Hey, 90s kids! We’re finally seeing progress in the long-awaited live action adaptation of popular manga-turned-anime Yu Yu Hakusho or Ghost Fighter. Netflix recently released character posters for our four main characters. Check out who’s who with this list of actors, the characters they’re playing, and where you’ve seen them before Yu Yu Hakusho.
Takumi Kitamura
His role: Yusuke Urameshi (a.k.a. Eugene), the former delinquent turned “Underworld Detective” in charge of investigating any events in the human world involving the supernatural
Where you’ve seen him before:
Haruki Shiga in Let Me Eat Your Pancreas (2017)
Takemichi Hanagaki in Tokyo Revengers (year)
Rio Yamamoto in Love Me, Love Me Not (2020)
Naomi Katagaki (voice) in Hello World (2019)
Shuhei Uesugi
His role: Kazuma Kuwabara (a.k.a. Alfred), Yusuke’s close friend and former classmate and the only actual human among the four main characters, who has a strong sixth sense, often assisting his friend in his cases
Where you’ve seen him before:
Hajime Kujo in One Week Friends (2017)
Naoto Aida in A.I. Love You (2016)
Jun Shison
His role: Kurama (a.k.a. Dennis), the wily and perceptive fox demon hiding and living in a human body and one of three wanted demons Yusuke is chasing
Where you’ve seen him before:
Hibiki (voice) in Bubble (2022)
Masa in The Way of the Househusband (2020)
Atsumu “Yukiatsu” Matsuyuki in Anohana (2015)
Kanata Hongo
His role: Hiei (a.k.a. Vincent), the rage-filled spiky-haired fire demon and one of three wanted demons Yusuke is chasing
Where you’ve seen him before:
Ryoma Echizen in The Prince of Tennis (2006)
Armin Arlert in Attack On Titan (2015)
The manga
The source material for the series is a manga of the same name written and illustrated by Yoshihiro Togashi and published from 1990 to 1994. The manga sold millions of copies in Japan and worldwide, and it has also won the prestigious Shogakukan Manga Award in 1993.
The anime
In 1992, the manga was adapted into an anime series, which originally aired in Japan from 1992 to 1994. It was distributed all over the world, including the Philippines, where the anime was dubbed and names were localized to characters we now know better as Eugene, Vincent, Dennis, and Alfred. As it grew more and more popular in the Philippines, the anime was rerun several times, gaining a larger fanbase.
The live-action series
At the helm of the live-action adaptation of the well-loved manga-turned-anime is director Sho Tsukikawa (known for Let Me Eat Your Pancreas) and VFX supervisor Ryo Sakaguchi (credited in X-Men, 2012, Thor, Eternals, and more Hollywood blockbuster films). The series is set to be released in December 2023. It seems far away, but from what we’ve seen so far, it might just be worth the wait!
Bonus: Eugene . . . Domingo?
Amid all the excitement for the upcoming live-action series, Pinoy humor has made it through the cracks. After the character posters came out, netizen Ralvin C. Dizon couldn’t help but make an edit of Yusuke or Eugene with none other than actress Eugene Domingo’s face — and another with Hiei or Vincent with the face of Jerry Yan (or better known as Meteor Garden’s Dao Ming Si). LOL.
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