Shogun` Director Slams FX Show as `Not Entertaining

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The first season of FX’s series Shogun, which premiered recently, has carried its awards streak into 2025. It triumphed at the WGA Awards last weekend and was one of the major winners at this year’s Golden Globes. However, a significant person involved in an earlier adaptation of the book finds it hard to grasp the charm of the latest version.

Jerry London, the man behind the nine-hour “Shogun” broadcast on NBC in September 1980, recalls his work as demanding, sharing that the producers initially desired a director of Japanese origin. “I needed to prove my competence to them,” London shares with The Hollywood Reporter. “Eventually, after roughly a month, they agreed to me and everything progressed smoothly. However, it was an arduous production, and in the end, it turned out exceptionally well.

According to the director, the updated version deviates significantly from his original vision for the miniseries, which was intended to be easily understood by Western viewers. He describes the new version as “not appealing to an American audience.

The original five-episode series, adapted from James Clavell’s popular 1975 novel, featured Richard Chamberlain as John Blackthorne, an English navigator. In this story, he navigated through political complications with Lord Toranaga, portrayed by Toshiro Mifune, and found himself entangled in romantic feelings for Mariko, played by Yoko Shimada, who introduced him to Japanese culture. This series was not only a ratings success but also received critical acclaim, garnering 14 Emmy nominations, among which it won the best limited series award. Furthermore, it took home the Golden Globe Award for the best television drama.

London commented that the new version is significantly distinct from the previous one he worked on last year. Unlike the former, which revolved around the love story between Blackthorne and Mariko from “Shogun”, this updated one focuses on Japanese history, particularly the character of Toranaga who was the Shogun. This new film is quite technical and challenging for American audiences to grasp due to its complexity. Many viewers have shared their experiences of giving up on it because they found it hard to comprehend. It appears that the creators of the new movie were less concerned about appealing to the American audience.

He went on to say, “It was primarily designed for Japan, which made me pleased since I didn’t want my program to be imitated. Given how well mine performed and the numerous awards it received, I didn’t want others to replicate it, but thankfully they didn’t. However, the latest version is amusing because everyone I spoke with commented, ‘I don’t get it, what’s the point?’ I watched the entire thing. It’s quite challenging to follow through. It won all the Emmys because there weren’t many other strong contenders.

It’s undeniable that the recent FX adaptation left Emmy voters impressed, breaking the record with 18 wins in a single season and marking the first Japanese-language series to take home the award for Best Drama Series. The new “Shogun” debuted on February 27, 2024, and has already been renewed for an additional two seasons. In its first season, Cosmo Jarvis portrayed Blackthorne, Hiroyuki Sanada played Lord Toranaga, and Anna Sawai took on the role of Mariko.

As a gamer diving into the world of FX’s Shogun, I found Daniel Fienberg’s review insightful. He described the series as grand, daring, and visually stunning, yet somewhat devoid of blood and grit. In the books and the 1980 miniseries, Shogun seemed to evenly blend history and romance. However, this new Shogun is more about strategic power plays, a captivating game of political chess. The intertwined intrigues and expertly choreographed action sequences kept me hooked, but the central love story felt rushed, lacking the emotional depth to truly resonate with me.

London, who is renowned for helming hit television shows like “The Brady Bunch,” “The Bob Newhart Show,” “The Mary Tyler Moore Show,” and “Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman,” expressed that he wished his work on “Shogun” could have been included in discussions about the latest series’ success.

He expresses his dissatisfaction, stating, “It was underwhelming because there wasn’t much focus on my favorite character. Additionally, I noticed that the latest version predominantly features only one British actor (Jarvis), and in all honesty, he didn’t possess the captivating charm that Richard Chamberlain did.

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2025-02-18 23:55