Just this past week we learned that Shogun series star Hiroyuki Sanada had signed a deal with FX to return as Lord Yoshii Toranaga. The announcement prompted speculation that the critically acclaimed limited series could be getting a second season.
Although nothing official has been announced, Variety is now reporting that FX, Hulu and the estate of James Clavell — the author of the novel on which Shogun is based — are working to develop more seasons of the series.
Variety notes, "This is not a formal renewal, and no production has been scheduled for more episodes." However, a writers' room will begin this summer to develop two more seasons of the show.
Series co-creators Justin Marks and Rachel Kondo are reportedly on board for the series along with series star and producer Hiroyuki Sanada. Executive producer Michaela Clavell of the James Clavell estate is also returning.
At this point, it's unclear what a future season (or seasons) of Shogun would look like. The show was billed as a "limited series" that covered the entirety of James Clavell's 1975 novel. Since Clavell had based his novel on real Japanese historical events, Variety speculates that future seasons could also be based on real historical events.
There's also the possibility that future seasons could cover Clavell's other novels. Shogun was just one part of Clavell's "Asian Saga" which consists of six novels that were written between 1962 and 1993.
The saga "centers on Europeans in Asia, and together they explore the impact on East and West of the meeting of these two distinct civilizations."
Shogun was the third book in the series to be written but is first in chronological order. It tells "a sprawling story set in Japan in the year 1600 at the dawn of a century-defining civil war." Based on the epic novel of feudal Japan, the FX series synopsis for Shogun reads:
The series follows Lord Yoshii Toranaga (producer Hiroyuki Sanada), who is fighting for his life as his enemies on the Council of Regents conspire against him. When a mysterious ship is found marooned in a nearby fishing village, its English pilot, John Blackthorne (Cosmo Jarvis), comes bearing secrets that could help Toranaga tip the scales of power and devastate the formidable influence of Blackthorne’s own enemies: the Jesuit priests and Portuguese merchants. Toranaga’s and Blackthorne’s fates become inextricably tied to their translator, Toda Mariko (Anna Sawai), a mysterious Christian noblewoman and the last of a disgraced line. While serving her lord amidst this fraught political landscape, Mariko must reconcile her newfound companionship with Blackthorne, her commitment to the faith that saved her, and her duty to her late father.
Although there are five other novels in the "Asian Saga," none of them act as a direct sequel to Shogun, nor do they feature the same characters. For example, Tapian is the second story chronologically but is set in Hong Kong in 1841.
Shogun premiered on FUX on Hulu and FX in February 2024. The first season ended in April 2024, concluding the critically acclaimed limited series which sits at a near-perfect 99% score on Rotten Tomatoes.