Prime Video‘s Fallout is one of the biggest streaming success stories of 2024. Based on the video game franchise of the same name, the Ella Purnell- and Walton Goggins-starring series brought in 65 million viewers during its first 16 days of availability. That made it the second most-watched series ever on the streaming service.
Prime Video hopes to find the same level of success with another series based on a video game (even without the raw sex appeal of The Ghoul).
Like a Dragon: Yakuza is a six-episode action-crime series inspired by the Yakuza series of Sega games, including 2020’s Yakuza: Like a Dragon (the slightly different title isn’t at all confusing!) and this year’s acclaimed Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth. Here’s everything else you need to know about the show, including the plot, cast, and when it’s coming out.
Plot
Set in 1995 and 2005, Like a Dragon: Yakuza is about Kazuma Kiryu, “a fearsome and peerless Yakuza warrior with a strong sense of justice, duty, and humanity,” according to Variety. It appears the show will be at least partially based on the first game, 2005’s Yakuza, which follows Kazuma and his lifelong friends after he’s released from serving 10 years in prison.
Prime Video teased that Like a Dragon: Yakuza “showcases modern Japan and the dramatic stories of these intense characters, such as the legendary Kazuma Kiryu, that games in the past have not been able to explore.” The show is directed by Take Masaharu and Takimoto Kengo, with a screenplay and story from Sean Crouch and Yugo Nakamura, and a Japanese screenplay by Yoshida Yasuhiro and Yamada Kana.
“I have poured out my heart, soul, and the experience that I have garnered over 35 years into Like a Dragon: Yakuza,” said Masaharu in a statement. Executive producer and Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio (which develops the games) head Yokoyama Masayoshi added, “Since the day I first put pen to paper on the original Yakuza script, I’ve never once thought about revisiting any of my work on the series… However, if I were ever sent to the past through some kind of cosmic joke, this is the experience I’d want to create. If I had to go through the wringer anyhow, I’d want to make the most engaging versions of Kamurochō and Kazuma Kiryu I could.”
And hey, if it helps Amazon sell some extra copies of the Yakuza Remastered Collection, Prime Video would probably be cool with that.
Cast
The only casting information that’s been announced so far is Takeuchi Ryoma (Kamen Rider Drive) as Kiryu Kazuma.
Release Date
The first three episodes of Like a Dragon: Yakuza drop on Prime Video on Friday, October 25, followed by three more episodes on the following Friday, November 1.
Trailer
There’s no trailer for Like a Dragon: Yakuza, but there is a trailer for Yakuza: Like a Dragon. You’ll have to make do with that for now.
