A big step in Netflix’s world domination plan is to release 80 (yup, you read that right) original films in 2018. Releasing so many films, it gives them a chance to try their hand at several different genres to reach the widest audiences. So far, the pictures they’ve released this year have ranged from a sci-fi franchise thriller to a Sundance dramedy and beyond, and now they have a yakuza flick coming with “The Outsider.”
“The Outsider” stars actual Academy Award winner and method actor Jared Leto alongside Tadanobu Asano, Rory Cochrane, Shiori Kutsuna, Emile Hirsch, and Kippei Shiina. The story is set in post-WWII Japan and follows a jailed American soldier who is freed by his Yakuza cellmate, and must navigate the criminal underworld and repay his debt.
Before Netflix acquired worldwide distribution rights in 2016, the film had already been in the works for a long time. A script was written in 2011, it bounced around to different studios, and had high profile names like Michael Fassbender and Tom Hardy attached to it. But, the streaming giant saved it from production limbo and brought in a vast array of talent.
Danish filmmaker Martin Zandvliet will be making his English language debut with this film. Zandvliet is best known for his previous film “Land of Mine” which received near universal acclaim and went on to be nominated for Best Foreign Language Film at the 89th Academy Awards.
Andrew Baldwin (“Bastille Day“) co-wrote the script with John Linson (best known as the producer of Alfonso Cuaron‘s “Great Expectations” and “Lords Of Dogtown“). This is only Baldwin’s second script to make it to the big screen, but he’s been the talk of the town for a few years. Baldwin’s first script, “The West Is Dead,” landed on the Black List in 2008. Then, in 2011, his screenplay for “The Outsider” ended up in fourth place on the Black List. Most recently, Universal tapped him to write the next “Jason Bourne” sequel starring Jeremy Renner (though that movie will probably never happen).
“The Outsider” hits Netflix on March 9th.