Kingdom Live Action Movie Earns 5 Billion Yen In Japan

Kingdom may not be one of the most popular anime/manga series in the United States, but it’s certainly making its presence known in the place of its birth, Japan. Released into theaters on April 19th of this year, the live action adaptation of the anime that follows the character of Ri Shin as he attempts to fulfill his dream of becoming one of the world’s greatest generals. Cutting its way into theaters, the movie has already pulled in 5 Billion Yen, or around $45 Million USD.

While the manga itself is currently running strong with around 54 volumes, the anime adaptation only last for two seasons, premiering in 2013 and subsequently ending in 2014. Though with the popularity of the live action movie making itself known, we wouldn’t be surprised to see a resurgence of a potential new anime series, or additional season, announcement at some point in the future.

The producers of the film, Sony Pictures Japan, chose the main star of the film based on a live action short film created to distill, and promote, the Kingdom franchise. Kento Yamazaki reprises his role of Shin here and he is certainly up to the task of bringing this character to life.

Funimation Productions will be bringing the film to the shores of the United States and Canada this summer, with the exact date still up in the air. Whether or not this leaves open the possibility of the property receiving its own American remake is yet to be seen but with Hollywood always hungry to option new franchises, it could be an inevitability.

Are you excited to see the live action adaptation of the anime/manga series Kingdom? Would you root for a potential Hollywood remake of the property? Let us know in the comments or feel free to hit me up directly on Twitter @EVComedy to talk all things comics and anime.

If you are not familiar with Kingdom, then you have quite a bit to read. The series was created by Yasuhira Hara and is still on-going. The story is set in China during the Warring States period and follows two orphans named Ri Shin and Hyou. When the latter dies, Shin finds himself involved in a conspiracy which allows him to join the army. Shin dreams of becoming the world’s greatest general, and the hero tries to do so by helping Ei Sei of Quin unify China before its internal conflicts split it apart.

Hara’s series first debuted in Shueisha’s Weekly Young Jump in 2006, and has been collected into 54 volumes. The series was adapted into an anime series that ran for two seasons from 2013 to 2014, and has been adapted for an English language release by Funimation.