Netflix Yu Yu Hakusho Actors Takumi Kitamura and Go Ayano Talk About Their Love For the Manga and Spirit Gun Practicing While Being Kids  

Netflix is about to premiere a live-action adaptation of another beloved shōnen manga series in the form of Yu Yu Hakusho by author Yoshihiro Togashi.

As we approach the release date of Yu Yu Hakusho live-action for Netflix, we caught up with actors Takumi Kitamura and Go Ayano for an interview as they talked about their experience filming the show.

Takumi Kitamura plays the protagonist Yusuke Urameshi, a high school delinquent who ended up in the Spirit World. Aside from Yusuke, Kitamura is also best known for his role as Takemichi Hanagaki in the live-action adaptation of Tokyo Revengers.

Meanwhile, Go Ayano plays Younger Toguro, the major antagonist of Yu Yu Hakusho along with his brother, Elder Toguro. Starting his career in 2003, Ayano has starred in several high-profile roles such as George “Joe” Asakura in Gatchaman and Nyx Ulric in Kingsglaive: Final Fantasy XV.

Yu Yu Hakusho was originally serialized in Shueisha’s Weekly Shōnen Jump in the 1990s and was one of the best-selling manga of all time. Not only is the manga extremely well received, the anime adaptation by Studio Pierrot also garnered positive praise.

[Interview is edited for clarity] 

Reactions of Getting the Role 

Considering how highly acclaimed the manga series is, the actors reacted with awe upon knowing they were offered a role in the live-action adaptation.

Kitamura specifically noted how iconic the manga is, saying “First, let me tell you how I feel. When I heard about the offer, I just could not believe the fact that I was given the role. Yu Yu Hakusho is not from my generation. Well, if it is my generation, it would be Hunter x Hunter. So this is one generation before mine.”

“Of course, I am quite familiar that Yu Yu Hakusho is very well known. Given the fact that I am going to play Yusuke Urameshi, the protagonist, I was just kind of puzzled but at the same time, was trying to find out how exactly I am going to tackle the role.”

“I have worked with Sho Tsukikawa, the director of the show for many years and realized that this is his challenge to the global industry. So, I also decided to pick up Yu Yu Hakusho once again to read and challenge myself with the director in this global platform given to me by Netflix.”

As for Go Ayano, he said, “I could not believe that I was offered a role. When you think about this, Yu Yu Hakusho is now more than 30 years old. Finally, the technology for creating the visuals like in the manga in a live-action series is possible now. This got me quite excited.”

“The director and everyone are very passionate about this project and we are about to make this happen. I am very excited but at the same a little scared because this does feel daunting.”

Staying True to Character 

One of the most defining elements of Yu Yu Hakusho is its character development and dynamics. The cast agreed and described how they go about striking a balance between staying true to the original characterization and adding their personal touches to the live-action portrayal.

Kitamura noted how he studied a lot from both the manga and anime adaptations of Yu Yu Hakusho and described the nuance of Yusuke’s character.

“I pay huge respect to the original. I read the manga when I was growing up. There are elements that I look into in the manga, like the way Yusuke walks and how much of a stride he has. These are the physical aspects I learned from the manga but also the anime, and that give him hints on what kind of voice he will be using.”

“At the same time, we are making a live-action film so there are certain elements that we can only get from the shooting site. While shooting, we the core cast members are able to bring in new ideas together, work together, and create something truly original and better.”

“I feel that that’s really where the miracle of us making a live-action film happens.”

Makeup and VFX

When bringing Younger Toguro to life, Ayano highlights the production team and their efforts in recreating the feel of the manga, including the costumes and makeup.

“Those elements create the Yu Yu Hakusho world. This is a collaboration effort and there is passion coming out from every single production team member. When we get together as actors, each of us is already prepared and ready to bring the show to life”

He also brought up the manga and praised author Yoshihiro Togashi for his wonderful creation and there is much to extract from it.

“What is extremely important is the image we have in our minds. There are technologies like VFX and CGI but it is still important for us to be able to create something analog through communication.”

“And for me, the most important element was how Takumi looked at me, the way his eyes looked away and came back to me. I wanted to make sure those were consistent from the first episode to the last. I wanted to make something great out of that.”

The Toguro Siblings

As mentioned, Go Ayano plays Younger Toguro, who along with his brother Elder Toguro are the main villains of the show. Elder Toguro will be played by Kenichi Takitō, known for his previous work in Rurouni Kenshin’s live-action movies as Hoji Sadojima. 

In the manga, Younger Toguro is drawn to be a very tall man and twice the size of Elder Toguro, who is often shown perched on his younger brother’s shoulders. To achieve a faithful recreation of the brothers on screen, Ayano went into detail about the production.

“Kenichi-san and I are about the same height. There was a lot of referencing during the shooting. Previously, I talked about being analog and there were a lot of analog elements that I was able to use during the process of shooting to make what you see of Toguro.”

“I did a lot of training for several months to put in not just the looks of Toguro but also to find some elements of distortion or pain in my body. I believe the process of building my body through hard work is an important element for me and Toguro.”

“Why Younger Toguro ended up always wearing sunglasses. That is because his eyes became like a yokai spirit. There may only be 0.01% of him who remains human, and I think by having that, he can come back between himself and Yusuke. That is how I interpret it.”

“What I wanted to state is that there is CGI but it would have to coincide with our performance. CGI is not going to resolve everything, and that is important to have in mind as we perform our roles.”

“We would have to make sure that there is a performance part, the actor’s performance, and that is very important. I feel that having technology and our performances coexist throughout the story is something that Takumi was able to perform, and I have huge respect for that.”

Playing a High Schooler 

In the manga, Yusuke is depicted as a junior high school student, which is a character much younger than actor Takumi Kitamura. However, he noted that it is not as challenging as it would seem to be playing a young character.

“First of all, the age setting is slightly different for the original and the live-action. The original one has Yusuke start as a junior high school student while the live-action story takes place when he is already in senior high.”

“As an actor, I’m quite used to playing young characters such as high schoolers or what we would call Yankee boys. From the setting to the background of the character itself, I am quite familiar with them.”

“It is true that it does take from 2 years to 2 and half years throughout preparation until we can shoot, which means that there is about a two-year age difference. So, I tried my best to make sure that people would not feel that there was an age gap. When playing action scenes, I must say that I hate a lot like like this student would.”

Being a Fan 

Before taking the role, we wondered how big of a fan the actors were for Yu Yu Hakusho so we asked about their experience with the manga or anime series. Kitamura was quick to answer with a resounding yes.

“The answer is, of course, yes! I had always been a fan ever since I was little. I am from Tokyo, and within Tokyo, there is a place called Nerima Ward. This place might as well be the center of anime culture and I love the manga among other choices.”

“I’m always been a fan and I think Togashi-sensei is a great manga writer. I think Go-san already mentioned that everybody does feel a great deal of pressure, but I think I must say that it is quite an exciting feeling to be able to perform under pressure.”

Go Ayano is also a big fan, saying ” I was exactly in the middle of the generation where Yu Yu Hakusho was extremely popular. So, I’ve been quite familiar with it since I was a kid. I must say, the manga and its story show us great diversity. These characters are not one big group but different individuals.”

“As I was growing up in the suburban area, we also used to practice the spirit gun and blade moves in the manga. Now thinking about it, I had never imagined that when I grew up I would be playing Toguro.”

Message to the Fans

Concluding the interview, both Takumi Kitamura and Go Ayano have a quick message for us, and the fans of Yu Yu Hakusho are excited about the Netflix live-action adaptation.

“I just wanted to say thank you to all of you for sharing this time because it is kind of true that it is difficult for Japanese IP to be brought into the global market. I think being able to have Netflix with us to show this Japanese series is very exciting and we all felt that it was a mission to be able to send this to the rest of the world,” said Kitamura-san.

“And I’m very grateful and I feel you’re all my friends and comrades to able to send this message to the rest of the world together. Thank you very much for spending time with us and thank you for watching.”

Ayano-san added, “We just wanted to say thank you to all of you because we already heard that you all have watched the Netflix live-action adaptation of Yu Yu Hakusho. We wanted to express our gratitude to all of you for watching before anybody else had a chance to watch.”

Here concludes the interview and we would like to thank Takumi Kitamura and Go Ayano for taking the time to answer our questions about Yu Yu Hakusho live-action for Netflix.

The live-action adaptation of Yu Yu Hakusho will premiere exclusively on Netflix on December 14th, 2023.

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