Steven Prusakowski
The FX limited series Shōgun marks the return of event storytelling that once was a mainstay on TV decades ago. Back when there were far fewer networks massive mini-series productions brought in millions of viewers night after night to watch monumental come to life. It truly was must-see TV, partially because back then, due to the lack of DVRs and streaming services, if you missed it there was no telling when or if you would ever be able to watch it again.
One of the most popular of these mini-series events was 1980’s Shōgun starring Richard Chamberlain. Fast forward 44 years and the popular novel by James Clavell is being brought back to television screens in an immense 10-episode adaptation of which the scale alone demands your attention.
While no longer under the restrictions of the broadcast scheduling, this Shōgun remains must-see TV at its finest, an epic sweeping event with its grandiose scale, incredible production design and gripping stories of characters from across the globe brought into a mix of politics, warfare, romance, and discovery. In this retelling of Clavell’s story, there is one major difference that can be felt in every frame, the authenticity and accuracy that could only come through the involvement of Japanese cast and crew throughout every step of the production.
“It encompasses the breadth of his book in a very modern way,” said Clavell of this reimagining of her father’s book. “There’s the humor, there’s the love story, there’s the history, and then there’s the undercurrents below all of that – the questions that it raises about how to live and die well, that’s at the basis of Shōgun. I think that story is always worth telling.”
Shōgun is set in 1600s feudal Japan and follows John Blackthorne (Cosmo Jarvis), a shipwrecked English navigator taken in by a warlord, Lord Yoshi Toanaga (Hiroyuki Sanada) who is in a dangerous chess match with his rivals which may cost him his life. While in Toanaga care, his words are interpreted by the mysterious Lady Mariko (Anna Sawai). Blackthorne eventually embraces his new surroundings and becomes continuously more intertwined in their worlds, the political and romantic. The series is captivating, full of surprises and impossible to resist.
Awards Radar had the opportunity to speak with some of the people behind the new FX limited series including stars Anna Sawai (Monarch: Legacy of Monsters), Hiroyuki Sanada (The Last Samurai), Cosmo Jarvis, plus series was Co-Creators Rachel Kondo and Justin Marks, Executive Producer Michaela Clavell (daughter of the novel’s author) and Producer Eriko Miyagawa. (You can watch all the interviews in their entirety below.)
Not only did Sanada star in the series, he also took on the role of Producer, a role that gave him much more say in how this more dimensional story would be told, “The original version basically introduced Japanese culture through the Blackthorne’s blue eyes, but this time put more Japanese lenses in the script. More details and focus on the human drama with so many layers.” Sanada continued, “I thought this is a great chance to introduce our culture to the world. So we tried to make it authentic as much as possible.”
“It’s really taking it further and deeper than the original,” added Miyagawa, “by really introducing these Japanese characters and making them complex, but ultimately relatable through their humanity. That took a lot of process like many of us and Japanese lenses, Japanese people’s involvement and commenting on it, ultimately working with Japanese actors. It took layers and layers of process to get there, but I think that’s what we’re going for and hopefully that’s what we achieved.”
Sanada and Miyagawa certainly succeeded. It can be easy to get lost in the scale of the beautifully cinematic visuals which is made only more impressive by the granular level attention to detail seen in every costume and setting. But, what makes Shōgun so addictively engaging are tangled and intricate character relationships. It often feels like reading a page-turner book as with the conclusion of every episode (or perhaps more accurately with each scene) viewers are left wanting to learn more of where these complex and evolving relationships are headed.
Fierce battle scenes, edge of your seat wave-crashing storms, romantic rendezvouses, brutal surprise attacks, and even a Sake drinking contest are just some of what viewers experience. The scale of the storytelling can feel massive at times, but at its core Shōgun is very much a character piece, one that fills its canvas with a series of finely defined paint strokes.
The well-defined characters can be seen in the kindling of a forbidden romance and just as much in the tense interactions between the five feudal lords. The latter would fit right in on Succession as we watch high stakes “boardroom” dealings where one poorly chosen word can carry serious repercussions. The series seems to have something for a wide audience to enjoy no matter what you are coming for.
One of the most enchanting parts of the series is Mariko’s unique relationship with the Blackthorne. Sawai spoke about it, “When Mariko first meets Blackthorne, she’s very skeptical. She’s Catholic, he’s a Protestant. She doesn’t believe the things that he’s saying about the Portuguese and that allows her to kind of be vulnerable because she doesn’t care about what he thinks. She could just be herself. And even when he sees the true her, he’s very welcoming of that. And I think that’s a relationship that she doesn’t have with other characters that we see in the show.”
“It’s complicated,” added Jarvis. “There’s a multitude of other peripheral reasons why it’s incredibly complicated – circumstantial and political and all sorts. But at the heart of it, despite their spiritual differences, there’s a gradual process of coming to an understanding, a respectful understanding.”
The pride taken in what the limited series accomplished could be heard in every response. Co-creator Rachel Kondo took particular pride in those around her and how they brought this magnificent tale to life. “I’m just so proud of the crew and the process that was developed while making this show because it was a crew who were highly experienced professionals who still came into it with the mind of saying, ‘Let’s look for a different way to make this show for the first time. Let’s find a way to be inclusive of our filmmaking.’ Not just because it is the right thing to do in this modern day and age, but because this idea of inclusivity is what makes our stories better. It’s what makes our stories more surprising, less expected, more interesting,” explained Kondo.
The authenticity and depth of the characters not only allowed for better storytelling they connected with the cast on a deeper level. “Mariko allowed me to really reflect on what I want to do in my life, what is my purpose,” shared Sawai. “I think that those kinds of questions you don’t really ask yourself until you meet these kinds of characters or learn about these kinds of stories. I learned a tremendous amount from her.”
Like many of the characters we meet across this grand journey, the series left its mark on those involved. Co-creator Justin Marks shared how it changed him. “I think of the person I was when we first started this process – full of gusto and naivete. You have no clue at the outset what you’re about to embark on,” said Marks. “I am a wildly different person on the other side of it because I’ve encountered these people I’ve worked with who have lent me their giftings and their talents and their time and their hearts and lent it to both of us. The final result is so far beyond what I could have ever imagined, truly.”
You can join the adventure today as Shōgun begins streaming with the first two episodes now on Hulu and will have its broadcast premiere at 10pm ET on FX. The remaining episodes of the 10-episode limited series will drop each Tuesday on both FX and Hulu.
Watch my full interviews with the cast and crew of Shōgun (below) and keep an eye on Awards Radar for extended interviews in the weeks to come.
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