FX’s ‘Shōgun’s Biggest Change From the Book? Cutting Blackthorne’s Problematically Huge Penis

FX‘s new hit show Shōgun is a loving adaptation of James Clavell’s landmark 1975 novel of the same name. While many have noted that the 2024 version shifts the focus of the narrative away from English navigator John Blackthorne (Cosmo Jarvis) so that the brilliant Yoshii Toranaga (Hiroyuki Sanada) and arresting Toda Mariko (Anna Sawai) share top billing, the truth is the novel does the same at times. Sure, it begins centered on the perspective of the white male character interloping on a foreign civilization — it was written in the ’70s, after all —  but as the book goes on, there are whole sections dedicated to the POVs of Toranaga, Mariko, Yabushige (Tadanobu Asano) and his nephew Omi (Hiroto Kanai), Kiku (Yuka Kouri) and the other ladies of the Willow World, the Portuguese clergy and traders, and even vassals living in the service of their noble daimyos. FX’s Shōgun just hastens these elements to the beginning of the narrative journey. Other than that, FX’s Shōgun is a pretty darn faithful adaptation of James Clavell’s book. Except, okay, for one, uh, big difference.

For the most part, Clavell’s novel tackles the Japanese culture of the 1600s with reverence and empathy. However, there’s one detail that the English author dropped early on in his book that reminds you that, yeah, Shōgun was originally written in a very different time period, wherein there were some straight up wild stereotypes about Asian men.

In Clavell’s version of Shōgun, John Blackthorne purportedly has the single largest penis anyone in Japan has ever seen. Blackthorne’s “Peerless Parts” are cause for conversation in the house of headman Mura, called Muraji (Yasunari Takeshima) in the FX show, and prompts speculation on what European women might be endowed with. Later, Mura’s wife and mother ask to watch Blackthorne be bathed and massaged and, well, this happens:

“Then he had become erect and as much as he tried to stop it from happening, the worse it became — at least he thought so, but the women did not. Their eyes became bigger and began to blush. Jesus Lord God the One and Only, I can’t be blushing, but he was and this seemed to increase his size and the old woman clapped her hands in wonder and said something to which they all nodded and she shook her head awed and said something else to which they nodded even more.”

Mura said with enormous gravity, ‘Captain-san, Mother-san thank you, the best her life, now die happy!'”

Shōgun Chapter 2 by James Clavell

The implication is that Blackthorne’s (probably normal-sized) penis is just naturally bigger than what the Japanese are used to because of a racist stereotype that Japanese men don’t have large penises. Well, it means that OR that John Blackthorne has a comically large penis, one that should perhaps be studied by science.

Later in the novel, Blackthorne has several amorous experiences; we’re told one lady found him “lavish,” while another bestowed upon him a rare public honor signaling great sexual satisfaction. And so, Blackthorne’s enormous dong becomes a running joke in the book, one that could have you either laughing, rolling your eyes, or feeling offended depending on your personal POV.

FX’s Shōgun has embraced Yabu’s love of boiling men alive and kept in a moment where an infant is killed as part of their father’s seppuku. We even get the comic moment from early in the novel where a disheveled, naked Blackthorne punches through a paper screen wall. Those details from the book made it to the show. So why hasn’t Blackthorne’s truly peerless “Peerless Part”?

“Don’t look at me to answer the question!” Shōgun co-creator and co-showrunner Justin Marks said, laughing, after Decider posed the question during an in-depth interview about the entire season at Winter 2024 TCA.

Marks’s co-creator, co-showrunner, and wife Rachel Kondo, also laughing, admitted it was fodder for the writers’ room’s more raucous chats.

“I mean, I feel like what good that did us was it was great, great stuff for the writer’s room to laugh and enjoy and have fun,” Kondo said, before correcting herself. “Not literally enjoy.”

“With all respect for the book, I think if Clavell were alive today, he probably would be open to some of what we’re talking about,” Marks said, inferring he thinks Clavell would approve of the detail’s omission in 2024. “Which is, you know, as writers, I think we are always in search of new cliches to create and to find new cliches, you kind of have to turn the page from old cliches. And I think some of those cliches are unfortunate.”

“It wasn’t that we were like clutching pearls, like, ‘Oh my gosh! We can’t do that!’ It was more just a question of I think we can find new humor and be funnier in ways.”

Marks also added that they’re fully aware that in forty years’ time, there will likely be details in their adaptation that make future audiences cringe that don’t even occur to us today.

“Without being self-important or self-serious about it, I think there’s plenty of stuff that we’ll probably be eviscerated for in forty years in this show. And I hope so. I hope we get there.” 

For now, we’ll have to accept that in 2024, it’s probably best to cut out John Blackthorne’s problematically enormous penis. Sorry, Mura’s mom.