The Knights of the Zodiac, live adaptation of the cult series of the same name, has just revealed its French release date!
After unveiling two small trailers last November and then February, the live adaptation of the Knights of the Zodiac reveals its French release date!
Sony Pictures, through a press release, announces that the feature film will be released in cinemas in France on May 24, 2023.
The live-action film adapted from Masami Kurumada’s cult series is directed by Polish Tomasz Baginski. He was notably producer of the series The Witcher on Netflix. As for the script, it is signed Kiel Murray (Cars), Josh Campbell and Matt Stuecken (10 Cloverfield Lane).
Seiya, hero of the saga, is interpreted by the American-Japanese actor Mackenyu Arata. Revealed in Pacific Rim Uprising, he will also be one of the outstanding characters of the One Piece live series on Netflix, another expected adaptation of a cult manga. He will slip into the Roronoa Zoro costume.
Note that Mackenyu, 25, is the son of the late comedian Sonny Chiba, who died last August. Sean Bean and Famke Janssen will also be there. The first will slip into the costume of Alman Kido, Seiya’s mentor.
As for Famke Janssen, she will play Marine de l’Aigle, one of the 24 Silver Knights serving the goddess Athena. The latter is played by Madison Iseman, actress revealed in the new Jumanji films with Dwayne Johnson.
Mark Dacascos, renowned martial artist (The Pact of Wolves, Crying Freeman, John Wick Parabellum), will also be there in an as yet undisclosed role. Finally, Diego Tinoco will slip into the armor of the Ikki Knight of the Phoenix, one of the most popular characters with fans.
Note that studio Toei, to whom we owe the famous animated series, co-produced the feature film with the Americans of Sony Pictures. The Japanese are indeed very committed to the process.
Note that this feature film should be the first part of a saga made up of 6 films, as Yoshi Ikezawa, producer of Toei Animation, has already announced. The studio has great ambitions for this license which it has been developing for more than 10 years. The budget of the first opus amounts to 60 million dollars.
Last July, the producer told Variety that the manga Knights of the Zodiac had been a great success in North America, Latin America, Europe and China. “So we already have an established fanbase in many parts of the world. That’s why Sony Pictures reached out to us.”
“The original manga has 28 comic volumes. The original anime series had 140 episodes, plus 30 or 40 sequels that belong to the original comic. So that’s almost 200 episodes. You can make a lot of movies with that”he added.
“And, after the success of Marvel, the studios are looking for intellectual properties that can lead to sequels, like Harry Potter or Hunger Games. At the moment, we are looking at a set of six films.”
See you on May 24, 2023 in theaters to judge the result. The fans of the first hour will undoubtedly be there for this adaptation awaited at the turn, especially after the disappointment linked to the Netflix series in 3D.