Anna Sawai revealed that when she was on Shōgun, her character was forced to have her legs bound by fabric, which made it hard for her to walk.

Anna Sawai’s performance in Shōgun has brought her more than a little attention. Although she was not the protagonist, the way that Lady Mariko became an integral part of the story made her shine from the confines of a side character. Her performance was convincing, to say the least. Embodying the character in ways few thought possible, it is safe to say that audiences were impressed.

Anna Sawai as Toda Mariko | Credit: FX.

When it comes to acting in a period piece, actors have to take some extreme measures to make sure everything is era-appropriate. While sometimes these practices can be fun, often they can be quite tiring and challenging. During an interview, Sawai revealed the one extreme measure that she had to take to embrace the 1600s.

Shōgun A Little Too Era-Accurate

During an interview with The Standard, Anna Sawai talked about what was the challenging thing for her to do when she was playing the role of Lady Mariko. In Shōgun, she is a highborn lady with grace like no other. This required the actress to constantly wear luxurious kosodes which were adorned with the most beautiful patterns and colors.

Sawai as Toda Mariko in Shōgun | Credit: FX.

While they looked magnificent from the outside, it would seem that the series took its era-accuracy a little too seriously. Sawai revealed that after being cast in the series, she found out quite an interesting detail about the clothing she would be wearing.

I had to learn how to walk. Back in the day, women didn’t wear underwear, so the kimono is wrapped around your legs and the women had to keep their knees together when they walked.

Hiroyuki Sanada and Anna Sawai in the series | Credits: FX
The actress found out that women in those times did not wear underwear and instead tied their kimonos snuggly around their legs. Due to the nature of her role, she was forced to follow in a similar direction.

Anna Sawai’s Walking Nightmare

From how Anna Sawai described it, it seemed that the fabric of her clothing was tied quite tightly around her legs to give the proper look. While it looked absolutely magnificent, there was one thing that caused quite a hindrance to her performance.

Sawai in Shōgun | Credit: FX

The tightness of the fabric around her legs made it so that her knees were bound together. Due to this, the actress found it extremely difficult to walk, something her character did quite frequently. Over time, she had to learn how to do simple tasks like sitting, standing, and moving around in her clothing, which proved to be quite an interesting experience for her.

I had to learn how to walk, how to sit, how to stand – it’s so hard to stand gracefully, I wish people could try it.

Although many would not want anyone to experience anything similar to what Sawai went through, the actress expressed that she wanted to try the experience out.