Introduction

Blade of the 47 Ronin is a 2022 American action-fantasy film directed by Ron Yuan, from a script co-written by John Swetnam, Aimee Garcia, and AJ Mendez, and is intended to be a sequel to the 2013 film, 47 Ronin.

Set 300 years after its predecessor, the project was released as a Netflix Original Film on 25 October 2022.

Also known as Blade of the 47: Revenge of the Onna-Bugeisha (working title, US).

Outline

The continued story of ancient Japanese Rōnin warriors set 300 years after 47 Ronin, in a modern-day world where Samurai clans exist in complete secrecy.

Cast

• Anna Akana.
• Mark Dacascos.
• Teresa Ting.
• Mike Moh.
• Dustin Nguyen.
• Yoshi Sudarso.
• Luna Fujimoto.
• Chris Pang.
• Daniel Southworth.

Production

Development

In August 2020, a sequel to 47 Ronin was announced to be in development with Ron Yuan serving as director. The project was described by the filmmaker as “genre-blending”, as a combination of martial arts, action, horror and cyber-punk genres. The plot of the film will take place 300 years “into the future”, and will be produced by Universal 1440 Entertainment and distributed by Netflix. Production is scheduled to begin in the first quarter of 2021.

In April 2021, Aimee Garcia and AJ Mendez joined the production as co-screenwriters; the pair of writing-collaborators’ first feature film credit. By December 2021, it was revealed that John Swetnam had also joined the project as an additional screenwriter.

Casting

By December 2021, Anna Akana and Mark Dacascos joined the cast in leading roles; while Teresa Ting, Mike Moh, Dustin Nguyen, Yoshi Sudarso, and Chris Pang serve as the supporting cast.

Filming

Principal photography had commenced by December 2021 in Budapest, Hungary. Additionally, it was clarified that the plot will be set 300 years after the first film, as opposed to being set “in the future”. The fictional plot, set in modern-day, centres around factions of Samurai who have operated in secrecy for centuries. The primary cast was announced, with Tim Kwok named as producer. The film will be a joint-venture production between Universal Pictures, Universal 1440 Entertainment, and Scrappy Heart Productions, and distributed by Netflix.

General Manager and Executive Vice President of Universal 1440 Entertainment, Glenn Ross, expressed excitement for the project while announcing the studio’s intentions for the project to be the next instalment in a “47 Ronin franchise”.

Release

Blade of the 47 Ronin was released on 25 October 2022, via streaming by Universal Filmed Entertainment Group as a Netflix Original Film.

Production & Filming Details

• Director(s):
  • Ron Yuan.
• Producer(s):
  • Jonathan Halperyn … co-producer.
  • Daniel Kresmery … co-producer.
  • Tim Kwok … producer.
  • John Orlando … studio executive.
  • Anne-Marie Roberge … co-producer.
  • Share Stallings … studio executive.
  • Virág Varga … line producer.
  • Ron Yuan … co-producer.
• Writer(s):
  • Aimee Garcia.
  • A.J. Mendez.
  • John Swetnam.
• Music:
  • Joseph Hahn.
  • Alec Puro.
• Cinematography:
  • L.T. Chang.
• Editor(s):
  • Charles Norris.
• Production:
  • Universal 1440 Entertainment.
  • Hero Squared.
  • Scrappy Heart Productions.
  • Universal Pictures.
• Distributor(s):
  • Netflix.
• Release Date: 25 October 2022 (Internet).
• Rating: R.
• Running Time: 106 minutes.
• Country: US.
• Language: English.

Video Link(s)