A promotional video for the Yowamushi Pedal live-action film was recently streamed in Shochiku Co. Ltd.’s official Youtube channel. The promo video shows behind-the-scenes footage from the film—as in the actors legitimately biking uphill and getting really exhausted after. See the dedication of the actors in the video here!
The film stars King & Prince member Ren Nagase as lead character Sakamichi Onoda. Nagase underwent intensive bicycle training since December 2019 for the role.
The other lead characters are:
· Kentaro Ito as Shunsuke Imaizumi
· Kanna Hashimoto as Miki Kanzaki
· Ryouta Bandou as Shoukichi Naruko
· Ryou Ryuusei as Shingo Kinjou
· Shuntaro Yanagi as Yusuke Makishima
· Ken Sugawara as Jin Tadokoro
· Mizuki Inoue as Terufumi Sugimoto
· Sarutoki Minagawa as Koji Kanzaki
The film is directed by Kouichiro Miki, who also directed the live-action film Anonymous Noise.
Yowamushi Pedal centers around the introverted otaku Sakamichi Onoda. Upon entering high school he wanted to join his school’s otaku club to make new friends but sadly the club has been disbanded. One day, fellow freshman and serious cyclist Shunsuke Imaizumi sees Onoda effortlessly pedaling his old mamachari bike (a “mommy bike”—utilitarian and designed for short distance-travel) up a steep hill. Another cyclist in their school, Shoukichi Naaruko, sees Onoda’s skill on the mamachari. Both students then convince Onoda to join the bicycle racing club of their high school, Sohoku.
The manga was first published in 2008 in Akita Shoten’s Weekly Shonen Champion magazine. In 2013, it was the adapted into a TV anime series, and its success led to three more seasons: Yowamushi Pedal Grande Road (season 2) in 2014, Yowamushi Pedal: New Generation (season 3) in 2015, and Yowamushi Pedal: Glory Line (season 4) in 2018. The manga has also inspired several anime movies, an OVA, a live-action TV series, and 14 stage play productions.
Source: Anime News Network