Shōgun (Japanese: 将軍, pronounced [ɕoːɡɯɴ] ⓘ) is an American historical drama television series created by Rachel Kondo and Justin Marks.

Its ensemble cast includes Hiroyuki Sanada, Cosmo Jarvis, Anna Sawai, Tadanobu Asano, Takehiro Hira, Tommy Bastow, and Fumi Nikaido.

It received widespread critical acclaim, particularly for the directing, writing, visuals, production values, performances of its cast, and faithfulness to the source material.

[3][4] It additionally received four Golden Globe Awards, including Best Television Series – Drama and acting wins for Sanada, Sawai, and Asano.

Shōgun follows "the collision of two ambitious men from different worlds, John Blackthorne, a risk-taking English sailor who ends up shipwrecked in Japan, a land whose unfamiliar culture will ultimately redefine him and Lord Toranaga, a shrewd, powerful daimyo, at odds with his own dangerous political rivals.

During the Television Critics Association's annual summer press tour in August 2018, FX announced it would make a new adaptation of the 1975 novel Shōgun by James Clavell and had given the production a straight-to-series order.

Executive producers were expected to include Andrew Macdonald, Allon Reich, Michael De Luca, Michaela Clavell, Tim Van Patten, Eugene Kelly, and Ronan Bennett.

Marks joked that he did not understand why the network had greenlit "a very expensive sub-titled Japanese period piece whose central climax revolves around a poetry competition.

[2][24] Principal photography for the series was scheduled to commence in March 2019 in Japan and the United Kingdom[25] but was delayed because the network felt that the production was not "in good enough shape".

Taro Ishida contributed by arranging and recording traditional Japanese music, including Gagaku, to integrate these authentic elements into the soundtrack.

The team aimed to create a unique soundscape that blends ancient and modern elements, using advanced sonic manipulation to enhance the psychological depth of the story.

The site's critical consensus reads: "Visually sumptuous and enriched with cultural verisimilitude, Shōgun is an epic adaptation that outdoes the original.

[63] Forbes described the show as an "instant hit" and praised Jarvis' portrayal of Blackthorne, stating "I'm immediately drawn to his character because he's not just some good guy, some white savior or what have you.

He describes Jarvis as "compelling" and "magnetic", Hiroyuki Sanada as a "subdued lord [who] ripples with menace, micro-expressions of warfaring arithmetic revealing his tactical mind" and Anna Sawai as "a character torn in duty and spirituality, cloaked in a performance of stoicism.

"[65] The Hollywood Reporter also praised the supporting cast, notably Moeka Hoshi, Tadanobu Asano, Fumi Nikaido, Shinnosuke Abe and Tokuma Nishioka for their strong character work.

[66] IGN described some of the supporting cast as "stand-out", praising Néstor Carbonell as Rodrigues and Tadanobu Asano as Yabushige next to Jarvis' Blackthorne, "a force to be reckoned with.

[68] Series creators Rachel Kondo and Justin Marks's adaptation of the novel also received positive responses, with Daniel Fienberg from The Hollywood Reporter stating that "this Shōgun finds much more traction as an ambitious game of political chess.

"[66] IGN writes "Creators Justin Marks and Rachel Kondo have crafted a version of feudal Japan filled with visual splendor, brutality, and intrigue" while remaining "highly faithful to James Clavell's bestselling novel".

[67] For Variety, Alison Herman attributes the show's success to "creators Justin Marks and Rachel Kondo [having] tapped into the true secret sauce of epic television: a balance between sweeping grandeur and intimate psychology.

"[69] Analytics company Samba TV, which gathers viewership data from certain smart TVs and content providers, announced that Shōgun was the most-streamed program across all platforms between February 26 and March 3.

[78] JustWatch, a guide to streaming content with access to data from more than 20 million users around the world, estimated that Shōgun was the most-streamed series in Canada and in the United States from March 4—10.

[79][80] Nielsen Media Research, which records streaming viewership on U.S. television screens, estimated that Shōgun was watched for 608 million minutes from April 22—28.