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Live-Action Rurouni Kenshin Sequel Films' 1st Photo Shown
posted on by Lynzee Loveridge
The staff for the official website of live-action Rurouni Kenshin film star Takeru Satoh posted the first on-set photograph of the 2014 sequel films on Monday. The photo of Satoh as Kenshin Himura in a traditional Japanese building marks the beginning of shooting.
The films are slated for next summer and will cover the Kyoto arc of Nobuhiro Watsuki's original manga — specifically, the story will be split between the Kyoto Taika-hen (Great Kyoto Fire) and Densetsu no Saigo-hen (The End of a Legend) films. Death Note's Tatsuya Fujiwara is joining the cast as the former government assassin Shishio Makoto.
Keishi Ōtomo (Ryōmaden) directed the first live-action Rurouni Kenshin film, which opened in Japan last August. The film starred Satoh and Emi Takei (Kyō, Koi o Hajimemasu, For Love's Sake/Ai to Makoto). It had its North American premiere in Los Angeles in October, and it will play in San Francisco on July 28 and August 1. The first film will have its Japanese television premiere in NTV's Friday night movie timeslot.
Watsuki's manga ran from 1994 to 1999 in Shueisha's Weekly Shonen Jump magazine, and the creator also drew the Rurouni Kenshin: Restoration retelling in Jump Square from May 2012 to this month.
An anime series aired in Japan from 1996 to 1998 and spawned several anime film and video projects. Viz Media publishes both manga in North America, while Media Blasters released the television anime. ADV Films released two later original video anime projects and a film on DVD, and Aniplex is released these three titles on Blu-ray Disc.
Thanks to Ukiyaseed and Daniel Zelter for the news tips
