The second chapter of “Shōgun’s” epic story will feature some familiar faces.
Season 2 of FX’s Emmy-winning samurai drama will begin production in Vancouver in January, the network announced on Wednesday — while also shedding light on which cast members will be returning for the new season. We already knew that Hiroyuki Sanada will reprise his Emmy-winning role as feudal Japanese ruler Lord Toranaga, along with Cosmo Jarvis as English sailor John Blackthorne. But now FX confirms that eight more Season 1 cast members will appear in Season 2 as well.
The returning cast members are Fumi Nikaidô (as Lady Ochiba, the mother of the former shōgun’s only heir), Shinnosuke Abe (as Mariko’s hot-headed husband Buntaro), Hiroto Kanai (as Yabushige’s nephew Omi), Yoriko Dôguchi (as Toranaga’s wife Kiri), Tommy Bastow (as Portuguese priest Alvito), Yuko Miyamoto (as brothel proprietor Gin), Eita Okuno (as Toranaga’s half-brother Saeki) and Yuka Kouri (as prized courtesan Kiku).
Several of Season 1’s key characters, however, like Anna Sawai’s Mariko and Tananobu Asano’s Yabushige, died last season, so they won’t appear in Season 2.
“Shōgun” has also added five cast members for Season 2: Asami Kizukawa as Aya; Masataka Kubota as Hyūga; Sho Kaneta as Hidenobu; Takaaki Enoki as Lord Ito and Jun Kunimura as Gōda. Season 2 “is set ten years after the events of the first season,” per the official synopsis, “and continues the historically-inspired saga of these two men from different worlds whose fates are inextricably entwined.”
An adaptation of James Clavell’s bestselling novel that also inspired a hit 1980 miniseries, “Shōgun” was originally billed as a limited series when it debuted last year, but FX later announced it was developing two additional seasons of the sweeping samurai epic, allowing it to compete in the drama series categories at the Emmys. The move paid off: “Shōgun” took home a record 18 Emmys, including wins for best drama series, best lead actor for Sanada and best lead actress for Sawai.