Unleashing Warrior Spirit: Kento Yamazaki and Ryo Yoshizawa Unite in ‘Kingdom’ – A Bond Forged in Battle
Kingdom: The Return of the Great General Stage Greeting
Actors Kento Yamazaki and Ryo Yoshizawa attended the stage greeting for the blockbuster film “Kingdom: The Return of the Great General” held in Tokyo.
The film “Kingdom” is based on the manga of the same name by Yasuhisa Hara. Set during the Spring and Autumn Warring States period in BC, the story depicts the epic tale of Shin, a war orphan who dreams of becoming a great general of the world, and Ei Masa, a young king who aims to unify China.
The first film was released in 2019, the second film “Distant Earth” was released in 2022, and the third film “Flame of Fate” was released in 2023, and all of them exceeded 5 billion yen in box office receipts. The fourth installment, “The General’s Organization,” released in July, became the No. 1 hit in the series with box office receipts of over 7.6 billion yen and an audience of 5.19 million.
Yamazaki and Yoshizawa Reflect on Their Journey
During the farewell on stage, a large board was set up with a large number of photos from the scene. The two looked back on their progress so far in front of the board. Yamazaki said, “I grew up with Nobu, it’s been seven or eight years, including the preparation,” and added, “When I was filming the first series, Nobu, who aimed to become a great general of the world, and Hiroshi, they were trying to do things like Ei Masa and I thought, ‘Let’s do it,’ and I was really excited,” he said, recalling how the two of them encouraged him to grow as an actor.
Special Screening and Gifts for Fans
During the stage greeting, it was announced that the third cheering screening would be held on September 20, and that it had been decided that gifts would be distributed to attendees from September 21. The gift for visitors will be a special postcard with handwritten messages from Yamazaki and Yoshizawa.
Yamazaki said, “I want you to join me in the final battle and cheer for me,” and Yoshizawa also said, ”I think General Ouki’s line, ‘This Ouki is on my back,’ almost made me laugh out loud. At the cheering projection, please scream with all your might,” he said.
A Message from the Actors
Yamazaki said, “We came from the beginning with the desire to increase our passion and make it even more amazing. It was thanks to the feelings of the people who watched it that it became a passionate work that received so much love. I’m very happy. We are still screening the film, so I hope we can get some energy and enthusiasm from “Kingdom” and continue to make it even more exciting.”
The moderator for this day was Takashi Yoshimura from the comedy duo Heisei Nobushikobushi, who is a huge fan of Kingdom.