Ren Meguro Joins Shogun Season 2 — So Who Will He Play?
Shogun locks in Japanese pop idol and actor Ren Meguro for Season 2 as Kazutada, with the star—deeply moved by Season 1 on Disney+—now joining the saga.
Smart pickup by FX: Shogun just added Ren Meguro to Season 2, and that is a very good fit. If you know him from J-pop group Snow Man or from the recent run of TV dramas and films, you know he can carry quiet, layered characters. Here, he is playing someone named Kazutada.
So what did he say about joining?
Meguro admitted he got pulled in by Season 1 (he watched on Disney+) and felt he had to be part of it. His own words:
As a Japanese person, I felt a compelling urge to be part of this groundbreaking production.
— Ren Meguro, speaking to Variety
The Season 2 picture (as much as they will share)
FX is keeping the Kazutada specifics under lock and key, but the broad strokes are set: the story jumps ahead about ten years from the end of Season 1 and stays anchored to Lord Toranaga (Hiroyuki Sanada) and John Blackthorne (Cosmo Jarvis). Fumi Nikaido is back as Ochiba. New faces joining alongside Meguro include Asami Mizukawa as Aya, Masataka Kubota as Hyuga, and Jun Kunimura as Goda.
Behind the camera, Hiromi Kamata and Takeshi Fukunaga are directing, and yes, co-creator Justin Marks is stepping in to direct as well. Disney+ Singapore even flagged the casting on Instagram, if you saw that rolling through your feed. Production starts January 2026 in Vancouver, which is a long runway, but this show is not exactly a quick turn.
Quick primer on Ren Meguro
Meguro started in music, then tore through TV and film with the kind of performances that tend to come with trophies. If you missed a beat, here is the fast version:
- Age: 28
- From: Tokyo, Japan
- Group: Snow Man (debuted 2020)
- Notable TV: Silent (played a hearing-impaired character; earned the Hashida Award for Best Newcomer), Trillion Game (rolled out globally on Netflix), My Love Mix-Up!
- Notable films: My Happy Marriage (as Kiyoka Kudo; Best Emerging Actor at the 15th TAMA Film Awards), Phases of the Moon (Best New Actor at the 96th Kinema Junpo Awards)
- Recent honors: Best Actor at the TV LIFE Awards
- Shogun role: Kazutada
What to expect from Kazutada
No plot teases yet, but Meguro has a track record of finding the emotional center of a character without overselling it. Given the time jump and the political chessboard this show loves, I would not be shocked if Kazutada ends up being one of those quietly pivotal pieces. We will see.
Where to watch
Shogun Season 2 will stream on Hulu in the US and Disney+ internationally when it premieres. Season 1 is up on both right now if you need a refresher or finally want to see what all the fuss was about.