News

Live-Action Blackfox: Age of the Ninja Spinoff Casts Chihiro Yamamoto

The official website for Blackfox: Age of the Ninja, the live-action tokusatsu (special effects) period drama spinoff for Studio 3Hz' Blackfox original anime film, began streaming a new teaser video for the project on Thursday. The video reveals the cast and more staff for the project. The site also revealed a new visual.

Chihiro Yamamoto (seen in visual above) stars in the project as protagonist Rikka Isurugi. The other cast members include Maimi Yajima, Sakurako Ōkubo, Asami Fujioka, Yūki Kubota, Hideo Ishiguro, Kanon Miyahara, Masayuki Deai, and Kōji Nakamura.

New staff members include Yasutaka Nakamura as the composer, and Atsushi Saitō as the designer of the Blackfox suit.

The drama will debut this fall. Veteran Kamen Rider and Super Sentai tokusatsu series director and Power Rangers stunt coordinator Kōichi Sakamoto is directing the drama, while Naoki Hayashi is writing the screenplay. Hayashi is also in charge of screenplay for the anime.

The website describes the project as "the world's first project interlocking animation and samurai drama."

While the anime will take place in the near-future starring a descendant of a ninja clan, the live-action drama will take place in the past during the age of ninja and samurai. The live-action project's official site describes the story (edited for clarity):

The era when Samurai and Ninja existed in Japan. Rikka Isurugi was born and raised in a Ninja clan secluded from society. He has met Miya, a girl with a mysterious power, who got lost in the mountains. Despite Rikka being concerned that someone is pursuing Miya, she asks Hyoue Isurugi, the head of Isurugi clan, to avenger her father. Soon after, Rikka faces danger with the attack of the Negoro group but….

The anime film will open in Japan on October 5. The official website for the anime describes the anime's story in English:

Living in a ninja residence tucked away in a corner of a futuristic city is Rikka, the eldest daughter of a Ninja clan, who looks up to her father—a researcher—very much.
Carrying on with her life normally, Rikka's home came suddenly under attack one day. Driven into a corner, what would she do to overcome this crisis?
Rip darkness to pieces and become "BLACK"!

Kazuya Nomura (Robotics;Notes, Joker Game, Ghost in the Shell: The New Movie) is the chief director of the anime at Studio 3Hz (Princess Principal, Flip Flappers, Sword Art Online Alternative: Gun Gale Online), and Keisuke Shinohara (episode director for Little Witch Academia, DEVILMAN crybaby, Kiznaiver) is directing the show. Naoki Hayashi (Citrus, Flip Flappers) is the scriptwriter. Atsushi Saitō (High School Fleet sub-character design) is the character designer. Fumihiro Katagai (Princess Principal, Chaika the Coffin Princess) is the mechanical designer, Masaru Yokoyama is composing the music, and Kenji Andou (Votoms Finder, Tiger & Bunny) is credited as the Animaldrawn designer. Infinite is producing the work. fripSide are performing the theme song "BLACKFOX."

Source: Blackfox: Age of the Ninja project's website, The Mainichi Shimbun's Mantan Web