Trump's Mar-a-Lago estate, a day after an apparent assassination attempt, in Palm Beach, Fla., Monday, Sept. 16, 2024. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell)

Ryan Wesley Routh takes part in a rally in central Kyiv, Ukraine, Saturday, April 30, 2022. (AP Photo/Efrem Lukatsky)

In this image taken from police body camera video and released by the Martin County, Fla., Sheriff’s Office, law enforcement officers prepare to arrest Ryan Routh, the man suspected in the apparent assassination attempt of Donald Trump, Sunday, Sept. 15, 2024. (Martin County Sheriff’s Office via AP)

In this imaged released by the Martin County, Fla., Sheriff’s Office, law enforcement officers arrest Ryan Routh, the man suspected in the apparent assassination attempt of Donald Trump, Sunday, Sept. 15, 2024. (Martin County Sheriff’s Office via AP)

In this imaged released by the Martin County, Fla., Sheriff’s Office, law enforcement officers arrest Ryan Routh, the man suspected in the apparent assassination attempt of Donald Trump, Sunday, Sept. 15, 2024. (Martin County Sheriff’s Office via AP)

A Coast Guard boat patrols the Lake Worth Lagoon in front of the Mar-a-Lago estate of Republican presidential nominee and former President Donald Trump, one day after an apparent assassination attempt, in Palm Beach, Fla., Monday, Sept. 16, 2024. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell)

President Joe Biden, left, holds up the arm of Democratic presidential nominee Vice President Kamala Harris, right, while on stage at the Congressional Black Caucus Foundation's Phoenix Awards Dinner in Washington, Saturday, Sept. 14, 2024. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein)

Republican presidential nominee former President Donald Trump speaks at the Las Vegas Police Protective Association during a campaign stop, Saturday, Sept.14, 2024, in Las Vegas. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

Election 2024 Latest: Trump and Harris resume campaigning after apparent assassination attempt

Election 2024 Latest: Trump and Harris resume campaigning after apparent assassination attempt

Republican presidential nominee former President Donald Trump arrives at Harry Reid International Airport to board a plane after a campaign trip, Saturday, Sept.14, 2024, in Las Vegas. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)