As Shogun asserted its dominance at the Golden Globes, the series received an exciting Season 2 update from creators Rachel Kondo and Justin Marks.
After recounting the events of James Clavell's beloved book of the same name, it was revealed shortly following the release of the first season that the FX historical drama would receive a second and third season, this time following an original story set in Shogun-era Japan.
This came despite reports the series' creatives had only ever envisioned Shogun as a single-season mini-series, with Marks telling fans in the lead-up to the Season 1 finale, "We took the story to the end of the book and put a period at the end of that sentence."
Shogun Season 2 Update From the Golden Globes
Live at the 2025 Golden Globes ceremony, series creators Rachel Kondo and Justin Marks updated fans on where they stand on Shogun Season 2.
Kondo told Variety on the Globes red carpet that work on Season 2 is "ongoing," while Marks added, "I’m not sure what we can say," but "we’re about six weeks from the end of the writers' room:"
Kondo: "Well, it’s ongoing."
Marks: "We’re still trying. We haven’t given up. And I’m not sure what we can say. We’re about six weeks from the end of the writers' room."
This came as the acclaimed FX series earned four awards on just as many nominations, winning "Best Television Series — Drama," "Best Performance by an Actress in a Television Series — Drama," "Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role in a Television Series," and "Best Performance by an Actor in a Television Series — Drama."
As Season 1 finished with the end of the James Clavell the series was based on, Season 2 will need to be an original story, likely featuring many of the same characters from the first batch of episodes — except for Anna Sawai's Moriko for obvious reasons (read about Moriko's Season 1 shocking fate here).
In a June 2024 conversation with The Direct, Shogun Season 1 star Moeka Hoshi teased a "very interesting" story set for Season 2, something that Kondo and Marks seem to be actively working on:
"But all I can say is just, as a personal fan of 'Shogun' itself, I'm really looking forward to you know what kind of stories are told in Season 2 and Season 3. However, I did pick up, just in my research, and you know, because 'Shogun' does follow history and history is history--I'm not quite sure which battle it was in, but I have heard that there was a group of nuns who did take part in a battle. So, maybe [that]... But again, in Justin [Marks] and Rachel [Kondo] I trust. So, they will come up with something very interesting."
When Will Shogun Season 2 Be Released?
While work remains active on Shogun Season 2, a specific release date has not yet been disclosed. However, this latest update from the show's creators may hint at when the series will be heard from again.
With this mention of the writers' room being "about six weeks" from ending, fans finally have a clearer idea of where the show is at in development.
Should the writers' room be able to finish as planned by the time late February rolls around, then the next milestone for audiences to keep an eye on will be a potential production start date.
Filming has no official kick-off date, but some have speculated that it could get started sometime in mid-2025.
Production on Season 2 will likely look a tad different than Season 1, as the team is exploring the idea of filming in Japan, rather than Western Canada (where the first batch of episodes was shot thanks to the at the time ongoing COVID-19 pandemic).
Star (and new Golden Globe winner) Hiroyuki Sanada told The Hollywood Reporter in September 2024, "Maybe part of [the show]" will potentially shoot in Japan, with the actor also praising the show's Canadian sets from Season 1 for standing in for Feudal Japan stupendously:
"We are finding the possibilities, of course. Not everything but maybe part of [the show]...[Vancouver is the] perfect location for 'Shogun'. They have a big studio, and a 20-minute drive from the studio they have a forest, river, harbor, everything, without any modern buildings or wires or cables. In Japan, it’s so hard to find that. Modern things are everywhere."
If production can start before the end of the year, then a release date somewhere in 2026 (potentially during the summer or fall) should be in line with about a year of post-production likely needed for a series on this scale.
With the critical success, the series continues to have well after release, one can assume FX will try to get Season 2 out as soon as possible to ride this wave of positive momentum.
Shogun is now streaming on Hulu.
