Shogun
Warning : spoiler for Shōgun season 1 .
Summary
Shōgunwas one of the biggest bump off shows of 2024 , bringing James Clavell ’s 1975 novel to life in a way never before see . bring in to telly by showrunners Justin Marks and Rachel Kondo , Shōgunrealized 1600 Japan in stunning detail with the help of star and producer Hiroyuki Sanada , who plays Lord Yoshii Toranaga in the series . The show also centered on John Blackthorne , an English Panama marooned in Japan , played by Cosmo Jarvis . Like many other characters in the series , Blackthorne ’s journey often sees the graphic symbol tossed around by plots and machinations he can only start to interpret .
FewShōguncharactersseem victim to their setting as much as Usami Fuji , who , in the first episode , lose both her hubby and her fry after her hubby ’s offensive activity to their lord led to his ritual suicide . Still , Fuji stay stoic , even after she was assigned to be the consort to John Blackthorne , an foreigner she take in as a beast . Played by Moeka Hoshi , Fuji quickly became a fan - favorite persona and seems to be one of the few in the story to experience a somewhat happy end .
Showrunners Justin Marks and Rachel Kondo explain how they ’re approaching the development of Shōgun season 2 after the FX show ’s replacement .
Screen Rantinterviewed Hoshi about her time present Fuji onShōgun . She weighed in on key moments in Fuji ’s relationship with Blackthorne and other characters , her initial discussion with the showrunners , and her thoughts on the return of her character in the of late announcedShōgun time of year 2 . Plus , Hoshi discuss whether or not her part would have really used Blackthorne ’s gun in a key moment . greenback : This audience was conducted with the help of a translator , and has been lightly edited for length and lucidity .
Hoshi Reflects On Playing Fuji & The “Freedom” Given To Her By Showrunner Justin Marks
Screen Rant : I study that you were the first person to make out to Justin Marks about your character . What did you come to understand about Fuji in those first conversations ?
Moeka Hoshi : I was a small bit worried about this being a geological period film . Would I have to really dumbfound to the parameters down to the T ? In my conversation with Justin , I learned I did n’t have to concern about that as much . In the story of Fuji is 19 days old , and I was yield the freedom to explore who she is . She has descend up in a really wealthy fostering , but perchance she ’s still a little impish at the same time . I had a freedom to research that .
Fuji ’s often so reserved , but you do such a good job of demonstrate us what she ’s thinking without saying anything . How is it as an actor to bring so much emotion while sometimes doing as little as potential ?
Moeka Hoshi : As far as being able to express what Fuji ’s thought process , it ’s not something conscious . citizenry can show into it however they desire and understand that moment however they want . in person , I would say as an actor , I miss the technical skills . For model , a television camera is set a sure manner , so I will weight my soundbox or my brass a certain way — I feel like I still need to learn a lot about that . As an worker , right now , my role is to be Fuji as much as possible and to portray her in the most honorable path potential . The television camera get that for me , and then everyone else watches it and perceives it . So , it ’s not a witting affair that I ’m doing .
The Limited Communication Between Fuji & Blackthorne Was Echoed By The Actors Themselves
Fuji spends so much time with Blackthorne , and he does n’t understand the people around him during the show . I imagine that ’s kind of what it was like for Cosmo Jarvis on determine too . What was it like work out with him , both in scenes and in spend time together ?
Moeka Hoshi : work with Cosmo was an unforgettable experience for me . We did n’t understand each other ’s lines , but we could pass just by seem in each other ’s eyes . I felt a muckle of emotion from him . He ’s kind of shy , so when we were on set , we were really only pass through the dialog of the handwriting . It was a very unique and wonderful experience of pass through our eyes .
He does n’t know Japanese . I know English , but we ’re depict people who do n’t understand each other . Cosmo , probably , was incertain about how much of his English I was understanding , too . And it could also be part of the role , but Cosmo is fundamentally unsure .
Image via Hulu/FX
Also , we were shooting Shōgun during COVID , so isolation protocols were in place . Although our interaction were mostly on set when we were work as actors , I think it was such an crucial and rare experience to be able to have such a deep connexion just through the duologue of the script . That ’s something I really , really treasure as an actor .
Fuji , at first , did not like Blackthorne at all . Was there a moment where you think she developed a respectfulness for him , or that was the turning power point in the relationship ?
Moeka Hoshi : I think that respectfulness was gradual . It was n’t one finical moment . I think what was rosy for Fuji ’s personality was that she ’s a pliant person . She is n’t like , perhaps , some of the dame in the human beings of Shōgun who say , “ Blackthorn is a savage . That ’s the destruction of the story . ”
Image via Hulu/FX
Because Blackthorne , Mariko , and Fuji are all under the same cap at one percentage point , and Fuji see Mariko ’s fundamental interaction with Blackthorn — and because she trusts Mariko — that stretch gradually to Blackthorne as well . She ’s like , “ Oh , he ’s not as bad of a person as I thought he was . ” So , it was a very gradual unconscious process for her .
Hoshi Reflects On Ad-Libbing & Her Favorite Series Moments
Do you have a favorite bit you got to wreak out as Fuji ?
Moeka Hoshi : For me , personally , as an actor , I screw this aspect in sequence 10 when Fuji tells Blackthorne , “ I ’m going to conical buoy . ” There are a duet thing that were wonderful about that vista . The first is that , by that time , Blackthorne is using Japanese phrases , so he ’d started to bridge over the col .
Also , at that point in filming , I felt a little bit liberal . I did n’t have to appease within the sandpit by this percentage point . There ’s a objet d’art of negotiation when he says , “ You ’re going to be a conical buoy , ” and she read , “ Yes . ” “ Yes , ” was actually an advertizing - lib . It was not in the script . At first , I was n’t sure if Fred [ E.O. Toye ] , our film director , liked it . We did a 2d take , and I did n’t do the advertising - lib , so he add up over , like , “ Hey , can you leave that in ? I liked it a lot . ” I have n’t really shared this with a circumstances of people , but in episode 10 , there are a band of affair that pass off , and they were all such precious moments for me .
Image via Hulu/FX
“In Justin And Rachel I Trust”: Hoshi Weighs In On Fuji’s Season 2 Return
Shōgun is coming back for more season . I recognize we probably need Fuji to have a nice , peaceful living as a nun , but is there anything you ’d like to see fall out with her in those seasons ? Would you care her to issue forth back ?
Moeka Hoshi : I have no idea what the plan is , but in Justin and Rachel I swear , and I believe they will add up up with another exciting season . candidly , it ’s less about myself and Fuji . Just as another fellow fan of Shōgun , I ’m depend forward to what get out for time of year 2 and time of year 3 .
Hoshi Reflects On How Shōgun Affected Her View On Modern-Day Japan
The U.S. is not an onetime country , but when I watch something that takes place in its past , I think a little other than about the nowadays . Did spending all this time in 1600s Japan forShōgunaffect your perspective on where you live on ?
Moeka Hoshi : Yeah . I think what I learned , or was able-bodied to see , is that the present is a continuation of the past . With Japanese finish , I can see more profoundly where our culture really do from , what things have stick around , and what things have not . For example , higher ranking , lower ranking — that societal hierarchy .
Also , Tokyo has a huge concentration of masses , and when I thought about it , I realized that ’s actually Ieyasu ’s fault [ Note : Hiroyuki Sanada ’s Yoshii Toranaga is based on real - life shogun Tokugawa Ieyasu ] back in the Edo menstruation , because he decided to do that . There are so many people in Tokyo now , so I was kind of realizing it ’s his fault .
Overall , I ’m hoping that as Japanese people go into the future tense , we ’ll keep the good things and strain towards a healthier culture that just get better and good .
Would Fuji Really Have Shot Omi In Shōgun Episode 4?
I think one of everyone ’s favorite moments from the series is when Fuji draw Blackthorne ’s gun on Omi . It ’s so surprising . Do you think she actually would have germinate him ?
Moeka Hoshi : I maybe have not call back about that … I think she would ’ve shot him . Considering the times , and the fact that hoi polloi are already kind of getting vote out leave and right anyway . In that kind of environment , I conceive I would ’ve shot him . Also , we were higher higher-ranking than him , so I believe that she would ’ve shot Omi .
About Shōgun
FX ’s Shōgun , an original adaptation of James Clavell ’s bestselling novel , is set in Japan in the year 1600 at the dawn of a century - defining civil warfare . Producer Hiroyuki Sanada star as “ Lord Yoshii Toranaga ” who is fighting for his life as his enemies on the Council of Regents connect against him .
Check our our otherShōguninterviews here :
All episodes ofShōgunseason 1 are streaming now on Hulu and Disney+ .
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Cast
Shōgun , released in 2024 , is put in Japan during 1600 at the onset of a significant civil war . It follows Lord Yoshii Toranaga as he battles political adversaries on the Council of Regents , while a European ship enigmatically appears in a nearby fishing village , complicating the tides of power .
Image via Hulu/FX
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