Sequel begins filling out cast.
Variety is reporting that Will Yun Lee (‘Total Recall,’ ‘Die Another Day’) has been cast as the villain opposite Hugh Jackman in ‘The Wolverine.’
Yun Lee will be playing Keniuchio Harada, aka The Silver Samurai. Harada is the illegitimate mutant son of Japanese Yakuza crime boss Shingen Yashida. Keniuchio has the ability to generate a tachyon field, with which he can surround anything. He commonly uses his power on his sword, enabling it to slice through any known substance, excluding adamantium. Following his father’s death, Harada sought the leadership of Shingen’s Clan Yashida from his half-sister Mariko Yashida, but was opposed by the ronin Yukio and Mariko’s lover, the mutant adventurer Wolverine.
ComingSoon has received word that Japanese models Tao Okamoto and Rila Fukushima will star as Mariko and Yukio, respectively, while Hiroyuki Sanada (‘Rush Hour 3,’ ‘The Last Samurai’) and veteran actor Hal Yamanouchi (‘The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou,’ ‘Sinbad of the Seven Seas’) are attached for supporting roles. THR reports that Brian Tee (‘The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift’) will play Noburo Mori, a corrupt minister of justice who is about to marry Mariko.
Production on ‘The Wolverine’ is scheduled to begin next month in Australia with James Mangold (‘Knight and Day,’ ‘3:10 to Yuma,’ ‘Walk the Line’) in the director’s chair. The screenplay was penned by Christopher McQuarrie (‘Jack Reacher,’ ‘Valkyrie,’ ‘Way of the Gun’) based on Chris Claremont and Frank Miller’s miniseries that premiered in the 1980s.