WAR of the WARRIORS

COSMO JARVIS and TAKEHIRO HIRA on their epic samurai saga set in feudal Japan

- STEVEN PERKINS

SHŌGUN FROM TUESDAY 27 FEBRUARY, 

DISNEY+ DRAMA (FIRST TWO EPISODES FROM TUE 27 FEB, THEN WEEKLY) 

When quick-witted English sailor John Blackthorne lands in Japan in the year 1600, he finds himself playing a key role in a fight for the nation’s future in much-anticipated new Disney+ historical drama Shogun.

Based on James Clavell’s bestselling 1975 novel of the same name, which was inspired by a true story (and previously adapted into a 1980 US miniseries starring Richard Chamberlain), the 10-parter follows John (played by Peaky Blinders actor Cosmo Jarvis) after he navigates his ship to the thenunfamiliar territory and is held captive by samurai warriors on suspicion of piracy.

However, one of his captors, Lord Yoshii Toranaga (Westworld’s Hiroyuki Sanada), suspects that his main rival, bureaucrat Ishido Kazunari (Giri Haji’s Takehiro Hira), is plotting to lead the other Lords of the West in a coup against him – and realises that John could potentially be a valuable ally.

In an exclusive interview, Cosmo, 34, and Takehiro, 49, tell TV Times why their samurai saga is a cut above the rest…

So, what brings John to Japan at the start of the story?

COSMO He’s a pilot responsible for navigation aboard a Dutch ship that is not faring too well. He’s a Protestant, and because the Catholic forces of Spain and Portugal already have a foothold in Japan, he represents a new presence in this kingdom. Subsequently, he is taken prisoner and has to very carefully navigate the people whose custody he is in. He has to learn how not to get killed!

How does meeting Lord Toranaga change him?