LOS ANGELES, Sept 18, 2018 (BSS/AFP) – Welsh actor Matthew Rhys on Monday
took home the Emmy for best actor in a drama series for his role in FX’s Cold
War spy thriller “The Americans” — a big win for the critically acclaimed
show in its final season.
Some industry pundits have called it the “Jon Hamm factor,” as both actors
won their lone Emmys for defining roles in their final year of eligibility.
Rhys bested a tough field that included last year’s winner Sterling K.
Brown (“This is Us”), Ed Harris (“Westworld”), Milo Ventimiglia (“This is
Us”), Jeffrey Wright (“Westworld”) and Jason Bateman (“Ozark”).
“Parts like these come along so rarely,” Rhys told the audience at the
Microsoft Theater in Los Angeles, thanking show creator Joe Weisberg. “What
you created and risked, I will be forever in your debt.”
The 43-year-old Rhys starred for six seasons as Philip Jennings, part of a
husband-wife team of Soviet sleeper agents posing as Americans — and living
next door to an FBI agent.
“We had a cast and show we could only wish for in a fairy tale,” he said.
His now real-life partner, Keri Russell, plays his wife Elizabeth on the
show. She too was nominated for an Emmy, and he joked about what the job had
brought them.
Addressing Weisberg, he quipped: “Your good self not only gave me the part
and opportunity of a lifetime, you also gave me a son. I just hope the little
bugger is asleep.”
He thanked Russell, but explained that as opposed to the earlier on-air
proposal by Oscar director Glenn Weiss, “she said, ‘If you propose to me,
I’ll punch you clean in the mouth'” — a distinct possibility, given her
fighting chops seen on the show.
Until Monday’s gala, “The Americans” had only won two Emmys — both for
guest actress Margo Martindale, who plays the spy couple’s handler Claudia.
But now they have four, as Weisberg and Joel Fields also won a statuette
for outstanding drama writing.
Rhys, a native of Cardiff, was trained at the Royal Academy of Dramatic
Art in London.
He first came to the attention of US viewers when he starred alongside
Sally Field in ABC’s family drama “Brothers and Sisters.”
Other notable roles include a turn in last year’s journalism drama “The
Post,” in which he played Daniel Ellsberg, the man who released the Pentagon
Papers to The New York Times, The Washington Post and other papers.
Upcoming projects include “Mowgli,” a live-action film based on “The
Jungle Book,” and thriller “The Torture Report.”