Last month, Western media reported that Japanese film giant Toei signed a deal with South African company Pambili for the co-production of a historical epic feature film tentatively titled Yasuke – Way of the Butterfly. According to Toei, this information is not accurate (as reported by The Sankei News).
Speaking to shareholders at a conference held on May 14, Toei’s executive vice president Koichi Wada explained that Toei did receive a proposal from a South African company for a historical movie about Oda Nobunaga’s retainer Yasuke, but denied signing a deal or starting production. He clarified that this is “one of several proposals we have received from overseas and are considering.”
Initial reports about the film’s production cited that the deal was publicly announced in Los Angeles on April 10. This is when Toei held an event to promote its Toei Studios Kyoto. It seems like some discussion about the proposal for Yasuke – Way of the Butterfly happened then, but Toei still hasn’t decided whether it will participate in production or not.
