Netflix recently shared the first teaser trailer for Last Samurai Standing, an upcoming battle royale series set in the Meiji Restoration.
Even though we’ve seen plenty of battle royale movies and shows over the past few years, this upcoming series has an intriguing twist. The fact that it’s set in late 1800s Japan should give the show a unique identity. After all, the fact that it’s set in the Meiji Restoration means it will feature remnants of samurai culture combined with Japan’s increasing westernization at the time.
This is exactly what we see in the show’s teaser, as it features samurai characters with characters wearing Western-style clothing. Plus the teaser also gives us a taste of the action and violence that we can expect. Check it out here:
Meanwhile, its premise is described as:
Set in the late 19th century during the Meiji period, Last Samurai Standing thrusts viewers into a relentless life-and-death game. At nightfall, 292 warriors — including lead character Shujiro Saga (Junichi Okada) — gather at Kyoto’s Tenryuji Temple, each lured by the promise of a massive cash prize. Each donning a single wooden tag, participants must steal the tags of their rivals and race to Tokyo to claim victory. As the signal sounds, the temple erupts into chaos, launching a brutal fight for survival where only one can stand victorious.
According to Netflix, this show promises to be one of Japan’s largest-scale shows yet, as the melee at Tenryuji Temple (previewed in the teaser) was filmed over multiple days and involved more than 1,000 cast and crew members. As such, this has all the makings of another Netflix hit, not just in Japan, but also internationally.
Joining Junichi Okada in the series is an impressive cast list, including Yumia Fujisaka, Kaya Kiyohara, Masahiro Higashide, Shota Sometani, Taichi Saotome, Yuya Endo, Yasushi Fuchikami, Kairi Jo, Takayuki Yamada, Wataru Ichinose, Riho Yoshioka, Kazunari Ninomiya, Hiroshi Tamaki, and Hideaki Ito.
Last Samurai Standing will be released worldwide on November 13, exclusively on Netflix.