It’s something of an understatement to suggest that Takehiro Hira wasn’t expecting an Emmy nomination for his role as Ishido Kazunari on FX’s breakout series “Shōgun.” Instead, he landed an Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series nom and became part of an epic 25 nominations that saw four of his co-stars also earning Emmy recognition. Without providing spoilers and due to narrative reasons, a number of his colleagues won’t be returning for the show’s already-announced second season. And, if you do a deep dive into Japanese history you’ll discover Kazunari, who is based on the noted regent Ishida Mitsunari, may not have much more of a runway either.
READ MORE: ‘Shōgun’ Review: FX’s lavish action Samurai period piece reshapes beloved original
The good news for Hira is while he’s expected to return to “Shōgun” for another go around he also has major roles in Julius Onah’s “Captain America: Brave New World” and Hikari’s new drama “Rental Family” on deck. Two subjects that also came up when he jumped on a phone to discuss his Emmy nom and “Shōgun” journey with The Playlist earlier this month.
Note: This interview has been edited for length and clarity.
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The Playlist: Congratulations on your nomination.
Takehiro Hira: Thank you so much. I’m still overwhelmed. It’s hard to believe.
Where were you when you found out?
I think I was at home in Hawaii and I was with my wife, and there’s an expression in the Japanese language that literally means rice cake falling from the shelf. And what it really means is that you didn’t do much of a job, but you got a huge reward for it. And my wife was making fun of me saying, “Oh, I only appeared in like two scenes in each episode, but you got a big reward for doing that.”
Were you in Vancouver for the entire period of shooting or did they schedule your scenes to a shorter window?
I was there from the beginning to the end because it was shot during COVID time, so we weren’t allowed to go back. We shot the whole series in Vancouver and Vancouver to Hawaii is only five hours away, but I wasn’t allowed to leave, so I stayed.
A lot of people would’ve thought a remake of “Shōgun” mostly in Japanese might be a risky proposition. It turned out to be a massive, massive hit. Did you think it could have this level of popularity?
I was shocked. I mean, like you said, those thoughts were always in my head when we were shooting this piece. I was always conscious of the fact that this show was 95% in Japanese and 100% Japanese on my part. So, I was always worried that what I do in front of the camera. Would it convey to a Western audience? Am I doing too much or too little? Am I speaking too fast or too slow? I didn’t know. I mean, I had no reference. But, at the end of the day, you have to sort of trust your feelings and be true to your emotions, I guess, and let the other professionals in the team deal with it in the editing room.
Your character, Ishido Kazunari, is based on a real-life regent. Did you feel like you needed to take any of that into account when playing him? Or was it what was on the page?
That’s a great question because when we do periods piece like this, we, Japanese actors often fall for, “Oh, this person would’ve never said that. This is not like him or like that.” But I’m familiar with the character that I played. I didn’t do too much research except for his upbringing. I think it had a lot to do with his personality and the motivations behind his actions. But I tried to stay within the frame of the script or what was being put on the table.
You are being very super humble by suggesting that you’re only in two scenes in an episode, which I don’t think it’s true. That being said, when you were getting the scripts do you remember thinking that there was one scene or one moment you were most focused on?
Yeah, the very first thing in episode one, when I go head to head with Lord Yoshii Toranaga [Hiroyuki Sanada]. That sets the tone in the series and I had to make it clear that we are not friends, we are enemies. And the conflict between the two in episode one seemed to be a political one, but underneath there were a lot more layers. More and more personal grudges between two people who came from different backgrounds. Ishido was born as a son of peasants and Toranga was born in the ruling class. So, there was a lot of clash going on there, but it’s not so apparent in the first scene. So, I was really nervous in that first scene and it was actually my first day of shooting.
Your character does survive and lives at the end of the season and the real-life figure he’s based on should still be around. Two more seasons are coming. Are you expecting to come back? Have you gotten any hint about whether you’ll be part of the show’s future?
Well, if the drama goes on with the time sequence as they did in season one, my character Ishido Kazunari would be executed after the Battle of Sekigahara.
But he’s not dead yet.
He’s not dead yet. So, hopefully, I will survive the series, but the history tells me otherwise. So, I can’t do much about that.
Hey, you never know how long they’re going to drag it out. He might live longer than you think he might.
True, true.
I did want to ask you about two other projects you’ve done. People are very excited that you’re in “Captain America: Brave New World” where you play the Japanese Prime Minister. I know there are limits in what Marvel lets you discuss, but can you just talk about that experience in general?
Yeah, I worked side by side with Harrison Ford and it was just surreal for me. I started working in Japan and I recently made a transition to Hollywood and I just never thought it would work out the way it did. It was done, and it was surreal. I had only three scenes with him, but they added another scene recently. We had additional shooting this spring.
You had to go back to Atlanta?
Yeah. And that scene was actually longer than two scenes or two or three scenes that I had before. So, I was really happy and then there was more interaction with him. So yeah, it’s been great.
Is there a possibility we will see your character again or did you feel like sort of a one-off?
Well, those are things you never know, right? You never know. I didn’t die. I didn’t die. That’s [what] I can say.
You are also recently finished shooting the new Searchlight film “Rental Family” with Brendan Fraser. I know the premise of it, but can you tell us about who you play and what that experience was like?
The word “rental family” is a wacky idea, but when you really talk to people who are running it or who get the service from them it actually makes sense. In the modern world or in a metropolitan setting, people are really lonely and you can just hire someone to be friends to fill the void. And I played the guy who runs Rent Family, and then Brendan Fraser was sort of a lost American guy in Japan. And by accident, I end up recruiting him into my team and he ends up working for a rental family business.
Oh, that’s interesting. I feel like most people think he’s the person renting the family, but he’s not. He actually becomes one of the employees.
Yes.
One last question about “Shōgun.” Were you nervous at all about what your friends back in Japan would think about the series when they saw it? And what has the reaction been?
That’s a great question. I can go on for a long time on that. But to be honest with you, Japanese people are very strange in the way they react to people who left Japan. You know what I mean? Yeah. I mean almost they don’t care.
Oh.
So, I mean, I’m not speaking of course for all the Japanese, but what I feel is that I guess you cannot deny that “Shōgun” was a really well-made high-production value drama, but I was expecting a lot more reaction from Japan. I mean, it would’ve been nice.
Did you feel like the reaction was muted or ambivalent?
Yeah, a little bit.
Interesting.
Yeah, I don’t know. I guess maybe we topped the expectations that they were left speechless. But yeah, it’s always interesting from a Japanese person working outside, involved in projects dealing with Japan, how it would be received in Japan. And now it’s been nominated for many categories, so I don’t know how people would react now. I am interested to see.
“Shogun” is available on FX and Hulu