The Big Picture

FX’s ‘Shōgun’ is a 10-episode series based on James Clavell’s bestselling novel set in Japan in 1600.
One of the lead characters, the mysterious John Blackthorne, faces challenges that reveal secrets.
Cosmo Jarvis discusses the mental demands, fight sequences, and the Blackthorne-Mariko dynamic.

Based on the bestselling novel written by James Clavell, the 10-episode limited FX series Shōgun is an epic tale set in Japan in 1600, as a European ship piloted by John Blackthorne (Cosmo Jarvis) is marooned in a fishing village at a time when Lord Yoshii Toranaga (Hiroyuki Sanada) is fighting his enemies on the high-ranking governing body known as the Council of Regents. Mysterious and a bit rough around the edges, no one is sure what to make of Blackthorne, especially the translator, Toda Mariko (Anna Sawai), who finds herself by his side. The more time Blackthorne and Mariko spend together, an unexpected connection forms and they forge an alliance of their own, but secrets that are already dangerous can become deadly if you find yourself on the wrong side.

During this interview with Collider, Jarvis talked about familiarizing himself with the history of the time period, finding this version of Blackthorne, what made the shoot more mentally than physically demanding, shooting a fight sequence in a blindfold, the adventure and peril that came with making this series, why Blackthorne is no hero, that the dynamic between Blackthorne and Mariko is a realistic one, and the fun he had with the personal insults.

Shogun (2024) When a mysterious European ship is found marooned in a nearby fishing village, Lord Yoshii Toranaga discovers secrets that could tip the scales of power and devastate his enemies.Release Date 2024-02-00 Main Genre Drama Seasons 1

What Gave ‘Shōgun’s Cosmo Jarvis a Deeper Understanding of John Blackthorne?
Image via FX

Collider: Where did you even begin with this character, to help you understand Japanese culture in the 1600s? How did you make sense of it for yourself, with all the layers to everything that’s going on?

COSMO JARVIS: That’s a good question. I started familiarizing myself with the geopolitics of 1600. That should be familiar if school history was better, or if I was listening. But I got a sense of Elizabethan England, and the relationship between Catholics and Protestants and the Portuguese and the Vatican, and how there were huge sea battles. And then, I tried to form an understanding of the qualifications involved for seamen at the time, with regard to celestial navigation. And then, it was about finding a form for the man that the script required, in the way that the script required him to operate, as part of a very multifaceted story with so many components. I went through many different versions of Blackthorne, but once we commenced, and I had done all my preparation and research, I had found him. And then, it was a case of just learning as he learned and being wherever he was and just being Blackthorne. A big part of his purpose is to gradually assimilate, or pretend to assimilate, so it was important that happened in conjunction with the pace that the script demanded it to happen.

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What was the experience like, finding yourself in the middle of a fight sequence where you’re blindfolded, and it’s all going on around you? Is that a very bizarre moment to have?

JARVIS: Yeah, because until I saw it, I had no idea what was going on. With regard to scenes like that, the circumstance that Blackthorne finds himself in was always so real that you just have to trust in the circumstance. The fact that he was blindfolded made the acting part easier because a man in that situation can only assume the worst. It was a very cold day. It was Jonathan van Tulleken that directed that episode. They would say, “Arrow. Arrow. Arrow.” It was incredibly choreographed between Lauro [David]’s stunt team, who were phenomenal throughout the entire thing, and the camera work. The stunt team was really on top of things, and it was always great, being a component in the scenes where they had a lot of work to do.

Was there one of those stunt sequences that was your favorite to do?

JARVIS: I enjoy being a part of all of it. That’s one of the reasons that I wanted to do it, in the first place. It was pure distilled adventure and peril, and that’s something that I have very rarely come across. I watched it a lot as a kid, that kind of stuff, that type of broad archetypal adventure with grandiose stakes. That was one of the reasons I was fundamentally interested in it. When you’re on a ship on a hydraulic ram and they’re throwing walls of water at you, it’s just excellent. It was great to be the component within that moment. The culmination of so many departments’ work, where you’re giving your damnedest to honor their work, being the man on the ship they built for this one moment, is great.

‘Shōgun’s Cosmo Jarvis Found the Production to Be Mentally Demanding

From the very beginning of this, you’re put through the ringer. Everything is coming at Blackthorne and falling on him, all at the same time. What was that like to go through? Was it very physically demanding?

JARVIS: Yeah. More than anything, it was mentally demanding because you’re sustaining a character like that for that long. The standard was so high, as set by every department and the showrunners, from the production design to the special effects to the locations. In every department, everybody was working so hard. There are always many ways that a particular fictional character can be, within the confines of a scene, so it was a case of just experimenting, to the point that the best way was reached for each scene. There was a joy in that, but the more you do it, the more challenging it is because there’s always a sense that you’ve gotta make it as good as it can be.

Related The Real Historical Figures Behind ‘Shōgun’s Characters Time to brush up on your knowledge, history buffs.

Do you see Blackthorne as a hero? Does he see himself as a hero?

JARVIS: No, I don’t think he’s a hero. I don’t think this story has many heroes. That’s why it’s interesting. He’s a man who thinks he knows what he wants. The purpose of his journey throughout is to change fundamentally and realize what he was and realize that he doesn’t know what he’s going to be, but he’s open to it. I don’t think he’s a hero. I think he’s capable of honorable actions and, at times, he’s capable of very dishonorable actions. But he definitely experiences something during his time in Japan, in the care of Toranaga, that serves as his maturity, that maybe has eluded him before.

What do you see as the biggest villain of his story? What’s working to try to steer him away from the path he wants to be on.

JARVIS: That’s a good question, but that’s a tricky question. Everything to him, up to a point, is an obstacle to what he wants. He’s his own worst enemy. That’s the point of Blackthorne’s part within this story. His ways are not conducive to anything sustainable, and he does realize that eventually. Even the very well-intentioned things can be a huge impediment to his wishes, in the beginning.

Cosmo Jarvis Believes the Relationship Between ‘Shōgun’s Blackthorne and Mariko is Realistic
Image via FX

What did you most enjoy about finding that dynamic between Blackthorne and Mariko?

JARVIS: [James] Clavell was pretty ingenious with that, and (co-creators) Justin [Marks] and Rachel [Kondo] picked up on that for the adaptation. It was a very sound foundation for entertainment, the fact that she’s the only one who can really convey what he’s saying and, even though they have feelings for each other, they also really piss each other off. It’s quite a realistic depiction of a relationship, in that way. It does present the flaws, as well as the peaks and troughs. With Blackthorne and Mariko, the circumstance just breeds interesting room for dramatic application.

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I love the moments your character can just say horrible things to people because he knows that they don’t know what he’s saying.

JARVIS: We had a lot of fun with those. Justin had a long list of potential insults, and we would research period appropriate insults and try different versions. That was actually quite an enjoyable aspect of it. I’m glad you enjoyed that.

Shōgun airs on FX and is available to stream on Hulu. Check out the trailer:

Watch on Hulu