Chadwick Boseman Set To Play The African Samurai YASUKE in Upcoming Film

A couple weeks ago we learned that the awesome story of the only African Samurai in history in feudal Japan was being made into a movie. The warrior’s name is Yasuke, which will be the title of the film, and he will be played by Chadwick Boseman (Black Panther).

Boseman taking on the role of Yasuke seems like the perfect choice. He’s a great actor and he was the first actor to pop in my head when the project was first announced. There’s no doubt he’ll be able to pull it off and deliver a great performance. The actor had this to say in a statement:

“The legend of Yasuke is one of history’s best kept secrets, the only person of non-Asian origin to become a Samurai. That’s not just an action movie, that’s a cultural event, an exchange, and I am excited to be part of it.”

There’s no director attached to the film yet, but the script is now being written by Doug Miro, co-creator of the Netflix series Narcos and these are the story details that were shared:

A native of Portuguese Mozambique, Yasuke was taken captive and brought to 16th-century Japan as a slave to Jesuit missionaries. The first black man to set foot on Japanese soil, Yasuke’s arrival arouses the interest of Oda Nobunaga, a ruthless warlord seeking to unite the fractured country under his banner. The script focuses on the complex relationship between the two men as Yasuke earns Nobunaga’s friendship, respect — and ultimately, the honor, swords and title of samurai.

There’s also a book that is going to be released on Yasuke called, African Samurai: The True Story of Yasuke, a Legendary Black Warrior in Feudal Japan. The book was written by Thomas Lockley and Geoffrey Girard and it will be released on April 30th.

Here’s the description of the book:

When Yasuke arrived in Japan in the late 1500s, he had already traveled much of the known world. Kidnapped as a child, he had ended up a servant and bodyguard to the head of the Jesuits in Asia, with whom he traversed India and China learning multiple languages as he went. His arrival in Kyoto, however, literally caused a riot. Most Japanese people had never seen an African man before, and many of them saw him as the embodiment of the black-skinned (in local tradition) Buddha. Among those who were drawn to his presence was Lord Nobunaga, head of the most powerful clan in Japan, who made Yasuke a samurai in his court. Soon, he was learning the traditions of Japan’s martial arts and ascending the upper echelons of Japanese society.

Boseman most recently starred in the Russo Bros. upcoming film 21 Bridges. What do you think about the actor taking on the role of Yasuka in this upcoming film?

Source: Deadline