A live-action adaptation of Tite Kubo's popular Japanese manga and anime series "Bleach" was announced back in August 2016, much to the excitement of fans. Now, after over a year of not hearing anything about the project, Warner Brothers (WB) Japan finally revealed that the movie is nearing completion and will be released in Japanese theaters this year.
WB Japan confirmed that "Bleach" will be hitting cinemas on July 20 this year and is directed by Shinsuke Sato ("GANTZ," "I Am a Hero"). The movie will focus on the "Substitute Shinigami" arc (volumes 1 to 8) that tells the story of how Ichigo Kurosaki, a spiritually sensitive fifteen-year-old, came to be a "Shinigami" — or Soul Reaper in the English adaptation — after a fateful encounter with one.
The movie's official webpage released a 30-second trailer back in July 2017, showing the main character fighting a "hollow," one of the series' recurring enemies. The trailer ended by showing the 2018 release but nothing has been heard from the project since then, as WB was being very secretive about the project's development.
Aside from the release date, the only confirmed information everyone had by far was the fact that Kurosaki will be played by Sota Fukushi ("Kamen Rider Fourze," "Blade of the Immortal"), and it is unknown which other characters would be making the transition from the manga to the big screen.
Yesterday, however, an image of the series' other main protagonist, Rukia Kuchiki, was revealed. She will be played by 20-year-old Hana Sugisaki, who recently took part in another live-action adaptation, "Blade of the Immortal," in 2017.
Sugisaki admits that the most effective way to get the feel of Rukia's character was by consulting the source material itself. Anime website Crunchyroll quoted the actress saying: "In order to play Rukia, who is a powerful and pure Soul Reaper, I read the original manga over and over again and also watched the anime. I examined Rukia in my own way to prepare for the character."
With the announcement of Rukia, it may be possible that WB could reveal several other major characters in the weeks ahead.
