Netflix sets Last Samurai Standing for Nov 13, 2025

Netflix will release Last Samurai Standing, a six-episode Japanese samurai epic starring Junichi Okada, on Nov. 13, 2025, after the streaming service screens the first two episodes at the 30th Busan International Film Festival on Sept. 18. The series, adapted from Shogo Imamura's Ikusagami novels and its manga adaptation, stages a late 19th century Meiji-era battle royale in which 292 warriors gather at Kyoto's Tenryuji Temple and must steal wooden tags from rivals while racing to Tokyo for a prize of 100 billion yen.

The plot centers on Shujiro Saga, played by Okada, who joins the deadly contest to win money for his sick wife and child. Under the official synopsis, the game begins at night and quickly devolves into brutal, sword-focused combat as participants fight to be the last competitor standing. Netflix and production notes say the action sequences combine modern computer graphics with practical effects to achieve heightened realism and visceral close-quarters fighting.

Producers have framed the show as both a tribute to samurai spirit and a large-scale action spectacle. Director Michihito Fujii is credited as lead director, with Yamaguchi Kento and Yamamoto Toru also...