'Yakuza' Live-Action Series Teaser Premieres

Like a Dragon: Yakuza to Premiere on October 24A Fresh Take on Kazuma Kiryu

The teaser featured Japanese actor Ryoma Takeuchi as the legendary Kazuma Kiryu and Kento Kaku as the series’ main antagonist, Akira Nishikiyama. Director of RGG Studio Masayoshi Yokoyama remarked that Takeuchi, renowned for his performance in the series ‘Kamen Rider Drive’, and Kaku brought novel interpretations to their roles.

"Candidly, their portrayal of the characters diverges substantially from the original narrative," the director stated in a Sega interview at SDCC. "However, that is precisely its allure." Yokoyama conveyed that while the game had perfected Kiryu, he valued the show's unique perspective on both characters.

The teaser provided only fleeting glimpses of the show, but fans were granted a preview of the iconic Coliseum in Underground Purgatory and Kiryu’s confrontation with Futoshi Shimano.

Loosely inspired by the first game, the series chronicles the lives of Kazuma Kiryu and his childhood friends, showing fans a part of Kiryu "that games in the past have not been able to uncover."

Sega’s Interview with Masayoshi Yokoyama

Despite initial fan concerns about how the show’s gritty ambience might not do justice to the game’s whimsical moments, Masayoshi Yokoyama assured fans that the upcoming Prime Video series will capture "aspects of the source material’s essence."

In an interview with Sega at SDCC, Yokoyama explained that his biggest fear for the live-action adaptation is that it "would just be an imitation. Rather, I wanted people to experience Like a Dragon as if it was their first encounter with it."

"To be honest, it was so good to the level I was envious," Yokoyama continued. "We created the setting two decades ago, but they were able to make it their own… Yet they didn’t neglect the original narrative."

After watching the show, he noted that "If you’re new to the game, it’s a new world. If you know it, you’ll be grinning the whole time." He even teased that there will be a major surprise at the end of the first episode that made him scream and jump on his feet.

Not much is shown in the teaser, but fans will not have to wait for long, as Like a Dragon: Yakuza is set to premiere exclusively on Amazon Prime Video on October 24 of this year, with the first three episodes dropping simultaneously. The remaining three episodes will be released on November 1.