‘Shogun’ and Silicon Valley
FX will dive deeper into limited-run series with two new projects: a “Shogun” revival and a Silicon Valley-set conspiracy thriller.
The cable network has had massive success in the format in recent years, stacking up Emmys and critical acclaim for “Fargo,” “American Crime Story: The People v. O.J. Simpson,” “American Horror Story” and “Feud: Bette and Joan.”
The new projects come from filmmakers like Alex Garland (“Annihilation”) and Andrew Macdonald (“Ex Machina”) and gather a diverse crop of talent that includes Sonoya Mizuno (“Crazy Rich Asians”) and Jin Ha (“Jesus Christ Superstar Live”) and returning network stars Nick Offerman (“Fargo”) and Alison Pill (“American Horror Story: Cult”).
The remake of “Shogun” is based on the New York Times bestseller from James Clavell. FX didn’t announce casting or an air date for the 10-episode project, but revealed its considerable behind-the-scenes heft.
Macdonald and Allon Reich of DNA TV and Michael De Luca (“Moneyball,” “The Social Network”) are executive producers. Tim Van Patten (“The Sopranos,” “Boardwalk Empire”) will direct multiple episodes, and Ronan Bennett (“Public Enemies”) will write the series, which will shoot in the U.K. and Japan.
The original “Shogun” starring Richard Chamberlain, which aired on NBC over five nights in 1980, is credited with launching the miniseries format on television.
“The themes of an outsider encountering a new culture are as relevant today as then,” said John Landgraf, chief executive of FX Networks, who noted that Clavell’s daughter, Michaela, will serve as an executive producer.
Back on California soil, the network has ordered eight episodes of a tech-infused, shady-workplace drama called “Devs,” starring Mizuno as a computer engineer who suspects her company of murder.
Offerman plays her boss at the fictional San Francisco-based Amaya.
First hint that the firm’s up to no good: It has a “secretive development division,” according to the FX description.
The series, from Garland, Reich, Macdonald, Eli Bush and Scott Rudin, will air next year.
“After reading all eight scripts and hearing Alex’s brilliant vision and commitment to direct all of the episodes, it was an easy decision to order ‘Devs’ to series.” Landgraf said.