The renewal was anticipated and announced by lead actor/producer Hiroyuki Sanada who struck a deal to continue as Lord Yoshii Toranaga. Co-creators, executive producers and writers Justin Marks and Rachel Kondo and executive producer Michaela Clavell are also back on board.
For now, FX and streaming partner Hulu say they are working with the estate of Shōgun author James Clavell to develop two additional seasons.
There is no green light and a start date for production has not yet been set, but a writers' room is being assembled and will begin this summer. There's also no information on the source material, or whether the new seasons will stay within the Shōgun universe or also draw from the other books in Clavell's Asian Saga.
The news of Shōgun's return comes after the great commercial and critical success of the original ten-episode season. It also changes how Clavell's film adaptation is judged by the Emmys, with Shōgun moving from the limited series category to the drama series category.
Shōgun was six years in the making and spans multiple continents. It is FX's most expensive series to date. Ahead of the series' premiere, FX chairman John Landgraf said he hoped the series would do well so he and his team could make more big-budget, big-budget series.
In addition to critical acclaim, Shōgun racked up 9 million views worldwide in its first six days on Hulu, Disney+ and Star+, becoming the company's No. 1 overall entertainment series internationally. Viewer interest remained strong and after its first nine weeks, Shōgun is FX's most-watched series ever based on hours streamed worldwide.
The original part of Shōgun is set in Japan in the year 1600 at the beginning of a centuries-long civil war. Lord Yoshii Toranaga fights for his life as his enemies in the Council of Regents unite against him.
When a mysterious European ship is found in a nearby fishing village, the English pilot, John Blackthorne (Cosmo Jarvis), comes up with secrets that could help Toranaga tilt the balance of power and reveal the formidable influence of Blackthorne's own enemies - the Jesuit priests and Portuguese merchants - to destroy.
The adventures of Toranaga and Blackthorne become inextricably linked to their translator, Toda Mariko (Anna Sawai), a mysterious Christian noblewoman and the last of a disgraced family. As she serves her lord in this fraught political landscape, Mariko must reconcile her newfound friendship with Blackthorne with her devotion to the faith that saved her and her duty to her late father.
The first season features a Japanese cast, including Tadanobu Asano as Kashigi Yabushige, a notorious villain and close ally of Toranaga; Hiroto Kanai as Kashigi Omi, the young leader of the fishing village where Blackthorne's ship is found; Takehiro Hira as Ishido Kazunari, a powerful bureaucrat who is Toranaga's greatest rival and Moeka Hoshi as Usami Fuji, a widow who must find new purpose amid her lord's struggles.
Other roles include Tokuma Nishioka as Toda Hiromatsu, Toranaga's trusted general and best friend; Shinnosuke Abe as Toda Hirokatsu (Buntaro), Mariko's jealous husband; Yuki Kura as Yoshii Nagakado, Toranaga's brutal son with a strong desire to prove himself; Yuka Kouri as Kiku, a courtesan known throughout Japan for her arts; and Fumi Nikaido as Ochiba no Kata, the respected mother of the heir who will do anything to put an end to Toranaga and his threat to her son's power.
The series is produced by FX Productions.
Comments (0)