- Global premiere on Netflix on November 13 with six episodes, available in Spain and Europe.
- 292 ex-samurai compete for 100.000 billion yen by stealing wooden tags and racing to Tokyo.
- Junichi Okada leads the project as star, producer, and action coordinator; Michihito Fujii directs.
- Hiroshi Abe joins as Gentosai Okabe and the series focuses on physical action and realism.
In the midst of the boom in large-scale historical dramas, Netflix is preparing the arrival of Last Samurai Standing around the world, including Spain. Set in the It was Meiji., the series proposes a survival game with ruthless rules and a current look at the samurai legacy.
The project is headed by Junichi Okada, who takes on a triple role as protagonist, producer and action director. He plays Shujiro Saga, a former assassin who enters the tournament to save his wife and son, in a story directed by Michihito Fujii and designed to connect with audiences in Europe and the rest of the world.
Release date and availability in Spain and Europe
The series arrives on Netflix on November 13th with a six-episode season. It will be available to watch from day one on Netflix Spain and in the rest of the European territories with an active subscription, without intermediate windows.
The promotional campaign includes an official trailer and artwork that anticipate the tone of the production. One of the main focuses is Gentosai Okabe, played by Hiroshi Abe, whose imposing and ambiguous presence upsets the game's balance from his first appearance.
Plot, characters and creative approach
The story is set in 1878, with the samurai class already disbanded and swords banned. In that context, 292 ex-warriors gather at night in the Tenryu-ji Temple (Kyoto) to start a clandestine contestEach participant carries a wooden plaque and must snatch that of his rivals to start a race towards TokyoThe promised prize amounts to 100.000 million yen.
The start at Tenryu-ji was resolved with a mass melee Filmed over several nights, with the cast and crew on-site, prioritizing physical action and filming in real-life conditions. The goal was to convey closeness and danger without relying on gimmicks that would dilute the impact.
Shujiro Saga, the protagonist played by Okada, enters the game for a personal purpose: to gather the means to take care of his family. In front of him arises Gentosai Okabe (Hiroshi Abe), a contender of enormous stature and presence, with white hair and a disturbing aura, which others see as a “monster.”
The competition deploys very different survival tactics: from the use of bows at a distance to hand-to-hand combat with daggers or katanas, through stealth strategies and fleeting cooperation. With this range, the pace remains high and the suspense revolves around who will resist and how.
Beyond the pulse of war, the series reflects on identity in times of change. The director Michihito Fujii It seeks a balance between respect for jidai-geki and a vigorous staging, supported by a production design with recurring motifs—such as the leaf vein—that underline destiny and fragility throughout the sets and costumes.
The adaptation is based on the novels Ikusagami de Shogo Imamura (awarded the Naoki Prize), reuniting Fujii with Okada following their previous work. The team's stated intention: to deliver a large-scale period drama that speaks to contemporary language without losing its human pulse.
Main cast and crew
- Protagonist: Junichi Okada (Shujiro Saga)
- Featured cast: Hiroshi Abe (Gentosai Okabe), Riho Yoshioka, Hideaki Itō, Kazunari Ninomiya, Kaya Kiyohara, Yumia Fujisaki, Masahiro Higashide, Shota Sometani, Taichi Saotome, Yuya Endo, Kairi Jo, Yasushi Fuchikami, Takayuki Yamada, Wataru Ichinose, Hiroshi Tamaki, Gaku Hamada, Takaaki Enoki, Yoshi Sakou, Satoru Matsuo, Toshihiro Yashiba, Daisuke Kuroda, Mitsuo Yoshihara, Takashi Sasano, Yuya Matsuura, Ryudo Uzaki, Arata Iura, Tetsushi Tanaka, Ayumu Nakajima
- Address: Michihito Fujii and Kento Yamaguchi
- Screenwriting: Michihito Fujii, Kento Yamaguchi and Risa Yashiro
- Music: Takashi Ohmama
- Cinematography: Keisuke Imamura and Hiroki Yamada
- Production Design: Yui Miyamori; wardrobe: Masae Miyamoto
- Production:: Office Shirous, planned and produced by Netflix; producer: Kosuke Oshida; executive producer: Shinichi Takahashi
The production is located among Netflix's most ambitious in Japan by volume of action scenes and the scale of the technical and human device. Some of the initial footage was shown at Asian festivals before its global release, as a preview of its international reach.
Although it is inevitably compared to other recent phenomena, the team insists on its own personality: It is an action drama that reinterprets the Meiji period with a stylized look and, at the same time, grounded in the physicality of its sequences.
With its mix of survival, codes of honor and historical spectacle, The series is aimed at those who enjoy big-budget ensemble thrillers. and those who are looking for period fiction that does not renounce the contemporary narrative pulse.
I am a technology enthusiast who has turned his "geek" interests into a profession. I have spent more than 10 years of my life using cutting-edge technology and tinkering with all kinds of programs out of pure curiosity. Now I have specialized in computer technology and video games. This is because for more than 5 years I have been writing for various websites on technology and video games, creating articles that seek to give you the information you need in a language that is understandable to everyone.
If you have any questions, my knowledge ranges from everything related to the Windows operating system as well as Android for mobile phones. And my commitment is to you, I am always willing to spend a few minutes and help you resolve any questions you may have in this internet world.