# Blade of the 47 Ronin

Blade of the 47 Ronin is a 2022 American action fantasy film directed by Ron Yuan and written by John Swetnam, Aimee Garcia, and AJ Mendez, and is a sequel to 47 Ronin (2013). The film takes place 300 years after its predecessor, following the fight for the survival of the final descendants of the 47 Ronin.
Blade of the 47 Ronin was released as a Netflix Original Film on October 25, 2022.

## Plot

Three hundred years after the ronin samurai Oishi and Kai killed Master Kira and the witch Mizuki to avenge their master, Lord Asano, in the present day world where samurai and witch clans have existed only in complete secrecy, a witch, Yurei, seeks the mystical Tengu sword used by the 47 Ronin and intends to join it together with the Witch Sword. He killed all the descendants of the 47 Ronin who murdered his ancestor. Lord Arai, a descendant of the 47 Ronin, also seeks the mystical sword to stop Yurei. He recruits the aid of another witch, Hirano, to locate the Tengu sword. However, Yurei and his ninjas ambush and kill them both.
In Budapest, the samurai clan lords Okoro, Maeda, Shinshiro, Ikeda, and Niiko meet to discuss Lord Ari's death. They suspect Yurei was involved and threaten to destroy the samurai if they find the true descendant of the 47 Ronin. As foretold in an ancient prophecy, this descendant will conjure both the Witch and Warrior Blade and defeat Yurei. Onami, a swordswoman under Lord Shinshiro, decides to enlist Reo, a former Shinshiro agent and tracker, to locate the descendant before Yurei does.
Luna, an Asian American thief, was summoned to collect the inheritance following the death of Lord Arai, the Warrior Blade. She meets at a nightclub to sell it to a buyer, but Omani and Reo attempt to stop her before Shinshiro arrives. He takes them to his hotel with the other samurai lords, where Yurei and his ninjas attack them. The samurai lords repel the attack before Yurei escapes from them. Shinshiro takes Luna to meet Dash, the Record Keeper, and his assistant, Hanna. He has a vision that Yurei has completed the two swords together and will destroy the samurai.
Unable to contact the other lords, Shinshiro leaves to find them while Aya, Onami, Mai, and Reo train Luna. Onami and Reo leave Luna under Aya's care to head for the hotel to rendezvous with Shinshiro and the other samurai lords; however, Yurei's ninjas ambush them, and the samurai lords, including Shinshiro are killed before Onami and Reo escape with Lord Nikko and Mai. Meanwhile, Luna has visions of Yurei, who tells her she is actually a witch descendant and starts exhibiting witch powers. Dash examines the sword Luna carries, learning that it is actually the Witch Blade, and has a vision, revealing that Onami is the true descendant of the 47 Ronin. Before he can relay the information to the others, Hanna, who works for Yurei, kills him and Aya and steals the Witch Blade.
Enraged by Aya's death, Onami banishes Luna and prepares to take revenge against Yurei. Luna received Dash's message before his death, revealing to her the location of the Warrior Sword at Lord Arai's grave. Yurei reveals himself, having tracked Luna through witch magic, and convinces her to join him, but she refuses, so he takes Luna hostage. Yurei meets with Ikeda, who is revealed to be a traitor and the one who lends Yurei his ninjas to destroy the samurai so that he and the ninjas can take the seat of power. Onami and the rest of the samurai arrive to battle Yurei and the ninjas. Nikko kills Ikeda while Onami, Reo, and Luna battle Yurei, but he overpowers all of them. Luna attempts to stab Yurei with the Tengu Sword, but he is unaffected as it can only be wielded by the true descendant. Onami grabs the sword, which responds to her. Luna pins Yurei with her witch magic before Onami kills Yurei with the Tengu Sword. Onami reconciles with Luna and is welcomed into the samurai clan for her bravery. Onami is inaugurated and becomes Shinshiro's successor as a samurai lord.

## Cast

* Anna Akana as Luna
* Mark Dacascos as Shinshiro
* Teresa Ting as Onami
* Mike Moh as Reo
* Dustin Nguyen as Nikko
* Chris Pang as Arai
* Daniel Southworth as Yurei
* Nino Furuhata as Dash
* Chikako Fukuyama as Aya
* Yoshi Sudarso as Sun
* Enikõ Fülöp as Hana
* Luna Fujimoto as Mai
* Akira Koieyama as Ikeda
* Dai Tabuchi as Hirano
* Gen Seto as Maeda
* Michael Daramola as Okoro

## Production
### Development

In August 2020, a sequel to 47 Ronin was announced to be in development with Ron Yuan serving as director. The project was described by the filmmaker as "genre-blending", as a combination of martial arts, action, horror and cyber-punk genres. The plot of the film will take place 300 years "into the future", and will be produced by Universal 1440 Entertainment and distributed by Netflix. Production began in the first quarter of 2021.
In April 2021, Aimee Garcia and AJ Mendez joined the production as co-screenwriters; the pair of writing-collaborators' first feature film credit. By December 2021, it was revealed that John Swetnam had also joined the project as an additional screenwriter.

### Casting

By December 2021, Anna Akana and Mark Dacascos joined the cast in leading roles; while Teresa Ting, Mike Moh, Dustin Nguyen, Yoshi Sudarso, and Chris Pang serve as the supporting cast.

### Filming

Principal photography had commenced by December 2021 in Budapest, Hungary. Additionally, it was clarified that the plot will be set 300 years after the first film, as opposed to being set "in the future". The fictional plot, set in modern-day, centers around factions of Samurai who have operated in secrecy for centuries. The primary cast was announced, with Tim Kwok named as producer. The film will be a joint-venture production between Universal Pictures, Universal 1440 Entertainment, and Scrappy Heart Productions, and distributed by Netflix.

## Release

Blade of the 47 Ronin was released on October 25, 2022, via streaming by Universal Filmed Entertainment Group as a Netflix Original Film.

## Future

In October 2022, following the popularity of Blade of the 47 Ronin through its streaming release, it was announced that a third film is in development.