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Join Telegram ChannelDrama“SHOGUN”This is a historic achievement. The series won 18 Emmy Awards, the highest honor in the American television industry, including the Best Drama Award, making it the most successful series ever. This authentic period drama, a collaboration between Japan and Hollywood, has been met with rave reviews from around the world.
THE RIVER interviewed Moeka Hoshi, who plays Fuji, who sadly missed out on a solo nomination but gained huge popularity overseas as “Fuji-sama”. At the stage greeting event for the screening of the 9th and final episodes held in Tokyo in April, she answered questions in a pair with Mukaizato Yuka, who plays Kiku, but this time she was interviewed solo again. She answered the interview just before the awards ceremony after the Emmy nominations were announced.
“SHOGUN” has become a huge hit overseas and sparked a new boom in Japan. However, in our last interview, Hoshi and Mukai, who live in Japan, said that they “didn't really feel the impact.” About five months have passed since then, and the show has achieved the feat of receiving the most Emmy nominations…?
“The response hasn't changed much,” said Hoshi, who now has short blonde hair, and said lightly, “I guess more people are watching.” He was surprised to hear that “SHOGUN Shogun” was a hot topic among comedians.
“SHOGUN” was originally produced as a one-season limited series, but due to the overwhelming response, it was decided to renew it for another season. Hoshi learned about it when he saw the news. “There had been talk for a long time about whether or not there would be a second season, but then an overseas article came out saying that 'Hiroyuki Sanada had signed a contract to renew the season,' and I saw it on the internet and thought 'this must be confirmed.' I checked with the people involved and it seemed to be true.”
“The ending of season 1 was beautiful, so honestly I would have been happy to end it there,” Hoshi continues. “But I'm happy that it's continuing with season 2. It was a success that made it possible to make a sequel. I'd love to be involved in season 2 again.”
Many of the main characters lost their lives in Season 1, but Fuji, played by Hoshi, was one of the few survivors. When asked about the possibility of continuing, he replied, “I have no idea,” but added, “Of course I would like to appear. Fuji became a monk, so if he were to appear, I'm curious to know what his role would be.”
Following the success of season 1, he said, “For better or worse, people will be looking forward to season 2. It seems like it would be best to start from scratch with a fresh attitude.” If you were to continue, how would you like to utilize what you learned in season 1?
“Regarding my acting, I always think, 'I should have done it like this'. It seems that everyone over there liked my natural stance in Season 1, so I think it's best to continue not to do too much. I also thought that maybe I should act more like the character, and make the characters stand out, but surprisingly, the people over there don't like that kind of thing. I want to think about my approach to acting after reading the script.”
Hoshi has something he wants to do on set from season 2 onwards. That is to help out Hiroyuki Sanada, who is busy starring and producing the series, even if just a little.
“I want to bring coffee to Hiro (laughs). I was sometimes confused by the American filming system, which was my first time doing so, but Sanada was always there to give advice to everyone, staff and actors alike. I think he really worked without a break. He was even on the weekends.
I'm sure Sanada-san already has an idea of what to do in Season 2 without me having to think about it, but I would like to help out in any way I can to reduce his burden even a little.
I have a lot of respect for Sanada-san. I want to be as close as possible to him and see how he approaches his work. I learn a lot from him, including our private conversations, and I am constantly being reminded of new things every day.
As he spoke, Hoshi's feelings of gratitude towards Sanada began to overflow. “Sanada-san is a very humble person, so if I talked too much, he would probably get annoyed,” he said with a laugh, revealing that when the Emmy nominations were announced, he couldn't help but send a message to Sanada. “Sanada-san was as humble as ever, and replied, 'It's all thanks to everyone.'”
Although he missed out on a personal nomination, his colleagues were more upset than he was. Veteran Michael Kutcher, head casting director at FX, told him, “I think you should have been nominated,” expressing his dissatisfaction. Producer Justin Marks also sent him a message saying, “It's bittersweet today that our favorite character wasn't nominated,” and “Everyone in the writers room is grieving.” “I was so happy to hear you say that.”
According to Hoshi, she had a feeling that “maybe.” However, her co-stars with plenty of experience working overseas, such as Sanada and Takehiro Hira, told her not to get hung up on the award. “I also want to try my hand at other projects besides 'SHOGUN.' Just because I wasn't nominated doesn't mean everything is over.”