It's official: FX and Hulu are working on additional seasons of Shōgun, they announced today.
FX and Hulu said in their announcement that they'll continue to work with the Estate of author James Clavell on the series. Notably, they said the renewal "will likely yield two additional seasons of the drama series," meaning it could be subject to adjustment based on what happens creatively.
Key creatives including showrunner and co-creator Justin Marks, co-creator Rachel Kondo, and executive producer Michaela Clavell are set to return to development, as is producer and star Hiroyuki Sanada, who plays Lord Yoshii Toranaga. Production timing hasn't been locked in yet, the announcement notes, but a writers’ room is being assembled and will begin this summer.
Previously, Shōgun had been billed as a limited series, and Marks' own comments made it sound like future seasons wouldn't be in the cards. Speaking to THR earlier this year, Marks said, "We took the story to the end of the book and put a period at the end of that sentence. We love how the book ends; it was one of the reasons why we both knew we wanted to do it — and we ended in exactly that place."
Despite all that, what makes this announcement a little less surprising is a report that emerged last week that Sanada had signed a deal to return for a second season. It also presented some drama for the upcoming Emmys race, as a renewal wouldn't allow for Shōgun to compete in the limited series category. As such, Deadline reported shortly after the renewal news that Shōgun indeed plans to run in the drama series category instead.
While it seems like Shōgun was originally set to be just one season, its success was apparently too hard for FX and Hulu to deny. In its renewal announcement today, they note that, in the nine weeks since its premiere, Shōgun has become FX’s most-watched show ever based on global hours streamed. It's also received raves from critics.
IGN was among those raves, with our review giving Season 1 a 10/10. "FX’s adaptation of James Clavell’s Shōgun places characters over combat for a complex and beautiful tale of intrigue set in feudal Japan," Samantha Nelson wrote.
Alex Stedman is a Senior News Editor with IGN, overseeing entertainment reporting. When she's not writing or editing, you can find her reading fantasy novels or playing Dungeons & Dragons.
