Yakuza orders, upon transforming into Kazuma Kiryu

Like a Dragon: Yakuza, a live-action Amazon Original drama line based on Sega’s long-running game franchise, will begin airing on Top Video on October 25. Directed by Masaharu Pul (The Bear Director), in part the show follows the story of the primary game, 2005’s Yakuza, Generation tells an untouched story. The show follows line protagonist Kazuma Kiryu in his misadventures in Japan’s crime world, becoming interested in the fictional Tokyo red-blazed district Kamurocho in both the mid-1990s and 2005.

Actor Ryoma Takeuchi is enjoying playing arch anti-hero Kiryu. Takeuchi played the lead role in Kamen Rider Force in 2014, temporarily gaining a large audience in Japan, before taking part in more than one status drama line and films. He voiced Justice Smith’s character Tim Goodman in the Japanese dub of the 2019 Detective Pikachu film adaptation, in which he also made an on-screen cameo as a Pokémon school teacher. An extremely physical actor with a background in football, Takeuchi is also a sensitive performer who has gained fame for his roles in theatre. Like a Dragon: Yakuza will be the actor’s first starring role in a world drama line-up.

“I was surprised to be offered this role,” Takeuchi told IGN Japan shortly after the line’s announcement at Gajoen Tokyo, Meguro Group’s historic resort. “I knew about the game series and had played the first game at my uncle’s house. Playing a character from an existing work is a real challenge, and I considered very carefully whether I was suitable to portray Kiryu, and whether it was right for me. From the beginning, I knew I had to give it everything I had, otherwise I’d never be able to leave it.”

Takeuchi explains that he saw Kiryu as a “strong, well-built, heroic character”, but added that it would not be enough to simply copy the qualities that were rejected – at least in Like a Dragon. Because of the story: Yakuza is a partial adaptation and a story untouched by the stage. He says his job was to depict nature with an appreciative appreciation of untouched game, but essentially to create his own personal take on Kazuma Kiryu. He says, “Instead of me becoming Kiryu, I had to create Kiryu from the beginning – that’s when he and I started to connect and become one.”

Takeuchi saw Kiryu as a man who is “hungry for romance.” Like the games, in the show Kiryu is raised in the Sunflower Orphanage after his parents’ death.

Takeuchi says, “I think we all unconsciously chase what’s missing in our lives, and we all want to find love.” “With that in mind, I wondered what Kiryu might be looking for in Kamurocho as he strives to become the Dragon of Dojima. He wants a family, he wants love, and he doesn’t even realize how much it motivates him. He is a hero who lives his life honestly, but he fights when he has to and sometimes makes mistakes.

Despite Kiryu’s popularity among Like a Dragon fans worldwide, Takeuchi says he has avoided the pressure of meeting the expectations of the game’s fans.

“I respect the feelings of fans a lot,” he says. “But when I play a character, I have to express them in my own way, so I can’t pay attention to others’ preconceptions. I researched the games myself to identify Kiryu’s qualities and adapt them into my own style. Of course, I hope fans will be happy with my character – but I can confidently say that I’ve tried my best to play Kiryu. There’s no point in attempting to surpass the original game; Rather, I wanted to show respect for sports while creating something new as an artist.

Standing at 6’1″, Takeuchi has an impressive physique, which he prepared for the role through rigorous training and a carefully controlled diet devised by himself.

In the show, we see Kiryu as the Dragon of Dojima in 2005, a fierce fighter who has honed his body by working out in prison for a decade, while scenes set in the mid-1990s show him in his teens Because he is just starting out. Outside. Takeuchi took care to show the differences between these two eras, partly through wardrobe and makeup (1990s Kiryu has bleached highlights and smooth skin) but also through his body, changing his training accordingly. Made so that the younger version of Kiryu appears less well-built.

He says, “If we had had more time between the filming of the 1990 and 2005 period, I would have gone even further to get a different physique in each era, but I worked hard in the time we had. of.” “For scenes where I would show skin, I adjusted my training to suit that scene.”

In addition to his appearance, Takeuchi’s goal was to portray the difference in Kiryu’s demeanor before and after his rise to the underworld. In the 1990s, when Kiryu and his friends were young and green, Takeuchi thinks their emotions are more intense, their desires more strongly felt.

“I was conscious of the passion and enthusiasm that only youth has,” he says. “It’s the kind of energy you only get in your twenties. I wanted to bring out the warm emotions when Kiryu is young and then tone them down for the 2005 part to provide contrast.

As you’d expect from a Like a Dragon game series, the Amazon Original series promises plenty of action – and Takeuchi does the fight scenes himself. He says that in learning martial arts for the role, he began focusing on Kiryu, the dragon of Dojima who has become an experienced fighter after being sent to prison, and then worked backwards from there.

Takeuchi says, “When the story begins in 1995, Kiryu’s fighting style is still poor and not very effective, as he has not formally learned martial arts and is just using his instincts.” “I wanted to portray him growing as a fighter, as he gradually becomes able to defeat his opponents. So their fighting styles are very different in each of the two eras.

Rather than any specific reference, Kiryu’s fighting style is partly based on the 2005 game and partly created from scratch.

Like the Dragon: Yakuza is actually not Takeuchi’s first time working with Masaharu Take, having appeared as a background extra in the director’s 2014 action-comedy film Into the Hero. “I was on screen for about two seconds,” he laughs, describing Tech as a director who is able to instill passion and positivity on his sets. “Sometimes he gives us complex directions, and sometimes he lets us go for it, which creates a gratifying environment for us actors,” he says.

“I don’t think anyone else could have made a show like this,” he adds. “The take was able to portray the flavor of Kamurocho, a city with a living population. He was very particular about casting the background actors as the residents of Kamurocho through multiple auditions, so that we could easily enter the world he brought to life. It was a luxury.”

Kamurocho is truly alive in the games, almost a character in his own right, and Takeuchi says that great care was taken to recreate him on screen. Kamurocho was originally based on the real-life Tokyo nightlife district; The version we see on the show was shot on a large-scale production set, with the area portrayed slightly differently in each of the show’s two eras.

“Kamurocho in 1995 is a vibrant, warm, bright place full of energy,” Takeuchi says. “The set was so detailed, from every passerby to every corner of its streets, I felt as if I had traveled back in time. It didn’t feel like a set at all. Yes, there are some CG enhancements, but I think it was the guys who really brought it to life. You can’t pretend like this.

On the other hand, after Kiryu’s release from prison and return to Kamurocho in 2005, there have been many changes in the laws, and the atmosphere is cooler than when he left in 1995. While the 1995 Kamurocho has warm colors such as orange, the 2005 has cool browns and blues. It reflects Kiryu’s loneliness, feeling mismatched with the people around him.”

When Like a Dragon: Yakuza hits Prime Video globally in October, it will follow in the footsteps of global hit shows like Shogun and Tokyo Vice in Japan, as well as game adaptations like Amazon’s own incredible Fallout series. The Like a Dragon game franchise is already highly acclaimed and sells well around the world, but the drama series will surely reach an even wider, more diverse audience. While the production involved collaboration across Amazon’s global teams, the series was written, filmed, and produced in Japan. As such, Takeuchi is cautious about the show’s reception overseas.

“I’m excited to see what will happen,” he says. “The games are popular overseas, but the show includes elements that may be distinctly Japanese, and Kiryu is a very Japanese character. . The show also has a specific flavor that may differ from other successful game adaptations, so I’m curious to see how it will be received.

“The show is based in the underworld of Kamurocho and features stories about the Yakuza, but it is also lively. It’s dark, but it’s also bright. Its story is driven by hope, and while it features strong depictions of violence, it also asks questions about the meaning of family, fatherhood, love, and more. These are universal themes that anyone can connect with.”

Although the show’s story will not recreate the game exactly, Takeuchi says that links to the game were inevitable even when creating the show from the ground up. “I think that’s the appeal of the original game series – it’s impossible to stray too far from the original story,” he says. “The game developers at Sega told me that the show is faithful to the games and my performance is faithful to Kiryu, so that’s enough for me!”

Daniel Robson is the lead writer for IGN Japan. to find him on twitter right here,