För några månader sedan avslöjades att Like a Dragon-spelen ska filmatiseras i en TV-serie kallad Like a Dragon: Yakuza, vilken har premiär på Amazon Prime Video den 24 oktober. Serien följer Kazuma Kiryu (som hade huvudrollen innan Ichiban Kasuga tog över), och han spelas av Ryoma Takeuchi.
I en intervju hos IGN berättar nu Takeuchi mer om hur han ser på den populäre protagonisten Kiryu, och säger:
"I think we all unconsciously chase after what is missing in our lives, and we all want to be loved. With this in mind, I thought about what Kiryu might be searching for in Kamurocho, as he strives to become the Dragon of Dojima. He wants a family, he wants love, and he doesn't even realize how much this drives him. He is a hero who lives his life with honesty, but he fights when he has to fight, and he sometimes makes mistakes."
Han kommer dock inte försöka kopiera spelens version av Kiryu rakt av, utan förklarar att han vill försöka ge honom en egen twist för att kunna göra det på sitt sätt:
"I have great respect for the feelings of the fans. But when I play a character, I have to express them in my own way, so I can't pay attention to the preconceptions of others. I researched the games for myself, to identify Kiryu's qualities and embody them in my own way. Of course, I hope the fans will be happy with my portrayal — but I can say with confidence that I've done my best to play Kiryu. There's no point in trying to surpass the original game; rather I wanted to show respect to the games while making something new as an artist."
Och det låter väl som ett sunt resonemang, eller vad tycker ni?