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The latest work and live-action movie “Rurouni Kenshin: The Final/The Beginning” of the”Rurouni Kenshin” series will premiere nationwide from Jul. 3 and Aug. 7, 2020 in two consecutive movies. It has also been announced that Arimura Kasumi will be joining the cast as Yukishiro Tomoe, who was once the wife of Himura Kenshin.

The “Final Chapter” consists of two parts; “The Final”, which is based on the last arc of the original work “Jinchuu Arc” where the ultimate climax is depicted, and “The Beginning” which is based on the “Trust & Betrayal Arc” that chronicles the original story of Himura Kenshin, approaching the <mystery of the cross-shaped wound>. “The Beginning”, which depicts the end of the Edo period, is the last work in the series, but it is also considered as the first work chronologically speaking.

The latest story revolves around Himura Kenshin, who was once feared as the legendary assassin “Hitokiri Battousai”, but with the dawn of a new era, he started living a pacific life by wielding a <Sakabatou> (lit. “reverse-blade sword”), a katana incapable of killing. However, a succession of attacks started happening all of a sudden in central Tokyo caused by someone. Kenshin and his friends’ lives are now in danger. Who is behind this? For what purpose? It seems to be related to the Kenshin’s past of Kenshin, which has never been revealed until now, and it is also connected to the mystery of the unvanished cross-shaped wound…

It has been announced that Arimura Kasumi will be joining the cast as Yukishiro Tomoe, the former wife of Kenshin.
At the Bakumatsu, the era of the heartless assassin Hitokiri Battousai, the wife Yukishiro Tomoe was cut down by Kenshin’s own sword regardless of her love for him. Tomoe is deeply involved in the cross-shaped scar on Kenshin’s face, and she is also related to the reason of Enishi’s revenge to Kenshin in the final chapter, “The Final”.
The poster shows Tomoe standing in the middle of a snow setting that looks far away while expressing a sense of ephemeral fragility.

The movie “Rurouni Kenshin The Final” will premiere nationwide from Jul. 3, 2020, while “The Beginning” is scheduled for Aug.7.

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[Arimura Kasumi as Yukishiro Tomoe]
“The producer said to me, ‘This episode is not possible without Tomoe.’ These films have been highly valued by fans of the original manga and movie’s fans since the first work, and also have been carefully created by Satou Takeru-san, the other cast and staff members, and the director. So, while feeling happy with it, I felt a lot of pressure at the same time.

When I talked with Satou-san at the filming site, he said, ‘It is the work that I have cherished. The creation of Kenshin’s role in the first film seven years ago started from Tomoe.’ I deeply felt the weight of his words that Tomoe had been in the center of his character Kenshin for seven years, and that’s how the character had been created until today.

I felt how much he had loved ‘Rurouni Kenshin’ as I sat next to him. There were a lot of things he could do in action and acting because he knew what he wanted to express in himself. I respected him when I saw him acting up close, and thought once again how great he was as an actor”.

[Satou Takeru as Himura Kenshin]
The cross-shaped wound on Kenshin’s face is a symbol of grief, and as long as it remains, Kenshin will always feel miserable.
After the encounter with Tomoe and her death, Kenshin swore to not kill anyone and start a wandering journey to protect the peace of townspeople.

The three works of the Rurouni Kenshin series produced so far depicted a new story of Kenshin, who became a wanderer after his original past.
In other words, Yukishiro Tomoe had always been at the center of my thoughts while playing those movies.

On the first day of the filming session’s part 1, when I realized that a new era would come after the battle of Toba-Fushimi, when Shishio Makoto killed her beloved woman in front of me, and every time I tried to reconsider myself as Kenshin, my thoughts always went to Tomoe. At that time, I used to take a deep breath and then start working on the set.

On the first day of the filming session of The Beginning, what had been at the center of my thoughts for seven years suddenly appeared in front of me. I felt an inevitable sense of nostalgia when I first met Arimura as Tomoe. Since that moment, the days of shooting had been painful and sad, but at the same time, when I look back on those days, I feel like I had never experienced such beautiful and unique moments.

Like Kenshin, another man who feels a deep love for Tomoe, her young brother Yukishiro Enishi. After finishing the duel with Enishi at The Final’s most intense scene and facing him while staring at Arata’s eyes, I was finally able to accept the end of the story.

I think I put all my efforts and heart into this series.
I hope that this movie will be completed and released without problems, and I would like to thank all those who have supported us, including my colleagues whom I struggled with in this long journey.

(C) Watsuki Nobuhiro / Shueisha (C) 2020 Movie “Rurouni Kenshin Final Chapter The Final/The Beginning” Production Committee