On July 17, 2026, from 9:00 PM to 11:24 PM on Nippon Television’s “Friday Road Show,” a special edition of the live-action film series based on Yasuhisa Hara’s best-selling manga Kingdom will air. Titled Kingdom: Shin and Ouki and the General, this one-night-only broadcast is a re-edited version centered on the third film Kingdom: Flame of Destiny and the fourth film Kingdom: Return of the Great General, leading directly into the latest installment, Kingdom: Soul’s Decisive Battle, which opens in theaters the same day.
This article summarizes the special edition’s synopsis, live-action cast, and characters.
Broadcast Information
July 17, 2026 9:00 PM – 11:24 PM
Nippon Television Network
Synopsis
Set during the Spring and Autumn period of ancient China, where seven states have warred for 500 years, the story follows Shin (Mackenyu Arata), an orphan who rises from the battlefield. After meeting the young King of Qin, Ei Sei (Ryō Yoshizawa), who bears an uncanny resemblance to his deceased best friend, Shin joins forces with him to unify China. Together with his comrades, Shin pursues his dream of becoming “the greatest general under heaven.”
Kingdom: Flame of Destiny new scene photo (C) Yasuhisa Hara / Shueisha (C) 2023 Kingdom Film Partners
Their path is threatened when the neighboring state of Zhao, nursing a long-standing grudge against Qin, launches a massive invasion. To counter the brutal Zhao army, Ei Sei appoints the legendary Great General Ouki (Takao Ōsawa) as supreme commander. The decisive battle takes place at Bayang, a place of deep personal significance for Ouki. Shin, now a captain leading 100 soldiers, is given the name “Hi Shin Unit” by Ouki and assigned the reckless mission of defeating an enemy general commanding 20,000 troops.
After the Battle of Bayang, Shin and his comrades defeat the enemy general, only to be confronted by the hidden supreme commander of Zhao, Houken (Kōji Kikkawa), who calls himself the “God of War.” His overwhelming power claims many lives in the Hi Shin Unit. Meanwhile, Ouki senses another monster lurking in Zhao’s shadows.
Film Kingdom: Return of the Great General
Who is the strategist Ri Boku (Shun Oguri), who stands silently behind Houken? Why were Ouki and Houken drawn to Bayang? An unforgettable battle begins at the land of intertwined fates.
Cast
Shin: Mackenyu Arata
Ei Sei: Ryō Yoshizawa
Karyō Ten: Kanna Hashimoto
Kyō Kai: Yuna Kiyose
Shika: Anne
Mangoku: Yūki Yamada
Kyou: Yūko Araki
Houken: Kōji Kikkawa
Shoubunkun: Masahiro Takashima
Tou: Jun Kaname
Shishi: Masaya Katō
Chō Sō: Kōji Yamamoto
Shō Ō: Masao Kusakari
Yō Tan Wa: Masami Nagasawa
Shōheikun: Hiroshi Tamaki
Ryo Fui: Kōichi Satō
Ri Boku: Shun Oguri
Ōki: Takao Ōsawa
Staff
Original Story: Yasuhisa Hara, Kingdom (serialized in Shueisha’s Weekly Young Jump)
Director: Shinsuke Satō
Screenplay: Tsutomu Kuroiwa, Yasuhisa Hara
Music: Yutaka Yamada
Character Introductions
Shin: Mackenyu Arata
(C) Yasuhisa Hara / Shueisha (C) 2023 Kingdom Film Partners
Ei Sei / Hyō: Ryō Yoshizawa
(C) Yasuhisa Hara / Shueisha (C) 2023 Kingdom Film Partners
Shika: Anne
(C) Yasuhisa Hara / Shueisha (C) 2023 Kingdom Film Partners
Mangoku: Yūki Yamada
(C) Yasuhisa Hara / Shueisha (C) 2023 Kingdom Film Partners
Fūki: Ainosuke Kataoka
(C) Yasuhisa Hara / Shueisha (C) 2023 Kingdom Film Partners
Chō Sō: Kōji Yamamoto
(C) Yasuhisa Hara / Shueisha (C) 2023 Kingdom Film Partners
Ōki: Takao Ōsawa
Karyō Ten: Kanna Hashimoto
(C) Yasuhisa Hara / Shueisha (C) 2024 Kingdom Film Partners
Kyō Kai: Yuna Kiyose
(C) Yasuhisa Hara / Shueisha (C) 2024 Kingdom Film Partners
Mangoku: Yūki Yamada
(C) Yasuhisa Hara / Shueisha (C) 2024 Kingdom Film Partners
Bi Hei: Amane Okayama
(C) Yasuhisa Hara / Shueisha (C) 2024 Kingdom Film Partners
Bi Tō: Takahiro Miura
Kyou: Yūko Araki
(C) Yasuhisa Hara / Shueisha (C) 2024 Kingdom Film Partners
Shoubunkun: Masahiro Takashima
(C) Yasuhisa Hara / Shueisha (C) 2024 Kingdom Film Partners
Tou: Jun Kaname
(C) Yasuhisa Hara / Shueisha (C) 2024 Kingdom Film Partners
Shishi: Masaya Katō
Mō Bu: Yūsuke Hirayama
(C) Yasuhisa Hara / Shueisha (C) 2024 Kingdom Film Partners
Chō Sō: Kōji Yamamoto
(C) Yasuhisa Hara / Shueisha (C) 2024 Kingdom Film Partners
Shō Ō: Masao Kusakari
(C) Yasuhisa Hara / Shueisha (C) 2024 Kingdom Film Partners
Yō Tan Wa: Masami Nagasawa
(C) Yasuhisa Hara / Shueisha (C) 2024 Kingdom Film Partners
Shōheikun: Hiroshi Tamaki
(C) Yasuhisa Hara / Shueisha (C) 2024 Kingdom Film Partners
Ryo Fui: Kōichi Satō
(C) Yasuhisa Hara / Shueisha (C) 2024 Kingdom Film Partners
Ri Boku: Shun Oguri
(C) Yasuhisa Hara / Shueisha (C) 2024 Kingdom Film Partners
Latest Film: Kingdom: Soul’s Decisive Battle
Release Date
July 17 (Friday) nationwide release
Staff
◆ Original Story: Yasuhisa Hara, Kingdom (serialized in Shueisha’s Weekly Young Jump)
◆ Director: Shinsuke Satō ◆ Screenplay: Tsutomu Kuroiwa, Yasuhisa Hara ◆ Music: Yutaka Yamada
◆ Theme Song: Kenshi Yonezu “Yataka” (Sony Music Labels Inc.)
Cast
Mackenyu Arata
Ryō Yoshizawa, Kanna Hashimoto, Yuna Kiyose, Shinnosuke Mitsushima, Amane Okayama
Jun Shison, Fūju Kamiki, Kōsei Kizuki, Miyuka Sanjo, Ryōki Miyama, Mizuki Yamashita / Aju Makita
Yūki Yamada / Kenji Sakaguchi
Etsushi Toyokawa
Masahiro Takashima, Jun Kaname, Masaya Katō, Mitsuomi Takahashi, Yūsuke Hirayama, Wataru Ichinose, Yui Sakuma, Katsuya
Jūrō Bandō, Satoshi Hashimoto, Kōji Suzuka, Ayumu Tanada, Sōsuke Ikematsu, Kei Tanaka, Takumi Saitō
Hiroshi Tamaki / Kōichi Satō
Shun Oguri
Kingdom: Soul’s Decisive Battle poster visual (C) Yasuhisa Hara / Shueisha (C) 2026 Kingdom Film Partners
Story
Three years after the Battle of Bayang, where Qin lost Ōki, the protagonist Shin (Mackenyu Arata) has been promoted to commander of a thousand men, steadily advancing toward his dream of becoming the greatest general. But urgent reports flood Qin: Ri Boku (Shun Oguri), the chancellor of Zhao, has orchestrated an alliance of all other states against Qin. A combined army of 500,000—the “Gōsōgun”—invades Qin one after another.
In the palace of Xianyang, young King Ei Sei (Ryō Yoshizawa) and his court scramble to respond, but facing 200,000 Qin troops against 500,000 from six states, the nation teeters on the brink of extinction. Shin, alongside fellow young generals Mō Ten (Jun Shison) and Ō Hon (Fūju Kamiki), heads to the Qin border fortress of Kankoku Pass. There, Qin’s greatest generals—Hyō Kō (Etsushi Toyokawa), Mō Bu (Yūsuke Hirayama), Tou (Jun Kaname), Ō Sen (Ayumu Tanada), and Kanki (Kenji Sakaguchi)—gather. The allied forces are led by Shunshinkun (Takumi Saitō) of Chu as supreme commander, with Zhao’s fierce general Mangoku (Yūki Yamada) bearing a grudge against Qin, among other powerful generals. For the dream of unifying China, Qin faces its greatest crisis, where defeat is not an option. The fateful Battle of Kankoku Pass begins.
— Erika Satō
