We had the great opportunity to sit down with the lead stars and main producer behind Amazon’s hotly anticipated Like a Dragon: Yakuza TV series at San Diego Comic-Con.
During this year’s San Diego Comic-Con we got to talk with main Like a Dragon: Yakuza co-stars Ryoma Takeuchi and Kento Kaku, who are playing Like a Dragon series protagonist Kazuma Kiryu and main character Akira Nishikiyama, respectively.
Both the lead stars from the Amazon series were joined by main producer Erik Barmack, former lead of international co-productions at Netflix and now founder/CEO of Wild Sheep Content, the production company behind Amazon’s Like a Dragon: Yakuza TV series.
Without further ado, here’s our full unedited interview with main stars Ryoma Takeuchi, Kento Kaku, and Erik
Niche Gamer: What changes did you guys make from the original characters to create something new? Also, there must be some fans of the original series that are afraid of the changes, so please give some messages to them (新しい作品を作るにあたり、原作キャラからどのような部分に変化をつけて演じられましたか？ また、原作ファンで変化を恐れている方々もいらっしゃると思いま すが、そのような方々へのメッセージをお願いします。)
Ryoma Takeuchi: This time, I did not look at it from the standpoint of how to make the character different from the original work. I was more concerned with how I could incorporate the character of Kazuma Kiryu into my own self for the role. (僕はそういった観点では見ておらず、今作において原作とどのような違いを出して演じるかというよりは、桐生一馬というキャラクターをどのように自分の中に入れ込むかということを意識しました。)
As an actor, I am the one who expresses the character, so I amplified my own idea of Kazuma Kiryu’s inner life, and I played him in 1995 and 2005 by expanding his childhood and other more human aspects such as semi matured part that are not depicted in the game. (やはり俳優として表現するのは自分なので、自分が考える桐生一馬 の内面というものを増幅させ、ゲームで描かれていない幼少期であったり、もっと人間らしい半熟な部分を膨らませて１９９５年 と２００５年を演じました。)
A big focus many fans of Sega’s Like a Dragon / Yakuza series have focused on since the reveal of Amazon’s live-action series is just how different the adaptation will be. If the first trailer wasn’t enough to convince you the show is faithful to the games, our talk with its talent dove more into the love put into the show.
Ryoma Takeuchi: So, of course, Like a Dragon fans may think this show and the original story will be different from each other, but strangely, there are things that link between the two. (もちろんファンの方達は原作と離れてしまうのではないかと思うかもしれません。しかしこれが不思議なことに、今回の作品は原作とどこかリンクする部分があるのです。)
The director also said the same thing as he was directing at the shooting sight. We took on the challenge of not copying the original, which I think is the essence of this show. (監督も現場で見ていてそう言っていましたし、今回我々はあえて原作のコピーをしないということにチャレンジしました。そのことが映像の中でとても良いエッセンスとなっているのではないかと思います。)
Niche Gamer: Sega’s Masayoshi Yokoyama (Ryu ga Gotoku Studio’s head) also said the same thing, didn’t he? (セガの横山昌義氏（龍が如くスタジオ代表・制作総指揮）もそうおっしゃっていましたね。)
Ryoma Takeuchi: We are relieved that the original producers have given their stamp of approval. (原作者が太鼓判を押してくれたので、僕らもほっとしています。)
Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio director and Amazon series executive producer Masayoshi Yokoyama echoed Ryoma’s impressions on the final product of the show.
“When I talked with director (Masaharu) Take, he was speaking to me as if he was the author of the original story (laughs),” Yokoyama said. “To be honest, it was so good to the level I was jealous.”
It’s clear from the first trailer for Like a Dragon: Yakuza that Erik and the entire team behind the adaptation, which is set to premiere this fall, have put a ton of effort into recreating the story and characters that fans of Sega’s games love.
Kento Kaku: The story itself is very cinematic. So, while keeping the core of the story, the essence of live-action and expressions that can only be done in live-action were added. So, I think it can be enjoyed by both fans and non-fans of Like a Dragon all over the world. (しかし、龍が如くのストーリー自体がとても映画的なのです。今作は、ストーリーの核のような部分は残しつつ、実写ならではのエッセンス 、実写でしかできない表現がプラスされました。一つの映像作品として、龍が如くファンの方もそうでない方も、世界中の方々が楽しんでくれるのではないかなと思います。)
As we’ve covered big and ambitious productions from both Amazon Prime Video and Netflix, we were naturally curious how both partners were to work with, especially on adaptations like Like a Dragon / Yakuza that have a very engaged audience.
Niche Gamer: How was it working with Amazon Prime Video compared to Netflix? Both are big platforms offering lots of original and solid content.
Erik Barmack: Amazon has been an incredible partner and what is truly universal about streaming in general is that it’s giving the opportunity for storytellers around the world to get distribution to get in front of tens of millions of fans in ways that wouldn’t have existed 15 years ago.
What’s exciting to me is that the show really could only be made now if you wanted to do it the right way, which is with great Japanese actors and talent. And with a partner that is supporting the launch of a great show in hundreds of markets, literally.
Kento Kaku: I love both! Dos! (laughing) I really like them both. It’s easy to reach all of the world than before because of platforms like Netflix and Amazon, it’s amazing. I really love both! (両方とも好きです！（スペイン語で）2つとも！（笑）本当に両方とも好きなんです。NetflixやAmazonのようなストリーミングサービスのお陰で以前よりも世界に作品が届きやすくなって、それはとても素晴らしいことです。両方とも愛しています！)
Niche Gamer: Are there any other game to TV/movie adaptations you’d like to work on?
Erik Barmack: If I were to adapt other games my top choices would be Devil May Cry – or for my kids, Among Us.
Niche Gamer: Thank you for sitting down with us! ありがとうございます!
Like a Dragon: Yakuza will run for six episodes as covered in our previous report, and has Masaharu Take, best known for drama series The Naked Director, serving as director.
The new Like a Dragon: Yakuza series is set to premiere exclusively via Amazon Prime on October 24th.
