Sandra Oh is First Asian Female Nominated For Best Lead Actress at the Emmy Awards
Hollywood actress Sandra Oh has made history as the first Asian woman to be nominated an Emmy Award for Lead Actress in a Drama.
Her headlining role in BBC America‘s TV drama Killing Eve earned her the nomination, making her the first person of Asian descent to be nominated in the category since the award show began 70 years ago!
Viola Davis was the first African American to win in the category for her role in How to Get Away With Murder in 2015, and last year Donald Glover made history as the first black person to win an Emmy for directing his comedy series Atlanta
Born to Korean in the Ottawa suburb of Nepean, Ontario, Canada to father, Oh Junsu, a businessman, and her mother, Oh Young-nam, a biochemist, Sandra Oh attended Sir Robert Borden High School in Nepean, Ontario and began her career as a ballet dancer, eventually studying drama at the National Theatre School in Montreal. Sandra was a member of a National Champion Canadian Improv Team at The Canadian Improv Games in the late nineties.
She built her career on stage starting first as a ballet dancer before leaping into acting, both at a young age. She starred in a London (Ontario) stage production of David Mamet’s “Oleanna” and appeared as the title character in the Canadian television production The Diary of Evelyn Lau (1994), beating out over 1,000 applicants.
According to the screen diva, “I did not start acting until I was 10. I started dancing when I was four, though. My parents were not the ones who brought me to acting. I brought myself, and when I found it, I could never go back. I was very fortunate because although I loved dance [ballet] with all my heart, I knew I was not good enough to be a professional dancer. I knew I loved performing. Still, nothing beats being on stage for me; I prefer the stage.”
Sandra who speaks fluent Korean, English, French and Spanish has starred in several movies. She played a pregnant woman in three films: Under the Tuscan Sun (2003) with Diane Lane, Cake (2005) with Heather Graham and Last Night (1998) with Don McKellar.
In Under the Tuscan Sun (2003) her girlfriend was played by Kate Walsh, who went on to co-star with her in Grey’s Anatomy (2005). Coincidentally, Kate also played a doctor in the film.
She has the distinction of playing two characters that co-exist in Armistead Maupin’s fictional universe. In Further Tales of the City (2001), she played a bitchy newswoman who complicated “DeDe Day”‘s mission to protect her twins, Anna and Edgar. In The Night Listener (2006), she portrays an adult “Anna Day”.
In Dancing at the Blue Iguana (2000) her character came from Seattle, Washington, to work in Southern California. In Grey’s Anatomy (2005) her character came from Southern California to work in Seattle.
In Killing Eve, Sandra Oh plays Eve Polastri, a British intelligence agent who becomes fixated with the young female assassin she’s tracking. Her quirky character and the thrilling storyline captivated more than a million viewers during its first season run and has been renewed for a second season.
A focused, determined and disciplined person, Sandra’s fame did not come on a platter of gold. She actually worked hard to achieve her success and remains a strong point of reference in inspiration.
Her words; “I work very hard, sometimes too much, at my job because I love it so much. It is more than wonderful when all your hard work is noticed and honored by your peers and the industry. Winning the Golden Globe was one of the best moments of my life.”
Sandra Oh is not a newcomer to Emmy nominations. She was nominated five times during her 10-year run as Dr. Cristina Yang in ABC’s Grey’s Anatomy. But her latest nomination as a leading role is continuing a run of recognition for minority groups in entertainment.
Her list of awards includes the FIPA d’Or for Best Actress at the 1994 Festival International de Programmes Audiovisuels at Cannes, France, two Genie Awards (the Canadian Oscar), a Cable Ace Award, a Theatre World Award and a Screen Actors Guild Award. In 2003, she married writer-director Alexander Payne and their first film together was the Oscar-winning Sideways (2004). At the 2005 SAG awards she presented the award for actress in a TV comedy, to Teri Hatcher. At the 2006 Golden Globes, Hatcher presented the award for best supporting actress on TV to Oh, saying it was good to see her again.
Hollywood actress Sandra Oh has made history as the first Asian woman to be nominated an Emmy Award for Lead Actress in a Drama.
Her headlining role in BBC America‘s TV drama Killing Eve earned her the nomination, making her the first person of Asian descent to be nominated in the category since the award show began 70 years ago!
Viola Davis was the first African American to win in the category for her role in How to Get Away With Murder in 2015, and last year Donald Glover made history as the first black person to win an Emmy for directing his comedy series Atlanta
Born to Korean in the Ottawa suburb of Nepean, Ontario, Canada to father, Oh Junsu, a businessman, and her mother, Oh Young-nam, a biochemist, Sandra Oh attended Sir Robert Borden High School in Nepean, Ontario and began her career as a ballet dancer, eventually studying drama at the National Theatre School in Montreal. Sandra was a member of a National Champion Canadian Improv Team at The Canadian Improv Games in the late nineties.
She built her career on stage starting first as a ballet dancer before leaping into acting, both at a young age. She starred in a London (Ontario) stage production of David Mamet’s “Oleanna” and appeared as the title character in the Canadian television production The Diary of Evelyn Lau (1994), beating out over 1,000 applicants.
According to the screen diva, “I did not start acting until I was 10. I started dancing when I was four, though. My parents were not the ones who brought me to acting. I brought myself, and when I found it, I could never go back. I was very fortunate because although I loved dance [ballet] with all my heart, I knew I was not good enough to be a professional dancer. I knew I loved performing. Still, nothing beats being on stage for me; I prefer the stage.”
Sandra who speaks fluent Korean, English, French and Spanish has starred in several movies. She played a pregnant woman in three films: Under the Tuscan Sun (2003) with Diane Lane, Cake (2005) with Heather Graham and Last Night (1998) with Don McKellar.
In Under the Tuscan Sun (2003) her girlfriend was played by Kate Walsh, who went on to co-star with her in Grey’s Anatomy (2005). Coincidentally, Kate also played a doctor in the film.
She has the distinction of playing two characters that co-exist in Armistead Maupin’s fictional universe. In Further Tales of the City (2001), she played a bitchy newswoman who complicated “DeDe Day”‘s mission to protect her twins, Anna and Edgar. In The Night Listener (2006), she portrays an adult “Anna Day”.
In Dancing at the Blue Iguana (2000) her character came from Seattle, Washington, to work in Southern California. In Grey’s Anatomy (2005) her character came from Southern California to work in Seattle.
In Killing Eve, Sandra Oh plays Eve Polastri, a British intelligence agent who becomes fixated with the young female assassin she’s tracking. Her quirky character and the thrilling storyline captivated more than a million viewers during its first season run and has been renewed for a second season.
A focused, determined and disciplined person, Sandra’s fame did not come on a platter of gold. She actually worked hard to achieve her success and remains a strong point of reference in inspiration.
Her words; “I work very hard, sometimes too much, at my job because I love it so much. It is more than wonderful when all your hard work is noticed and honored by your peers and the industry. Winning the Golden Globe was one of the best moments of my life.”
Sandra Oh is not a newcomer to Emmy nominations. She was nominated five times during her 10-year run as Dr. Cristina Yang in ABC’s Grey’s Anatomy. But her latest nomination as a leading role is continuing a run of recognition for minority groups in entertainment.
Her list of awards includes the FIPA d’Or for Best Actress at the 1994 Festival International de Programmes Audiovisuels at Cannes, France, two Genie Awards (the Canadian Oscar), a Cable Ace Award, a Theatre World Award and a Screen Actors Guild Award. In 2003, she married writer-director Alexander Payne and their first film together was the Oscar-winning Sideways (2004). At the 2005 SAG awards she presented the award for actress in a TV comedy, to Teri Hatcher. At the 2006 Golden Globes, Hatcher presented the award for best supporting actress on TV to Oh, saying it was good to see her again.
Sandra Oh has been a spokesperson for diversity in Hollywood for years and has opened up about her own experience of being an Korean-Canadian actor.
“If you can be who you are, and be doing what you love, just being true to yourself – hopefully people can see themselves in you. They can see themselves reflected, and see the possibility that is hopefully there for them.”
Quite inspirational!
