Hiroyuki Sanada is the top samurai actor, having played an accomplished swordsman in properties like The Last Samurai, Westworld, and Avengers: Endgame. Now he’s teamed up with FX for a drama set in Feudal Japan called Shōgun.
Check out the first trailer:
Here’s the official description:
Based on James Clavell’s novel, FX’s Shōgun is set in Japan in the year 1600 at the dawn of a century-defining civil war. Lord Yoshii Toranaga is fighting for his life as his enemies on the Council of Regents unite against him, when a mysterious European ship is found marooned in a nearby fishing village.
As you can see from the trailer, the series looks very extensive and action-packed. Not only do we get some war scenes with Samurai, but we could also be looking at the darker branch of martial arts concerning ninjas and assassins.
If anything, the show is kind of giving off Game of Thrones and Vikings hype, what with the tease of a power struggle. We don’t know how long Sanada’s stay is going to be on the show, but it definitely feels like he’s just there to be the big star that draws all audiences in, but only stays for one season—that’s pretty much what happened with Sean Bean (Game of Thrones) and Anthony Hopkins (Westworld) on their shows.
With a release set for early next year, we should get a new trailer sometime around January. Shōgun premieres on Hulu and FX this February 2024.
