Shogun writers explain why they cut Blackthorne’s “peerless part”

FX’s Shogun, based on the 1975 novel of the same name, has become the biggest talk of the town — but a certain grand description of John Blackthorne’s male genitalia was cut out of the series.

The series Shogun, by Rachel Kondo and Justin Marks, takes the novel and shifts the power play to focus on John Blackthorne, Lord Toranaga, and Lady Mariko. Set in historical Japan, Blackthorne is an English sailor thrust into a world he has never encountered.

Blackthorne must learn a new culture and way of life as he’s shipwrecked with no other option and amid turmoil. James Clavell’s books interweave historical aspects of 16000s Japan. Everything from politics, family honor, and the samurai, to how the Japanese see outsiders.

It’s been revealed that for Shogun, a big change needed to be made to how Clavell describes Blackthorne’s male anatomy in his books to better fit the series.

John Blackthorne’s male anatomy was too big

In the original books, Blackthorn’s penis is described as the largest Japanese women have ever seen, but the creators of the Shogun series decided not to outright address it.

In an interview with Decider, Kondo and Marks laughed at the deep dive into how Clavell brazenly wrote scenes centered on Blackthorn’s larger-than-life penis. It’s described in the books as a “peerless part.”

Kondo revealed it was a comical topic of discussion in the writer’s room. But it was ultimately a stereotype of male anatomy between Japanese and English men. Marks explained Clavell would have likely agreed with having omitted the “peerless part” description.

“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,” he said.

“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.”

Carvell’s books delve into immense detail about how Japanese women view Blackthorne’s penis. They even portray a scene where Mura’s wife and mother request to watch him as he is bathed, both eager to witness the grand spectacle of his well-endowed nether regions.

Seeing it even had one of the women clapping and saying she can die happily now. His penis becomes a running joke throughout the books.