Movies & TV / News
47 Ronin Sequel Begins Production
A sequel to the Keanu Reeves action film 47 Ronin is officially in production, and will star Anna Akana and Mark Dacascos. Universal 1440 Entertainment has announced that the film has began principal photography in Budapest.
The film is a sequel to the 2013 film that starred Reeves as an 18th century ronin samurai who, along with 46 others, take on a powerful enemy to avenge the death of their daimyo. That film was a critical and financial flop, but Universal apparently sees potential in the sequel which is set in the modern world “where samurai clans have continued to exist in secrecy for centuries.”
“We are excited to continue the story of these ancient Japanese samurai warriors with this next chapter of the 47 Ronin film franchise set in modern times,” says Glenn Ross, General Manager and Executive Vice President, Universal 1440 Entertainment. “This all-new production features some of today’s most talented international action stars. We think fans worldwide will be thrilled with director Ron Yuan’s vision of diverse and inclusive samurai warriors.”
The new film comes from a script penned by WWE alumna April “AJ Lee” Mendez and her writing partner, Aimee Garcia. The two have previously collaborated on several comic books including an adaptation of Glow and Dungeons & Dragons: At the Spine of the World.
The film has another (albeit more tangential) connection to wrestling, as co-star Akana played Batista in Max Landis’ 2015 Wrestling Isn’t Wrestling short film. She also appeared in Netflix’s Jupiter’s Legacy as Raikou and had a cameo in Ant-Man.
The film will be distributed on non-theatrical platforms sometime in 2022.